Christmas Joys

This year I have been surprised by how powerful the little things we are doing as a family this Christmas season have been in helping us remember Jesus Christ.

I made a scripture advent book about the life of Christ last year. I’ve been trying(!) to remember to read the scripture to Emily each day and talk about the picture of Christ.

We put up our Christmas tree right before heading to my family’s home for Thanksgiving. We wanted to get the most enjoyment we could out of it before heading to Utah for Christmas. We opted to not have anything except lights on the tree so I wouldn’t spend any time managing the ornaments with Emily and all the other children that spend time in our home. It has worked out well because Emily is going through a phase where she loves loves loves lights. I also have spent a lot more time thinking about Christ as the light of the world and about the new star that shone with birth of Christ with the reminder of our simple tree.

I love Christmas music and Emily does too so we listen to it a lot. My favorite source this year has been the mormon channel 24/7 Christmas music station.

We love looking at the christmas cards that arrive in the mail.  This is one of Andrew’s cousins children and Emily loves talking about them and trying to say their names.

I put up our three nativities this year; one from Africa, one from Israel, and one I made two years ago out of clay. Each scene touches my heart in different ways and I love showing Emily baby Jesus.

Emily and I go to the library every Monday for lap sit and checking out new board books. At the first of December they added a Christmas section. We have read the Christmas story over and over again with many different illustrations and interpretations. A new favorite of mine is The Crippled Lamb by Max Lucado (not pictured).

Andrew has thrown in a few very unexpected surprises for me this month. Last week he helped Emily and I out the door to aerobics (which he usually does if he hasn’t left for work yet) but then he met us at home an hour and a half later with homemade chocolate covered cinnamon bears, pretzels, and bananas. He’s also brought home finals treats that he gets on campus to share, which is always fun.

Emily and I have been baking together. Our first attempt at gingerbread cookies a few weeks ago was a huge success. Emily helped me mix the dough with her hands and then before I knew what was happening she was consuming two handfuls of the dough. We switched modes and I tried to have her help me place the balls on the cookie sheet after I scooped some out. She did well placing a few but then took one and shoved it into her mouth. We switched activities again and I had her help smash the balls flat. This was working until she realized that she could still smash and grab the dough and pop it into her mouth. The girls first introduction to high volumes of sugar was a great one-time success. We have also enjoyed making banana muffins and baked apple oatmeal together. Emily is getting the hang of counting, which is a big part of our baking sessions.