A Tennessee Christmas

This year we will be celebrating Christmas for the first time in the South--quite a different experience from Christmases past in the OC (flip-flops and shorts anyone?) and Philadelphia (snow tires and mittens anyone?) Thankfully we won't be spending it alone. My mother, brother Jason and his girlfriend Melinda are visiting for a week!

Usually we spend the holidays at various friends' or relatives' homes, so this is our first year at home and with a tree. We decided to forgo the whole real tree thing, opting for a fake one that looks real, supposedly resembling a Rock Ledge Fir. (The next time I see a Rock Ledge Fir, I'll be sure to compare ;) We spent an evening listening to Christmas songs warbled by Ella Fitzgerald, Bing Crosby, Dean Martin and the like while trimming the tree with ornaments procured from last year's major day-after-Christmas sale at Crate and Barrel (Dannielle and I had braved the madding crowd, standing in line for hours to buy the half-off goodies). Owen, who is quite enamored with all that is bright and shiny, loves to stare at the points of light dotting our tree.

I recall Pennsylvania Christmases with my family in the country: We'd listen to records while stringing garlands of cranberries and popcorn for the real tree (sometimes cut from our own backyard), set up an electric train set beneath the tree, bake and decorate oodles of cookies, and attend a candle-lit Christmas Eve church service. Of course there was often several feet of snow for us to play in, flying down the hill on saucers hoping we could stop before reaching the road. I wonder what traditions will emerge with our little guy throughout the years.

We wish you all many blessings and times of reflection during this holiday season and may your heart be warmed and touched by the true meaning of Christmas, our Savior's birth!