It’s Beginning to Look and Feel Like Christmas

We just had our first Christmas celebration with my husband’s daughters and family. We begin the celebrations early and end them after Christmas. This allows for the extended families to each have time with the kids. Joe’s daughters thank us for taking the pressure off them. When there are three or four different families to visit it can get hectic and take the joy out of the celebration.

We’ve decided it feels good to start early. With all they effort we exert to decorate the house, we think it’s worthwhile to extend the visits with our families. We usually take the tree and decorations down the third or fourth week in January.  We love sitting in the living room, listening to music while looking at our tree … lately the holidays come and go more quickly then in the past. Do you think it ’s our ages … sixty-one and sixty-two when time flies while your growing older?

Next week my daughter and some of her children will come to our home and celebrate their Christmas. My daughter is forty-one, has seven children and one grandchild. Their ages are four to twenty-six and her first grandchild, my great grandchild is two. The presents are piled high in the basement, and we once again can ’t wait to see the happy faces unwrap and react to what we got them. I realize sometimes there are comments as to how much we give our children. We are very conscience of the the children who do not have families, or not enough money for a good and healthy dinner. Our family has always participated in drives to give and deliver food, toys, any needs we could give ourselves or get from other church members. This family understands we share what we have in some way. For many years, our family, loaded vans and headed to areas where we knew there was no food or cheer in the home. You can ’t cure the ills in life, however, there are times when you can give a family a good meal and supplies and gifts they’ll enjoy if only for a short time.

Each year, we make sure the kids do their part with local charities and churches. My son in law belongs to a church who shares with anyone walking through their doors. While celebrating our happiness we remember those who are not so fortunate.
    
Our grandson is a marine in California.