Merry Christmas

It's Christmas Eve and snowing in upstate New York. A good day to snuggle in and finish our last minute Christmas preparations. In the past, we have always had a Christmas Eve breakfast with friends and family, but due to many changes and travel plans, we are not doing that this year. That didn't stop Jim from preparing a lovely breakfast for the two of us.

Tonight is our Christmas Eve service which I have been helping to organize. I am praying that it will glorify God and bring a blessing to all who attend.

Speaking of blessings, I wish all of you a blessed Christmas. I thought I'd share some pictures of our tree and the ornaments that have blessed us over the years.

Since Jim's retirement, we have had an artificial tree. It was a hard decision to make, but with travel and aging, we thought this was the best way for us to go. Jim decorated the entire tree this year. It is beautiful.

This is our oldest, and my favorite, ornament. It was purchased the year of our first Christmas in Christ. It is the first ornament I put on the tree every year.

The candy canes on our tree are 39 years old. We purchased these exact candy canes the first year we were married and have kept them ever since. I think a couple may have broken over the years, but all-in-all we feel we have preserved them pretty well. Brian and Gretchen like this story and are doing the same thing - theirs are only six years old, but they have high hopes.

This Waterford Crystal ornament is from our dear friend, and third daughter, Heather. Not only is it beautiful, but it reminds me of the love we have for Heather and she for us.

Here we have Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn. They are reminders of a wonderful day in London with my friend Laurie. Since I've read the Boleyn Inheritance and The Other Boleyn Girl, I have a whole different outlook on these ornaments. Nevertheless, I still enjoy looking at them on our tree and remembering that day at the Tower of London.

Next to hippos, I love Pandas the best. This ornament, our friend Ken brought back from China, reminds me of the fun day Jim and I had a the San Diego Zoo. The hippos didn't cooperate at all that day, but the Pandas were a delight.

I could go on and on, but I will end with this ornament. It is made from a milkweed pod. These ornaments, which we treasure above all others, were made by Jim's grandmother - Namma - as our children called her. She was a dear and talented lady who we will miss forever.

And now I wish you and yours a

Very Merry Christmas