"I just haven't felt much Christmas magic this year," I droned on to Beau while the kids had a ball sliding down the big slide at the Youth Pavilion, completely oblivious to the fact that we were indeed there that morning to take part in the "special" Santa breakfast they were hosting. And apparently find some Christmas magic if I had anything to do with it. I sat there and recalled examples of the magical moments I was referring to - that very first year we rode the horse-drawn carriage ride in the snow to that little cabin in the woods at Heritage Farms, the year we played in the snow with the Gabels at Hick's Place, or the big snow that came out of nowhere the Saturday before Christmas just as I was taking Taylor and Kate's engagement pictures. Okay, so maybe the fact that all the memories involved snow had something to do with it! It's fun to recall the moments that stand out over the course of almost a decade of doing Christmas with little ones under our roof. And when I start to lay it all out and determine some themes, a good Christmas snow isn't the only thing needed in my recipe for a little magic. So instead of sitting here mumbling something about dreaming of a white Christmas, I'm recalling my top ten magical memories of this 2019 holiday season. In no particular order...
1. Our family Advent study. We didn't make it through all of them, which bothered the achiever in me at times, but the nights we did make space for this were some of my favorite nights in December. There was the night I overheard Beau do it with them while I was grading papers in our bedroom, and their prayers that applied whatever it was we were discussing in the simplest, but sweetest ways. Just because Christmas is almost over doesn't mean we need to stop this new endeavor. I look forward to opening up my Bible with these three as we start a new decade together.
2. It's funny, I made sure we went downtown for the first Thursday "Holiday Hoopla" night of December because the forecast called for forties and the likelihood of having another warm Thursday to follow was slim to none. Or so I thought! Little did I know we would have so many unseasonably warm days this December! We enjoyed not one but two Thursdays downtown, taking part in all the magic that our town has to offer this time of year. Our favorites are definitely the holly jolly trolley with the jolliest volunteer caroler, our very own Buddy the Elf who is sure to show his face as soon as Christmas season rolls around, window shopping at all the pretty storefronts, and grabbing a slow dinner of Italian Tradition, red wine, and a game or two of Pass the Pigs or UNO in a little booth at Tony's. It was a fun night skipping down the sidewalks and sharing a table with them.
3. With the weather as nice as it's been, we gladly traded in snow pants and boots for afternoon fires and blankets on our lap as much as we could this month. Last Sunday afternoon we sat around the fire, threw the football to Cruz, sipped some old fashioneds and hot cocoa, and thumbed through some winter magazines. I could get used to being outside this much in December!
4. And then there was the start of a new tradition in the making. We threw on some festive attire a couple weeks ago and met the Shaws for a little Christmas light drive followed by pizza at our new favorite place to get all sorts of Christmas cheer - Lighthouse Lounge in downtown Waterloo. Ashley had the cutest little setup at cozy house - cocoa and all the fixings, some hot toddies for the adults, even a string of twinkle lights in the car, and the kids loved squeezing in the back seat with their scavenger hunts. Lighthouse was even more fun - we played lots of good music, the kids drew lots pictures that now add to the amazing decor, and we left full of Christmas spirit!
5. That day every year when finals are done, the kids are still in school, and I can just e x h a l e. I spend a day or two slowly getting the laundry caught up, the presents wrapped, and the house sparkly and then I just try and slow down enough to enjoy it.
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