The Christmas season has come and gone along with the passing of the old year.
Christmas this year was spent with lots of family time visiting and enjoying each others' company. I love the time that my kids can spend with their cousins, and I can spend time with my siblings, parents, and grandparents. Our break from school was extra long this year, but because of basketball practices and games we were only able to spend a day with my family. I wish we lived a little closer, our lives were a little less busy, and we could spend more time with them. We seldom get a chance to just sit and visit, so it was fun to at least have one day to spend with them.
With our long break came lots of time for the kids to spend time at the farm with cousins. I might need to go visit the farm to see Taite, as he proabably won't want to return home until the 5th so he can go to school on the 6th.
We spent Christmas Eve with some of Dave's family at the farm sharing memories of Christmases past. One of my favorite things about Christmas is Grandpa Dehlin's flashlights. When he was 8 years old all he wanted for Christmas was a flashlight. It wasn't until he was 10 and had earned enough money, was he able to purchase a flashlight for himself. Ever sense I can remember he has given each person in our family a flashlight, so they don't ever have to wish for one. Such a simple, yet special meaningful gift.
Christmas morning was welcomed in our own home. As we opened stockings and gifts the fun of just being together was my greatest gift. We are so busy lately that we don't have very many moments in our home together. I really enjoyed opening gifts, even if it was at 5:30 AM, sharing breakfast, and getting ready to visit family together. I am realizing more often that through the simple moments happiness can be found.
Christmas afternoon we headed to Shelley for the cousin gift exchange, adult white elephant exchange, dinner, and of course the cousin sleep-over. No matter how old the cousins are getting they still all gather in the basement at Thanksgiving and Christmas for their sleep-over. Lucky Grandma Donna joins them as well, while the other adults head for their own homes, and Dave, Dad, and Shane and I head upstairs. Oh the fun memories!
Two days after Christmas found us back at the farm for dinner, the cousin gift exchange, sharing of talents, and bingo. Christmas at the farm doesn't just go one night though, it seems to continue for a few days with snowmobiling, sledding, movies, games, and lots of visiting. I hope my children will hold on to these memories and always have the desire to build new memories as well.
New Year's Eve came and went without event this year. Taite spent the night at Rick and Rose's, Shaylee went to a friend's house, Liv and Dave hung out together, and I was a party pooper and went to bed. However, I didn't go to bed without thoughts of the year we were leaving behind and the one ahead of us. My thoughts turned to my family of five and my hopes for them.
I am finding that this past year has certainly been a time of season changes for our family. With the girls getting older and Taite following close behind, I have found it hard throughout all of the different holidays, not just Christmas, to keep the magic of the season in our home. From the simplest of holidays like Valentine's Day, birthdays, and even Christmas, I feel that it is time to creaet new traditions as our family is growing older. Often this past year I have felt that we treat a holiday like just another day in our rushed lives. I have really thought a lot about this the past couple of weeks and I hope this year, starting right off, that I can recreate some of the fun and magic that we have had in the past. Time to get party planning and spending more time together as a family.
Here's to a new year, new fun, new memories......Welcome 2014.
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