CHRISTMAS 2009
Christmas was a quiet day shared in the company of our little family--it was perfect! The Christmas season seemed too short to me. I love the lights, the shopping, the anticipation, the pure excitement, but more importantly, I also love the giving! This year for Christmas, I tried to make our holiday mean something more than receiving. Sometimes it is so hard to teach my children the true meaning of Christmas when there is so much focus on receiving. President Monson (Latter-day prophet) said we should change the question of "What did you get for Christmas?" to "What did you give for Christmas?" By changing "get" to "give" the whole meaning of that all too common question changes. This year for Christmas, I wanted my children to be able to answer, "What did you give for Christmas?" And so with that question in mind, we started several traditions in the hopes of retaining the true meaning of Christmas. Some traditions started: the Giving Jar, the 12 Days of Christmas, the Last Straw, and Christ by Candle Light. Each tradition added an element of giving, and I am grateful for the experience. As a result, our home was filled with a bit of Heaven.
TRADITIONS:
THE CHRISTMAS JAR-Inspired by a book called, "The Christmas Jar", our family collected loose change throughout the year to give to another family in need. This tradition kept the spirit of giving in our home even after Christmas had passed. By the end of the year, my children worked to fill the jar. Not only was it being filled with loose change, but love too!
12 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS-I love this tradition! I love that for 12 days my children fill the spirit of giving in their hearts. I love the pure joy that accompanies this activity!
THE LAST STRAW-A dear friend gave this tradition to me as a gift, and we loved it! The tradition reenacts a story about a family secretly giving to one another in the hopes of filling a manger with straw. Each time a kind act is administered-a straw is placed in a manger. And, each piece of straw cushions the manger for the baby Jesus. So, with each kind act, the family prepares the manger for the baby Jesus, and with each kind deed, the family prepares their hearts to receive Him. I am so grateful to my friend, for giving us such a fun tradition! I love that this tradition gift that keeps giving throughout the month!
THE LIGHT OF CHRIST BY CANDLELIGHT-We turned off all the lights in the house, and each person was given a candle. As we sat in a circle, one candle was lit. By the light of the one candle, we read some quotes on Christ being the light of the World. We talked about our role in sharing the light of Christ. Then we began passing the light to each candle while stating how we were going to share Christ's light this year. At the end of the devotional, all the candles were lit, and the room was illuminated by the light. We then talked about how each time we share the light of Christ by being obedient to the commandments, reading our scriptures, showing kindness to others..., we make an impact, and our little light contributes to lighting the world...just like the one light helped in illuminating our room. ~I got this idea on-line, but I can't find the blog to give credit. I thought it was truly an inspired idea!
TRADITIONS:
THE CHRISTMAS JAR-Inspired by a book called, "The Christmas Jar", our family collected loose change throughout the year to give to another family in need. This tradition kept the spirit of giving in our home even after Christmas had passed. By the end of the year, my children worked to fill the jar. Not only was it being filled with loose change, but love too!
12 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS-I love this tradition! I love that for 12 days my children fill the spirit of giving in their hearts. I love the pure joy that accompanies this activity!
THE LAST STRAW-A dear friend gave this tradition to me as a gift, and we loved it! The tradition reenacts a story about a family secretly giving to one another in the hopes of filling a manger with straw. Each time a kind act is administered-a straw is placed in a manger. And, each piece of straw cushions the manger for the baby Jesus. So, with each kind act, the family prepares the manger for the baby Jesus, and with each kind deed, the family prepares their hearts to receive Him. I am so grateful to my friend, for giving us such a fun tradition! I love that this tradition gift that keeps giving throughout the month!
THE LIGHT OF CHRIST BY CANDLELIGHT-We turned off all the lights in the house, and each person was given a candle. As we sat in a circle, one candle was lit. By the light of the one candle, we read some quotes on Christ being the light of the World. We talked about our role in sharing the light of Christ. Then we began passing the light to each candle while stating how we were going to share Christ's light this year. At the end of the devotional, all the candles were lit, and the room was illuminated by the light. We then talked about how each time we share the light of Christ by being obedient to the commandments, reading our scriptures, showing kindness to others..., we make an impact, and our little light contributes to lighting the world...just like the one light helped in illuminating our room. ~I got this idea on-line, but I can't find the blog to give credit. I thought it was truly an inspired idea!
1 comment:
You have some fun CHristmas Traditions! We got the same train set at our house! How cool!
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