Christmas Eve

• Get myself ready for the day in the usual way
• Drink some coffee
  
• Hopeful brunch with my dear friend Mandy, who FINALLY made it on a flight to Seattle in the nick of time before another round of snow... Yay for Panera Bread! We'll see if she can make it down the big hill to get to Panera!
  
• Finish wrapping gifts
• Making a pumpkin pie
• Clean the house
• Look up addresses to send off the rest of our Christmas cards (oops! I can't believe its not done... I'll just think of them as "Holiday greetings")

In years past, I sometimes get caught up in "the things to do" but this year I feel like I have been able to focus more on the real reason that we celebrate in spite of the "busy-ness." I know we don't have children yet, so it would seem like we should be less busy, but I think because we don't have children yet, we have opened ourselves up for more in the way of ministry at this point. For example, we helped a lot with the Giving Tree ministry we as deacons are responsible for each year. We did things a little differently this year and adopted families from my work at the therapy center, inviting them into the church for a reception to pick up gifts from us. I was so pleased with the way things went off but it was a lot of work and took every bit as much time as it would have taken for us to shop for and wrap gifts for kids...
This year is a hard Christmas in some ways, because a) so many of our friends are excited and either have their first baby this year or will be having their first baby in 2009 and b) Jesse is working both today and tomorrow (Christmas Day) so he won't be around during the day. However, I know I am blessed to have such a wonderful and hardworking husband who doesn't slack off or cheat his way out of his duty. We are also blessed that Jesse has a job this Christmas.

In spite of knowing all of these things, it has been emotionally difficult for me, requiring me to preach to myself the gospel and the truth of Christmas many times every day. As long as I don't think about Christmas morning too much, I make it through okay. He works tomorrow at 8:30 so I will get up early with him and have a little celebration with stockings and breakfast before he goes and that will be fun! After he leaves, and I don't know what I'm going to do. I will eventually head up to my parents but... we'll see.
This year too, will pass, and it won't always be like this. As long as I keep my heart in the right place, I will stay soft and tender and know what is really important in celebrating Christmas. There is always the hope that eventually we'll have a house of kids and Jesse won't be away on Christmas. In the meantime, I am thankful for what we have and joyful for God's goodness. I am excited that he has tonight off because we are spending the evening with my family. We'll be having our traditional clam chowder and goodies, and head off to church for Christmas Eve service, which I am looking forward to!

Merry Christmas Eve! Praise the Lord for the birth of our Lord - God is with us!