Hi Ellie,
This particular time of year tends to get very busy. It is a season that can be somewhat
overwhelming if you let it. So
instead of trying to be Super Woman and powering your way through Christmas,
remember to pace yourself and plan ahead.
Enjoy the Christmas holiday with all your heart El… it is a
beautiful time of year.
Final Thought: Take time during the Christmas season
to enjoy with your heart, give with your heart and love with your heart. This “special feeling” is called
Christmas Spirit, which is not a material gift so it cannot be bought, or given
to you by another. If you have
Faith, Hope, Love and Jesus within your heart, then you will have Christmas
Spirit.
Alright El, here are a few things we have done together so
far in Christmas Spirit:
1.) A Christmas cookie baking and decorating day held at
Aunt Sammy’s house. Talk
about a fun and memory-making kind of day… this was it! Between Aunt Sammy, your Mommy
and myself, we had preplanned the types of cookies we would bake and then divvied
up the ingredients between us to purchase. El, I was in charge of the Christmas sugar cookies, which I
knew would be a big hit with you.
And that is because the steps it takes to make those cookies involves a
rolling pin and lots of flour!
Ellie, you “rolled” the dough
out like a true pro and had an even better time choosing which Christmas cookie
cutter to use (I also saw you sneaking a nibble from the dough now and then,
which just made me giggle as I remember your Mommy and Uncle Ryan doing the
same exact thing when they were your age). Once the sugar cookies came out of the oven, you and Poppy
whipped up some colored icing to spread on them (your choice was red, blue and
green only) along with a variety of sprinkles! The final
product may not have been “professional baker’s material” but by your standards
El, they definitely passed! How do
I know this??? Because after each
decorated cookie, you licked your fingers like they were popsicles!
Aunt Sammy was in charge of the spritz
cookies, which she pressed out with ease.
Not only were they pretty, but quite yummy too! And your Mommy was in charge
of the peanut butter-kisses. Let’s
just say we learned what ‘not-to-do’ after the first batch came out of the
oven!
All in all this was a
wonderful December tradition that enhanced the Christmas Spirit within us
Ellie.
2.) Working together to complete a good deed. Ellie, this one really warmed my
heart. You see, your Mommy and
Daddy teach you all year long the importance of being kind to others and helping
those who need help. Well, this Christmas Poppy talked to your Mommy about
having you help us on our Secret Santa mission. But he was concerned that the reasoning behind it would
leave you with many questions about Santa Claus. So your Mommy sat you down and explained how there are
children in the world that may not get much, if anything, for Christmas because
of their family’s circumstances.
The wonderful part of this story Ellie is that at 4 ½ years of age, you
understood. After your Mom
finished explaining, you left and went into your playroom. It wasn’t long before you returned with
one of your games (an old favorite) wanting to donate it to someone in need (making your Mom
proud that you wanted the children with very little to have something). So with that being said, Poppy thought
it would be a good idea to take you to Target where you could pick out a new toy
for a little boy or girl. You
chose Connect Four because that is a game everyone likes. Once you made your selection, Poppy
then took you to Sweet Frog where they had a Toys For Tots bin on premise. You placed the toy inside the bin and
smiled knowing that you did something good for someone else. Poppy was so proud of you El, as was
everyone. For someone so little,
you have great empathy.
3.) A Christmas “girls” dinner. Ellie… right now you are just a tad bit too young to join in
this very special tradition that your Mom, Aunt Samantha and I do every
year. But I do look forward to the
day that you will become part of our little group. This outing is another way we three strengthen our
Christmas spirit and also take time to be with each other with no
distractions. We share our day,
our ideas, our concerns and our excitement.
We listen to each other, we laugh, we show that we care, and
sometimes we just get silly.
When you are old enough Ellie, you will understand how refreshing and
how important this time together is!
4.) An afternoon outing to see the Nutcracker Ballet. Again El, this is another one of those
traditions that will never get old.
Aunt Sammy was out of town so she had to pass on this outing but your
friend Isabella and her Mom were able to join us and we sure had fun! We started off the afternoon with a
lunch at Baby’s Diner (the perfect restaurant for children) as they have ‘wimpy
baskets’ and deliciously famous milkshakes! After we were finished, we took a leisurely walk up to the
theater.
Most of the little ones
who attended the ballet wore their Christmas dresses, but you and Isabella wore
your princess costumes… always thinking outside the box El! I found the best part of the ballet to
be “watching” you!
The look of awe
and wonder on your face when the life-like mice came onto the stage and also
the Sugarplum Fairy was priceless.
You were enthralled from beginning to end, as were we!
Oh Ellie… Christmas Day is right around the corner now. And it truly is a beautiful day to experience,
as its purpose is to celebrate the birth of Jesus. Not only is this day special, but all the days leading up to
it. Christmas Spirit will be in
its full glory. There is a quote
from the Grinch movie which sums up the moment quite simply. It is: “Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before. Maybe Christmas doesn’t come from a
store—Maybe Christmas—perhaps—means a little bit more.” Then the Whoville
community started to sing. They
sang: “ Welcome, Christmas, bring your cheer. Cheer to all Whos far and near. Christmas Day is in our grasp, so long as we have hands to
clasp. Christmas Day will always
be just as long as we have we.
Welcome Christmas while we stand, heart to heart and hand to hand.”
I love you my little Christmas spirit!
Mimi
PS- Ellie, your Poppy is also enjoying the tradition of
taking you to the movies. You see,
on Saturday mornings during the month of December, the local old-fashioned
theatre runs the Looney-Tunes (the cartoons from our time). You love them as much as your Poppy
(and you were so happy they finally showed the Road Runner which is your
favorite… last week’s was all Bugs Bunny). We have so much fun with you El!!!
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