It’s Christmas Eve!!!
So I’ve been deep in thought about Christmas once again. Was getting my hair cut the other day when I ended up in a conversation about Christmas. The hype is crazy. The pressure to get the right thing, to spend enough money, to decorate just right, to make all the goodies PINTREST worthy, to make everything just perfect. We live in a culture of abundance. Too many presents, too much food. Too much hussle. Too much bustle.
My challenge to you is think about how you remember your Christmas growing up. Do you remember what you “got”. The girl cutting my hair and I could each think of 3 things we got. 3!!!! However, I look back fondly on my Christmases growing up. Some of my most treasured memories are of time spent with my family at Christmas. Was a time of the year where we just spend time together. My mom worked her butt off all year round to provide for us. But Christmas Eve was a time we could all be together.
These are some of my most treasured memories:
Visits with Santa
This happens to be my favorite photo of Santa and I.
Christmas crafts were big in my house. Painting ceramics.
Decorating the house was also fun. Christmas music in the background. All of us kids working together to make the house look festive. 
We always had presents on the wall
Driving around looking at Christmas lights.
Christmas programs. Journey to the center of Christmas!
Going to candle light service at church and mom dripping wax on her hand. Also mom trying so hard to clap along to the songs and having no rhythm. Getting home from church and having treats and pizza for dinner. And opening presents sitting around the tree.
Most of all was baking cookies. Eating so much cookie dough and frosting that I had a giant stomach ache (totally worth it!) my brother throwing cookie dough on the Ceiling to see if it would stick. Using too much flour and making a giant mess… Always ending in a flour fight. Having contests to see who could make the prettiest cookie. Getting yelled at for sneaking a cookie cuz those were for the people mom worked with. Also getting “the look” when I “accidentally” got frosting on my fingers and then licked them… Oops! Then getting excited when we got to eat them. Cookies for breakfast!
My sister coming down in her undies Christmas morning to open gifts. Sorry sister, it’s adorable and part of my memories 😉 (I’ll spare the photo on this one) Ps. She was little!
I always enjoyed everyone else opening their presents, and always wanted to be the one to hand themall out. (Even when I was in first grade and had just had my tonsils out). Here is a photo of me watching the gift opening: 
Playing games all day Christmas Day with my siblings. Just being together. Enjoying each other. We didn’t always get along, but we tried on Christmas. It didn’t matter if it was board games, marbles, Legos, Nintendo or some made up game we came up with. We just hung out!
Here is our Christmas In a nutshell. Love the coordinating wind suits. Notice how we aren’t real thrilled about the “lets take a photo thing” makes me giggle.
And In case you are wondering what gifts I remembered:
My new kids on the block comforter!
My pen-doodle-um. The coolest craft thing ever!
The other was my “cheerleader wanna be doll” but I don’t have a photo of her. But I did find this photo of my Hyper-color sweatshirt that’s loved as well. If you don’t know what hyper color is… You are missing out! 
So.. To wrap it all up. *notice the pun*
For me. Christmas is about being present. Not the presents. It’s about spending time with family. Not money on family. It’s about giving and not getting. It’s about love and kindness. Finding the true meaning of the season. And of course cookies and frosting.
Merry Christmas and God Bless. And find the magic in the season.
butterflyification 