Thursday, December 11, 2014

It's the most wonderful time of the year!

It's the hap-happiest season of all! You heard me. We're happy over here!

The Christmas lights are up, the mantle is decorated and our tree will be going up this weekend! SO excited! I love that people are posting photos of their trees all decked out with tinsel and garland and children's hand-made ornaments. It's making me so excited for our own tree-decorating ritual, but it's too early yet. Every year, we get a real tree, and though we have to wait until a little closer to Christmas to put it up, it's totally worth the wait. The challenge of cutting the trunk just right so that the tree sits perfectly in the stand, the revelation of the tree's imperfect shape once the branches have had a chance to fall, and the smell of fresh pine throughout the house all season long (because that's what Christmas is supposed to smell like!). It reminds me of Christmases when I was a child, and there could be nothing better.


Christmas is a magical time. (Nothing will ever top the magic of Brennen's trip to the North Pole last year). I love the sights and sounds of the holidays - the hustle and bustle of shoppers searching for the perfect gifts and stocking stuffers, the smell of cinnamon and nutmeg coming from my Mom's gourmet kitchen, and the holiday traditions that are passed down through generations. Growing up with grandparents who are no longer here, and relatives who are no longer close, it is now my turn to instill years of favourite memories into my own little family.

Here are some of our favourite recent Christmas memories (in photos):













If there is one thing we know for sure about Christmas, it's that it's not all about the presents. It's about spending time with the ones you love and making meaningful memories as a family.  As Bruce Templeton says in his book The Man in the Red Suit, "It's your presence with your family that matters a whole lot more than anything that's under the tree. It's your presence, not presents that counts."

We have a busy weekend coming up, full of Christmas parties, holiday get-togethers and guaranteed magical memories. I look forward to posting an update with all of that! In the meantime, there are gifts to be wrapped, envelopes to be addressed and ginger cookies to be made!


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