….and almost everything about Christmas. I’m blessed with a good memory, although my husband may not consider it a blessing all the time. I remember big and little things about my childhood.

For instance,

…….I loved to sit under our tree and laugh at how big my nose got when I looked into a shiny silver ornament.

……I remember my favorite Christmas gift of all time; a maroon and white Aggie Tee shirt and a Sarge pendant on a gold chain. It was a gift from my brother who was a Texas A & M Aggie.

…..I remember participating in our annual Christmas “pageant”, created and directed by our big brother when I was about six years old. Our parents were instructed to sit on the sofa in the living room. When ready, my brother led the procession of three…each of us carrying a lighted candle and singing “Silent Night”. We processed from a back bedroom, down the hall and into the living room and paused in front of our parents. My sister and I, dressed in our little floor length nightgowns stood beside him as our brother gave the evening message. He grew up to become a Pastor serving over 50 years.

…..I remember early one Christmas morning Daddy showing us the “damage” the reindeer had done to our front lawn. I was captivated.

…..I remember learning all four verses (5 sometimes) of every Christmas carol at our church. I can still sing them all from memory.

…..I remember Christmas shopping for a gift for my Mother but don’t remember where I got the money. We did not get allowances. We shopped at Kaplans-Ben Hur, a very popular store in the Houston Heights area at the time.  I remember liking the sound I made walking across the old wooden floors at that store. I even remember what I chose to give Mama; a tiny plastic lapel pin shaped like a telephone. I was so proud.

……I remember getting up very early one Christmas morning and driving to Schulenburg, Texas to visit my Father’s family there. We had to take blankets to cover ourselves for the long, cold trip from Houston. At least, I thought it was long and cold.

…..I remember my paternal Grandfather singing “O Tannenbaum” in German, the only language he ever used. We didn’t chat much.

…I remember the little cardboard village my Father designed, crafted and placed under our tree every year. It had a little cabin, a tiny church, and even an iced over pond (a mirror surrounded by cotton snow) and a ceramic skater enjoying his day.

….I remember the fragrance of the real tree, the aroma of food cooking, and the taste of the cookies on the buffet.

Memories can be blessings beyond measure and I’m grateful. Maybe I’ll write another “I Love Christmas’ blog about Christmas with my husband and three children…..or Christmas with our Grandchildren, and now Christmas with our Great-granddaughter. It’s all so wonderful….and I remember.

I wish for each of you and your families a Christmas filled with memories worth writing about. May it be a Christmas filled with the joy of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. It’s His birthday!

Oh come let us adore Him!

‘Til He Shouts!

….Just stay home!

Yeah, actually those three words are my best advice about Christmas shopping. Trust me, I know these things! After sixty-six years of marriage and the age that implies, I have tested all methods of Christmas shopping. Of course, that was before online shopping, which I love. Back to the subject. I published this blog a few times before but this morning I realized I was beginning to have the same thoughts about Christmas shopping and suddenly remembered my own Excellent Advice. So here it is again.

I love numbers. After my husband served 6 years in military service; after 5 years of his undergraduate studies; after many years of his graduate studies; after 3 children, (all this time with zero discretionary funds), I finally began to notice a singular truth about my shopping: If I went out of the house I would spend money! That’s it! It was as simple as that! To resist the urge to shop, I would make a cup of coffee, grab a cookie, and wait for the urge to pass….and it would pass. Yay! Just think how much money I saved today, I would think. Perhaps the thought of taking three little children along with my shopping trip had something to do with deciding to “…just stay home.” Maybe.

Fast forward to today with the convenience of online shopping at my fingertips. Remember I said that I love it. Well, I’ve learned something about that, too; If I fill out all the necessary information in the Shopping Cart…i.e. the mailing address, credit card number, on and on, I’ll probably make a mistake and have to delete the whole thing. I’m usually so aggravated and bored by that time, I go find something else more fun to do. Yay! Just think how much money I saved today.

Recently while shopping online at a fancy store website, I came to the final bottom line stating the cost, it was really low….yes LOW! I thought how can that be? I just ordered some expensive items, jackets, sweaters, etc. I pondered this for a while and decided to start over by going back to the homepage of the store. Oh! I see it now….in big bold letters it read “EVERYTHING 70% OFF TODAY.” That answered my question and confirmed my growing suspicion that I am the world’s worst shopper. Yes, I started over and bought all the same things I wanted as before. Oops! I didn’t save any money that day.

You might also find it helpful to know that if you are traveling with all your children and you are on a tight budget……don’t stop the car……ever! It will cost you money if you do. I’ve tested that theory before, in fact, we’ve lived it. However, I’ll admit it is a little difficult if you are trying to get to Lubbock, Texas from Houston, Texas in one day. At last count it is almost 600 miles.

Friends, that is the extent of my shopping advice gleaned through hard-earned experience and a lot of fun. Get a cup of coffee and a cookie….and wait.

Merry Christmas, one and all. With praises to Our Lord Jesus Christ as we celebrate His birthday.

‘Til He Shouts!

Note: I first published this a couple of years back; but truth is truth and never really changes and good advice is always valuable.