From my family to yours, Merry Christmas.
Merry Christmas
Christmas Eve
Today, children from all over the world have been waiting for all year. It is Christmas Eve and in a few short hours, Santa will arrive and bring presents to all the good little boys and girls and bring smiles to the faces of children. Today and into tonight, as you spend time with your family and friends, take a moment to reflect on all that you have been blessed with. I know that for me personally, this is the first Christmas that I’ve really looked forward to in years and even though my kids will not understand the meaning behind Christmas, I for one will be enjoying every minute of it.
We will go to church together. We will enjoy a nice meal and put the kids down and wait. Wait until Santa arrives with presents and for the boys to wake up to enjoy playing with toys.
Enjoy today. Enjoy the moment. And enjoy your time together. Enjoy this Christmas Eve.
NORAD Santa Tracker
The great thing about having kids, is seeing Christmas through their eyes. And I have always been a big kid, but now I get to take it to an entirely new level. For the last few years, usually during church (Lord, please forgive me), I would email Norad to find out where Santa was and when he would be stopping by my house. And no, I never disclosed the fact that I was an adult emailing NORAD for myself. NORAD does a great job with this and does an outstanding service of providing information to little kids or in my case, an adult. And yes, I did download the NORAD Santa Tracker for my iPhone so that I could keep constant watch about Santa’s whereabouts.
If you have never taken the time to read the story about NORAD Santa Tracker, please take a few minutes to do so, by clicking here.
And please visit their site here and download their apps if you have a smart phone. I know, that I’ll be emailing them to get an update Monday night to find out where Santa is and when he will be stopping in my area.
A Day Off
Every now and then, you just need a day off. A day off from life. A day off from work. A day off to recharge. Or for me, a day off to play with the boys.
As we get closer to Christmas, and still thinking back to last weeks events in Connecticut, I just needed a day off. Yes, I had a few errands to run, a few Christmas presents left to buy. But, I really just wanted to stay at home for the day and hang out with the boys. Because the thing that I am realizing, is that even though I get to teach and show them new things everyday, they are doing the same to for me too.
They are showing me what unconditional love really is all about. They are showing me that, yes, they are depending on me to feed them and change them, but that I am depending on them too. I love spending time with those two little guys. Playing with their toys, throwing them up in the air, wrestling on the floor. I love watching their expressions when they figure something out for the first time.
Some times in life, we just need a day off. A day off to play with the kids. Show them that they are important. Take them to a game. Watch a movie. Play. I think that yesterday taught me a lot. I think that it showed me that in this crazy thing we call life, we have to slow down and enjoy our time together.
And sometimes, that means, taking a day off.
Connecticut School Shooting
Today as I read the news about the Connecticut school shooting, I am incredibly sadden and hurt for all of those involved. The students and faculty that were innocently murdered by a someone. As a parent, I am terrified that one day, I will be sending my children to school and that this could happen where they attend. So, as I read the news, a few thoughts came to mind:
To the parents of the school kids, there are no words. There is no comfort that can be given. There is no way to change today. I only hope and pray that in time, the pain will subside a little. No parent ever thinks that they are sending their children to school to enter harms way. School should be a safe harbor, a place to learn and grow and be a kid.
And to the parents of the shooter, they will forever live with this pain and sorrow, knowing that their son did this. A pain that no parent should ever burden.
Today, we as a country mourn the Connecticut school shooting and we pray that together a community, that you will overcome this tragedy. I leave you with these verses that maybe, at some point, that some sense can be made out of this senseless and selfish act.
Numbers 6:24-26
“The Lord bless you and keep you;
The Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
The Lord lift up His countenance upon you,
And give you peace.”’
Christmas
I know that the boys are still way too young to have the first clue about Christmas, but for the first time in years, I’m really looking forward to it.
I don’t know who will be the bigger kid, me or them on Christmas morning?
Post Election Depression
Post Election Depression, it is a serious condition and I think that I am suffering from it. At first, I thought that it was just a funk. Then, I realized, that maybe it was more. And after a few Google searches (see results here), it appears that I am not alone.
