Wednesday, September 24, 2008

Dedicated to Kelly---And a Giveaway!



I came back to change how I worded this, b/c I so was not sensitive first time around. Please forgive me Kelly!!! My lightheartedness got away from me, like it does occasionally! Anyhow, my dear friend Kelly, is facing a Christmas without her darling hubby. He will be serving our country in Iraq...again. Please keep Kelly, Dan, and their family in your prayers!


I did get to thinking why is it so important to me that we have decorations up for Christmas? I can not think of a good reason. LOL. I mean, I KNOW the reason why we celebrate Christmas, and I have decorations that celebrate Christ! But, what about the other...The main reason has to do with childlike magic I feel when I wake up to the lite Christmas tree on cold mornings, drink my coffee sitting in a dark room, with the news on. This is actually a really funny thing, since this is not my normal routine AT ALL! But, as a child, I would wake up every morning in between Thanksgiving and Christmas, to my parents sitting in their jammies...watching the morning news in a dark room lit by the tree. IT was magic to me! (sorry about the major run on sentence.) I still remember that room in every detail. I remember the feeling of driving into our driveway, seeing the tree in front of our door. I remember the smell of the woodburning fireplace in that room, and how everything smelled. I remember the rocking carriage---made by House of Llyod--- that held all the yummy chocolate candies, it sat on top of the tv. It was all part of the magic. That room, those decorations, those smells, the particular memories...that I now try to re-create for my family...are all magic.

I love experiencing "magic" now. There are so many YUCKY things in our lives, that little bit of magic makes life easier. I know that some would think this is a "worldly" way of looking at things, but it is true. While we are to be spiritually mature, having a childlike attitude towards somethings, is so refreshing. (And the Bible says we are to have childlike faith) Kinda like that feeling when you walk onto Main Street at the Magic Kingdom! MAGIC!

So, what is your favorite "Magic" memory of Christmas decorations??? Leave a comment below, and let me know! Winner will receive a treasured snowman from my collection!!! Random winner will be drawn by the next biggest Christmas lover, Abbie, on October 1st!

8 comments:

Kelly on September 24, 2008 at 8:59 AM said...

Come on, Annie. Think about why I don't want to celebrate Christmas this year. It's not that I don't love it or decorating. It's just a time to be with family and my best friend is going to be somewhere I dont' want him to be!

Kelly on September 24, 2008 at 9:00 AM said...

PS I hope I didn't hurt your feelings and don't worry, you haven't hurt mine.

Annie Shaw on September 24, 2008 at 9:06 AM said...

Oh Kelly--I so know why! I am so sorry for your situation dear friend! I am so thankful for your hubby's service, and that is why I hate to see you sad at Christmas! You have sacrificed so much for US, I don't want you to have to sacrifice Christmas too!!!!

Daddy's Dream ~Mommy's Miracle on September 24, 2008 at 9:54 AM said...

I pray that Kelly will feel the love of friends and family during the holiday seasons. This year will be tough for me as well....I hope the years get easier. Anyway, my fav memory....Mom used to send us up to the "big hill" with a canteen full of hot chocolate. We would sled all day...except me....I hid and drank all the hot chocolate!

Sunny on September 24, 2008 at 10:18 PM said...

It is winter. We are watching television after dinner. Mom made salmon patties and cherry cobbler. I liked to crush the little round bones in the salmon with my fingers and I only eat the crust and cherries in the cobbler. I don’t like the soggy bottom. We see headlights in the driveway. Mom opens the door. Windy and I are pressed against the icy glass of the screen door. We watch as a woman in a long coat walks up our sidewalk with brown paper bags in each arm. She is our Christmas angel. The light and exhaust from the car made her look like she was walking out of the clouds of Heaven. She brought us toys. Dad helps her with bags and many thank yous are spoken. Windy and I sort through the toys, ecstatic with our surprise.

Nicky on September 24, 2008 at 11:03 PM said...

My favorite magic Christmas memories include the ones you mentioned, dear sister. I loved having you and Joni as sisters on Christmas morning. The magic of believing in Santa when it seems that no one else did. I still do. Remember watching the Little Mermaid every Christmas morn. Eating fried potatoes-all you can eat. Oranges everywhere. Our poodle, Trevor and the chirping Christmas ornament. Mom, Mom, Mom, Mom. How she would cry when we really liked our presents. Grandpa Pulliam. Getting dressed up for church service.

Thanks for giving me a little magic this evening. I miss we three little girls.

smooch

Allison on September 24, 2008 at 11:25 PM said...

Of course we're praying for Kelly & family!

My favorite Christmas memory... well, Christmas is my birthday! So my favorite memory is always that my parents made the effort to separate Christ's birthday from my birthday as much as possible. Not that they didn't want me to share His birthday, but that my birthday didn't have Christmas wrap, we weren't around the tree, etc.
And I would get my Death By Chocolate cake... Devil's food cake (from scratch) with homemade feel the sugar thru your veins icing - in chocolate. Mmmmm.

rmwhitaker47970 on October 3, 2008 at 2:13 PM said...

My heart goes out to Kelly, we too had to celebrate Christmas without my nephew while he was serving in Iraq but at christmas and my neice's wedding and any other family gathering, we always had his picture decked out in his uniform to remind us that he was there in our hearts and spirit. I pray for her husband's safe return. My favorite christmas memory is when i was 15. It had been a very hard 4 months as my boyfriend had been killed in a motorcycle accident and his birthday was December 29. I wanted a tape player and a guitar but like ALWAYS money was tight and I knew I had to make a choice, so i chose the tape player. Well after everyone had opened their presents, my mom says look there was a gift left in my bedroom. Well when she brought it to me I knew what it was, I started crying as i opened it and so did she and also a good friend of the family who spent a lot of Christmas's with us as he did not have any close family. Well I was so happy but my siblings were not, LOLOL.

 

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