He is the Reason For the Season!

So our downstairs is finally almost all done and we actually were able to cook Christmas Eve dinner at our house! We had our traditional chicken enchiladas and it was so good. I spent most of the morning prepping dinner and making some holiday treats. I had to stop half way through because my allergies were killing me but I still made some of the goodies. We had Christmas Eve dinner with the Maynard family and then watched the movie Elf. "Buddy the Elf what's your favorite color" is one of my favorite lines of the entire movie! Since I was sneezing and my eyes were watering I decided to go to bed as soon as the movie was over. We of course did our tradition of all the kids sleeping in one room (this of course will probably change once we are all married but since we aren't it's still tradition). It's fun all being in one room but for the past few days I have had on average maybe 4 hours of sleep. Crazy I know! I think it's the weather mixed with my sinuses but it's not fun. Santa came and we were excited with what he brought us. Bret was especially thrilled that he got Star Wars legos....just what he asked for. Chad got a new phone and Jeri and I got some Cutco supplies for our kitchen. Mom got a nice warm jacket for when she is out watching Bret's soccer and basketball practices. We got a lot of other fun things like books to read, gift cards, jackets, shirts etc... but we still kept in mind the true meaning of Christmas. We went to dinner at Tricia's house and had a great time eating dinner and skyping with the family in Hawaii. I love Skype... I think it's one of the best things ever! All and all it was a great Christmas filled with fun and laughter.


I have to say that one of my favorite things about Christmas is the example my little brother is to me. He is only eight and has the heart of Gold. Every year for probably the past 4 years he has wrapped up gifts from things that he thinks are special around the house. This year I got some books on tape and a little figure of his that he wanted to share with me. He doesn't have to go out and buy presents. The gifts he gives have true value and meaning to him and by far are the best gifts ever!


Let us not forget though the true meaning of Christmas. Today in Relief Society we had a great lesson on Christ. We read different scriptures from the Old Testament, New Testament, Pearl of Great Price, Book of Mormon and the Doctrine and Covenants. No matter when the scriptures we were reading were written, they all talked of Christ and his teachings. Christ came to Earth and died for each and every one of us. He was a teacher, a healer, a friend, and an example. Aren't we the same? I'm not saying I'm perfect like He was, no one is. It's something we get better at each and every day but I can be a teacher, a healer, a friend and an example as well. I think that sometimes we forget the true meaning of Christmas and only think about all the gifts we want or get. But the best gift of all is our Savior and Redeemer, Jesus Christ.