Welcome friends!
It is Christmas Eve and Day 24 of our Creative Christmas Countdown!
Today we have four simple activities that can be completed anywhere.
1) Talk to your children about their favorite activity from the Countdown. Which one did they like the best and why?
2) Ask them to describe their favorite Christmas memory.
3) Reflect on their responses. What is important to your children? What will you do differently next year; and what will you do the same?
I want you to consider these thoughts because your children will go from this:
To this….in the twinkle of an eye.
Catherine Rhodes Photography
Live your life intentionally so that you create the memories you want your children to have; and so you can teach them the life lessons that you want them to learn.
Presently at our house, 2011 is a special Christmas for us because we are no longer an all girl plus a dad family. We now have our son-in-law Adam, who is a wonderful addition to our family.
Christmas Eve 2009 was most memorable. Bethany traveled to Oklahoma City to visit Adam’s family, and she literally drove into Oklahoma’s Blizzard of the Century. She spent the entire afternoon creeping along the interstate between Tulsa and Oklahoma City. The visibility was so poor she could not read the road signs and the roads were drifting terribly; it was treacherous. The highway patrol closed the interstate and all vehicles had to exit. She spent Christmas Eve at a Flying J Truckstop just 35 minutes from her destination. I spent the night on the couch with my cell phone, calling her every hour; and Adam did the same from Oklahoma. She arrived safely Christmas morning. Our family was thankful, not because of gifts or food, but because our precious girl was safe.
Early Christmases were exciting because our girls were fun and adorable. When I asked them their favorite childhood Christmas memory, they said it was hiding in the hallway trying to catch Santa filling the stockings. I didn’t even know they did that! At an older age, they were assigned the task of doing laundry to get ready for the holiday, but they procrastinated. I told them, “No opening presents until the laundry is done!” (Did I say that?!) One of their favorite memories is using their hair dryer to help dry their clothes faster. Go figure. (Girls~ you need to comment so I’m not dubbed a complete and total Grinch!)
This illustrates the need to be intentional about the memories you are creating with your children. My girls could have easily filed this memory under “my mom is a holiday tyrant” instead of ”this is a fun memory”. What do you want your conversations to be about when your kids are in their twenties?
As a girl, I often spent the afternoon of Christmas Eve with my dear and lovely elderly friend, Sylvia. Her family lived away, so it became our tradition to spend the afternoon together. She would open her gifts that her family had sent her; and I would open her gift to me. What a cozy and loved memory this is. I don’t remember a single gift, but I remember her warmth and kindness; and the delightful time that we had together.
Sylvia is the little lady in the middle:
Christmas is about love, kindness, and sharing with one another. It is about God’s love for us as we celebrate his gift to us: Jesus
Charles Schulz, author of “Peanuts”, described the meaning of Christmas through his adorable character Linus in the classic show “A Charlie Brown Christmas”.
4) Your final activity: Read the Christmas Story to your children. It can be found here:
Luke 2:1-21 and Matthew 2:1-12.
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Merry Christmas!
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~Thank you~
Thank you for participating in the 2011 Creative Christmas Countdown!
Thank you to Alissa @ Creative with Kids for organizing this online event.
To our international team of 24 bloggers,
thank you for sharing your talents, imagination, and creativity;
And for making this holiday season magical!
~Photo Sources~
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Wow! Thank you for such a fabulous Christmas post, Kristi!
Our Christmasses as a family are really only just starting (I have an almost 4 and 2 year old), so things are getting exciting and fun. Scary to think that this time will fly by… I will indeed *try* to savour every moment. And I have one “help” in place: my husband “does Christmas” and I get to put my feet up. I hope this helps me be a chilled out mum in years to come. Lucky me. Lovely husband.
Maggy x
What a fun age Maggy; and what a wonderful husband! Sounds like you are set to drink in the moments.
What a wonderful post. My oldest daughter, who will be turning 8 soon, is really starting to know and love our traditions. Your pictures of your girls at a young age, and then all grown choked me up a bit. It’s hard to imagine anything but 3 little girls right now, but I know it will change so fast.
I have to confess, the photos made me teary quite a few times as I was putting the post together…but we so enjoy our time together now. It has been a joy to see them take wing on their own.
What a lovely post to end the Creative Christmas Countdown. It really has got me thinking about what I would like my kid’s memories of Christmas and the holidays to be. Thank you.
Thank you Ali!
[...] Read: Spirit of Christmas Present and Past [...]
Great way to wrap up the countdown!!! Thank you! I think I will turn off the computer cuddle with my M and M and ask what it is they have loved about this month! Merry Christmas.
Good idea! And thank you too.
Thank you for such a beautiful post. I strive to live intentionally, but I can use all the help I can get! My kids are 6, 4, and 1 and I’ll be curious to see what the oldest two say. Merry Christmas, and thanks again.
Thank YOU Alissa, for all of the work on the countdown. It has been wonderful, and I am so happy to be apart of it. I have enjoyed working with you and the entire group. Many thanks to each and everyone!
I love remembering the Christmas Eve that Bethany and I had to finish the laundry! It’s so funny to think about and visualize…any fan that we could find being propped up and on full blast, clothes flung all over the laundry room hoping that they’ll dry faster and even breaking out the hair dryers all the while praying that we weren’t being too noisy. I can’t help but laugh out loud every time I think about it. Definitely a night to remember and cherish. :] A grinch of a mother, you most certainly are not.
I love you Lydia. A mom couldn’t be more proud of her girls then I am.
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