December Daily - December 20

This is the December 20 assignment from the Holidays in Hand class I took from Jessica Sprague.

Christmas is the gentlest, loveliest festival of the revolving year - and yet, for all that, when it speaks, its voice has strong authority.  ~W.J. Cameron

Write about something you feel incredibly blessed and grateful for.  Oh, that's easy!  My family, but especially my children. It's not that I don't feel blessed with the husband I have - or that I'm ungrateful for him - but I didn't long for him like I did for our children.  And honestly, I'm at a point in life where I need to remind myself how long I waited and how I yearned and how I cried and prayed like Hannah for Samuel.   By the time Elizabeth Jane was born, we'd waited 9 days shy of 10 years for her!  What a joy.  And when each baby was added, we were overjoyed - and yes, overwhelmed.  But oh, what sweetness they have brought into my life.  I laugh at things I never thought I'd laugh at.  I've said things I never thought I'd say ("get your finger out of your brother's nose", for instance). I've done things I said I'd never do (why, yes, that is an inflatable snowglobe in my front yard, thankyouverymuch).  :)   I hear my mother in my voice - saying the very things that used to make me roll my eyes.  Well, since I'm being honest here - they still make me roll my eyes only now I'm doing it at myself because "I can't believe I just said that, I sound just like my mother!!"  Yes, my children - I am incredibly blessed to have them and grateful for them.


The photo today is "smiles, hands, hugs, laughter, or the thing you're grateful for"  How about a sample?  I love this photo of Harrison-boy - asleep in front of the tree:

  
Do - we are having Annie's birthday party today so that's our "do" - what fun it will be.   No "make" activity today.


Remember:  If you're a parent, how have the holidays changed since you've had children?  Do you celebrate differently now?    I've changed the way I decorate the tree - and this year, there aren't any ornaments on the bottom third of my tree since Harrison pulls everything off that he can reach.  This is actually the first time I've had to do that!  All decorating is different, definitely more child-friendly.  And we've added a "yard ornament" with our big, inflatable snowglobe.  :)   There's the added fun of buying gifts and hiding them (which is getting to be difficult!!).  We hang a "Santa key" on our front door - it only works for him.  We put out magical reindeer oats (oats and sanding sugar).  We leave a plate of cookies and a can of Dr. Pepper out for Santa (bet you didn't know Santa likes Dr. Pepper, did you?).   I jump at every noise after the kids go to bed, afraid someone is going to walk out while I'm wrapping gifts - not so much that they'll know about Santa (two of them already do) but that they'll see what they're getting.   I view all the decorations through the eyes of a child - and the more Clark Griswold-y it is, the more they love it -- and that, my friends, makes it FUN.  :)