My mom, my sister and I all have the same Nativity set. This is something that I look forward to getting out every year. I missed it last year.
We put up our tree after Thanksgiving. It is a fake tree that we have had for probably 8 years or so. It is alot of work to put up and decorate but it is a big part of Christmas for the kids.
I didn't realize how important it was until we didn't have a tree last year. In Guatemala, you can't just go to the local store and buy a Christmas tree. We ended up improvising and had a branch that served as our tree (see blog entry "Christmas Eve"). It was a little different than our "normal" tree but I realized that it was more about working together as a family than it was about the actual tree.
We went to a "Christmas Pageant" this year with my sister and her family. They had a whole Bethlehem scene that included camels, sheep and a donkey. Hannah took this picture as we were waiting for it to start.
Samuel, Bethany, Naomi, Hannah and Julia as we waited to go in and find seats.
Caleb was not really interested in anything called a "pageant" until he saw this part of the set. It was set-up to look like a scene from an army base including an "anti-aircraft gun".
We enjoyed the pageant but it was really about doing something with my sister and her family.
Our friends, the Kolars, came over and surprised us with Christmas carolling. We really enjoyed their singing and the treats but the best part was just spending time with them.
We celebrated our family Christmas last night. One of our traditions is to read a Christmas book that we bought when Caleb was very young. We did not have it last year because I forgot to pack it and we really missed it. It doesn't seem right to open any presents until Don reads to us!
The "homemade" gifts were a highlight of the evening especially for the "makers" of the gifts.
Christmas Eve is in two days. As I think about the preparations and things that we have done leading up to Christmas this year, I am finding that the time spent with family and friends along with the things that help us to focus on the true meaning of Christmas are the important things. We are trying to teach our kids that we give gifts at Christmas because God gave us the greatest Gift of all in His Son, Jesus. We want Him to be the focus of our Christmas. We pray that He is the focus of yours as well. Merry Christmas!
