Tuesday, December 27, 2011

A New Christmas Tradition

This year my side of the family decided to change the way we spent Christmas together. For the past few years we have simplified the whole gift giving thing by drawing names, setting a $100 limit, and purchasing gifts for that one person. We keep it a secret, so it’s always fun to see who drew who at the big reveal on Christmas Day. This year we combined all of the money we would have spent on each other and adopted a family from KSBJ’s Giving Tree. We were able to give Christmas to a single mom and her three kids. We have all done our own different type of giving in the past, but there was something really awesome about our whole family coming together, and as my brother, David, put it, “trading in our Christmas for theirs.” We did all the planning, shopping, and wrapping together as a family. Even Jake and Lilly were a part of it. They had a blast as Uncle Jay raced them around in the stroller in JCPenney! (That stroller has never seen speed like that, and I’m pretty sure I saw Uncle Jay stop several times to catch his breath!!) I was amazed at how much we were able to give to this family…. Definitely a “fishes and loaves” kind of thing! The one thing that has stuck with me is how blessed we all felt as we gave. It was one of my most memorable Christmases!

Here is a sweet snapshot of Jake and Lilly in front of the tree on Christmas Eve. I am so happy to report that the tree survived the entire Christmas season with not so much as a strand of ribbon out of place! I seriously underestimated their self control. Now if I can just keep Jake’s hands out of Lilly’s hair…..


"Dad, I know you want to take my picture in front of the Christmas tree, but I'm pretty sure that Mom said not to touch the tree or even think about touching it. I'm almost positive that my back is touching it right now. Don't tell Mom.... or Santa!!"


Momma and Lilly

Jake and Daddy in matching cowboy boots



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