Christmas Gifts

Hallelujah! Every outside commitment I have is done, my husband finished up his work project, the kids are off from school and all I have left to be ready for Christmas is a bit of wrapping and cooking a turkey. To say I am relieved is an understatement. Now that the good but busy-ness of Christmas is done, I feel more peaceful and like I can take a quiet moment to really feel the spirit of it all. 

Today as I was making cinnamon rolls and listening to Christmas music, I felt such gratitude for my parents. There is something about Christmas that always makes me think back to childhood and those special years of celebrating as a kid with my sisters and parents. My mom is a wonderful cook and she makes the best cinnamon rolls in the world. They are different than most people's cinnamon rolls and take a special touch to make them turn out just right. The first half of mine came out well but the second half were near perfect and I had this moment of joyful success! She has taught me how to make delicious homemade bread, amazing cinnamon rolls, how to can peaches and make applesauce, how to get every part of a dinner ready at the same time, how to love and serve and make people feel at home while entertaining. I remember receiving fun gifts at Christmas, like Cabbage Patch dolls and roller skates and stuffed animals and one year a ping pong table, but I appreciate now that the most important gifts she has given me are her good example and all that she has taught me to do and be. 

Many of my fondest memories of Christmas involve my dad. I remember how exciting it was when he pulled out our living room couches from the wall so that he could put lights up around the windows. I loved being his helper and playing behind the couches while Christmas music was playing. We could never put enough icicles on the tree and he made us put them on strand by strand so that the tree wasn't messy. He always has Christmas music playing and when I was thousands of miles away on my mission, missing Christmas for the first time, he sent me a tape of music that immediately made me feel at home and comforted. 

Every year on Christmas Eve we have a special dinner then we sing songs, read a Christmas story, read from Luke 2 and act it out, then we put our Christmas presents in our spot. We have a village under our tree because my dad always taught us the tree represents the love of God and it spreads over all the world, represented my our little village. So we always had our presents just stacked in the corner of the dining room or hidden in my mom's closet. But before bed on Christmas Eve, dad would turn the music on and we'd organize all of the presents and put them where we were going to sit in the morning. It was always my favorite moment to see all the bright packages and feel the excitement of Santa coming to bring a gift or wonder what surprises were hidden inside. 

My parents tend to travel around to all of our homes now for Christmas so it has been years since I spent one in their home but one of my dad's most special gifts to me is one of family togetherness and those special, loving feelings that come with tradition. I continue these traditions with my children and as I see their joy and feel their excitement, I feel such love and gratitude that my parents made Christmas so special for me and equipped me to be able to do the same for my family. They are two of my greatest gifts and two of my most loyal readers so Merry Christmas, Mom and Dad! I love you!