Is it serious? No. Just more frustration than anything else. But I have realized a few things, 1) our country is changing and 2) I don’t know if the changes are for the good?
The generation that fought in WWII is often and should be referred to as the greatest generation to ever live. Where they? Sure. They were raised during the Great Depression and fought for our freedoms. They worked hard and made little money in return. But what they earned, they were proud of. What they had, they were grateful for. Today, the generations that are growing up expecting something to be given to them. They want the government to help them. My grandparents didn’t sit at home waiting for the government to help them? No, they worked hard for what they had.
I have been really struggling with the results of the elections and especially with the fiscal cliffs that have been looming and I have often wonder, if my grandfather were the President, what would he or someone from his generation do? I came across this article today and it only further my thinking:
A Detroit city council member is asking President Obama to bail out the financially troubled city in return for residents’ overwhelmingly supporting his successful re-election bid.
“There ought to be a quid pro quo,” said Councilwoman JoAnn Watson, according to My Fox Detroit.
Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/12/05/detroit-councilwoman-to-obama-voted-for-now-bail-us-out/?test=latestnews#ixzz2EDMhyK4B
So, when does this mentality end? Where does our country go? So am I really suffering from Post Election Depression? Maybe? But maybe it is more because I see that the direction of this country, is going in way that makes me sad. A direction that I hope that I can teach my boys is wrong and instill in them a hard work ethic and that they should not be dependent on the government. Because in life, there are always teaching lessons, and this might be a hard one that our country has to endure.
Black Friday
Today marked one of the busiest shopping days of the year, Black Friday. And then Monday is Cyber Monday and at some time soon there is the Shop Small, which encourages shoppers to shop local.
Shopping has gotten out of hand. It use to be that Black Friday started in the morning, usually around 9 or 10am for stores to open. Now, we have stores opening up at 10pm on Thanksgiving night, just to get the leg up on other stores that are opening at Midnight. Here is an idea, let’s put the focus back on the family and not on shopping.
What are you thankful for?
I am seeing a lot of people that are posting their 30 days of Thanksgiving for the month of November on Facebook. And it got me wondering, what are you thankful for? And shouldn’t we be thankful all year and not just 1 month?
So today, I am thankful for my family and friends. I am thankful for a great job. A roof over my head. And the ability to help others in need.
But, I am also thankful for this song:
So today, as you eat too much. Plan your shopping purchases for the next day or wake up from afternoon nap, just remember how fortunate we are to live in the greatest country in the world.
Happy Thanksgiving, from my family to yours.
Giving
We are just a few days away from Thanksgiving and the start of Christmas. But as we get into the crazy times of the holidays, I wonder, what are you giving to others? And I don’t mean toys and Starbucks giftcards (always a nice gift by the way), but are you giving of your time this year? Are you giving to charities?
Let’s be honest for a moment, our economy is not doing well. That is just a basic and simple fact and who suffers from that? Yes, those that have lost their jobs, but so does the church, charities, etc. So, this year, my family is doing something different. I have finally hit my point of being frustrated with the Christmas season and all of the giving to give. Not this year. This year, we are giving to others. We are buying gifts for 4 families this year from the Angel tree at church. We are giving to the Ronald McDonald House, the one that my niece stayed at for a week and they supported my sister and brother in law for that week and helped them get through a time of uncertainty. We are giving to St. Jude, because today, we have two wonderful and healthy little boys and if there is ever a problem with them, I’m packing up and taking them there.
So what are you giving this year? Are you giving your family crappy gifts that are either given to someone else or worse, thrown away? This year, I challenge you to do something different. Step outside of your comfort zone and give to someone else in need. If you have been blessed this past year with a job and food on your table and a roof over your head, then help someone that has not been so lucky.
Here is the St. Jude’s video, I defy you to watch it without getting a little teary eyed. Giving is a wonderful thing, and can give more sanctification than giving a family member a tie. So, give. Give because you can and you want to.