the gift of time

Another Christmas Eve come and gone but the memories are so sweet. One of our traditions, since our children were small is to read a book with a Christmas message, a fictional re-telling of the Christmas story. A new book for Christmas Eve is one of my favorite things to shop for. The kids take turns reading the book. This year Jer read and his wife and children seemed to have latched on to the tradition as well judging from the picture. I love this scene and it makes me so proud of my son and the man he's becoming. She may be 20 but she will always be a child at heart. The santa hat comes out right after Thanksgiving and is always on her head unless she's in school. She will keep the child in Christmas forever for us. She loves everything about Christmas, church, the Christmas story, the tree, the lights, the presents, the family.

Speaking of children and Christmas:

I was given two very special gifts this year that are hard to come by and can't be bought in the real sense of the word: Time. My husband gave me the gift of time by taking his time to clean my house top to bottom while I worked/played on my hobbies. Our children gave us a weekend away, just the two of us. Time together that we rarely get because our youngest with us means we're always "three" rather than "two". It made me remember that Jesus gave His time for us. He gave up the glories of Heaven to be bound in space and time because I needed a Savior. How blessed I am this Christmas because of the most precious gift of all: a baby born in a manger that grew to be a man that died on the cross and rose again. He gave it all.