A GregorWii Christmas

Are you recovering from this past Christmas?  I didn’t quite know what to have thought of this Christmas at first, for some reason I was just not really feeling it which is not like me.  I LOVE Christmas and it has nothing to do with buying presents(which I love to do) or Santa but it does have to do with a baby.  But I also love this time of year because this time of year just seems to bring out the best of peoples hearts, seeing others so giving just does my heart good.  Sadly though up until the week before Christmas I was just not really there.  Caleb actually showed me and grew my heart a size or two bigger(like the Grinch).  You see  the Sunday before Christmas our pastor was actually sharing his message and it was on the Grinch and how Christmas is more about giving and making our hearts just a bit bigger.  When Caleb was eating his M&M’s he had gotten from his Sunday School teacher, one of the college kids behind him was teasing him that he wanted some of his M&M’s.  Most kids will tell them no but not Caleb, that boy has one of the biggest hearts I know of.  He got out of his pew and went and offered him some of his M&M’s.  That day my heart was filling with the Christmas spirit!  I would love to share some of our Christmas with you.

On Christmas Eve we started to make Christmas cookies for Santa.  I love making cookies with the boys, there is just so much fun that is being had J There was some mixing, tasting, rolling, more nibbling, maybe a little flour fight J, some more nibbling, cookie cutting, SPRINKLES and then the boys eating the sprinkles.  We had so much fun, I just enjoy spending my time with them.  Here are a few pictures below.

 

Christmas morning was so nice and actually relaxed.  Taylor who has been asking everyday since the presents got put out if he could open them, could finally open his presents except he kinda went nuts and just started opening any present he could get his little fingers on.  He was so funny!  We decided to get a family gift this year and got us and the kids a Wii.  Which we have named the GregorWii, catchy huh?  Jeremy actually came up with that cool name and we like it.  Anywho Caleb loves the Wii, he likes to sword fight and play the Star Wars game we got him and let me tell you that boy is good!  Taylor is still getting used to it but I think he will come around soon.  He loves the animals he got and all the movies.  That boy could watch movies all day if you let him. Oh I forgot but the boys did get a “deer stand”(playground) for Christmas from Josh’s parents and Caleb just is a monkey on that thing and Taylor is now learning to climb and swing too!  We are so thankful for all of our friends who love our kids and send them some special things too!  Josh and I did our annual ornament exchange.  Each year we both get each other an ornament we have done it for the past 8 years now.  It started out at first as a simple lets get each other a sweet little ornament but now it is kinda a competition, a fun competition J I would have pictures from it but whoa, I was looking a tad bit rough so I think I will spare you all. Hehe.  Oh and before I unload some of the pictures from Christmas I have to tell you that the boys and I had our first white Christmas!  It was so beautiful, the boys went and played out in the snow a bit.  Jessica, Josh and I cooked the Christmas meal and it was really yummy!  I just love when Joshua makes his Christmas ham, it is the best!

Well that about does it for Christmas at the Chez Gregory household, I think the only thing that would have made this Christmas a bit nicer would have been if my family was with us too cause they love Christmas just as much as I do.  Well pray you and your family had a wonderful Christmas and may you have a wonderful New Year! 



us in the aftermath =)



Give this Christmas away with Christmas Memories

Last night we had our Adult Cantata and it was titled "Christmas Memories" and I was so touched by all of it. I just loved hearing about different peoples memories of their Christmas's or how this Christmas might be alittle different. Well this year is alittle different for us and I must admit that I was alittle bummed but my 4 year old and some awesome mentors from our church helped me to just open my eyes a bit. See many of you have heard my story about telling Caleb that this year for Christmas he might only get a gift or two it wouldn't be like other Christmas's or even his birthday's. Well to my attonishment he was really ok with it and that made me so proud, just that he wouldn't pitch a fit because he was only getting a few things but he is just so special in that way. Of course he followed up by asking for a pet snake and then a mole when I said no the snake, and then when asked where did he come up with that, he simply replied "Jesus told me" :P Then last night I heard some stories of some of the ladies who have lost their husbands either a few years ago or just recently and it brought my grandpa to mind this year he will be without my grandma, last year he was too but he came a spent Christmas with us, well I am just in love with this song "Give this Christmas away" by Matthew West with Amy Grant. It says if there is love in your heart don't let it stay. I couldn't think of a better way to express Christ birth than showing the love of Him to others. Whether it be by a phone call, a letter, a visit, baking cookies or showing Christ love to someone who is not on your Christmas list, it is easy to give to someone who you like but what could make your heart stronger than to love someone who hasn't show you that kind of love :) you can do so many things to show love to someone which is what God did for us, when Christ was born and to later suffer and die on the cross. I am hoping to give this Christmas to my grandpa by a letter to him and a phone call on Christmas to let him know how much I love him, I really wish I could be there or him here but God knows his needs and I know he will be surrounded by those who will also show love to him. So I ask you how will you give this Christmas away?

The Spirit of Christmas

So I betcha don’t know what time of year it is…J Well it is this time of year that everyone starts to put up decorations, sing Christmas songs, cook all sorts of yummy goodies and giving presents galore! And there seems to be a lot of snowmen, angels, nativity scenes, santa's and Jesus is the reason for the season. Now don’t get me wrong I love Santa and I don’t really have a problem letting my kids believe in him, there is a new Veggie Tales movie out that is really great and talks about St.Nickolas and the meaning behind Christmas. And I also do know that Jesus is the reason that I am celebrating this special time of year but to me Christmas is so much more than that in my heart, it is about compassion, grace, giving, mercy and love. I would love to share a story with you that really made a lot of these things real in my heart.

There was a girl who had just moved by herself into a little one bedroom apartment, and for the first time in her life she was spending Christmas by herself. She didn’t have a tree or decorations. See her and her family were not in the best of terms so she wasn’t spending Christmas with them this year. The women at her work knew the situation and about 2 weeks or so before Christmas, while she was just working away at the drive-thru at the credit union, they all called her name and asked if she could come to the front. As the girl was standing there, all her friends were standing there with a smile on their face. They presented her with a 3 foot Christmas tree and decorations for it. The girl just started crying in the middle of the credit union, just when she thought she might have a terrible Christmas, her friends showed her such love and made all the difference in the world to her. She rushed home that night and put all the decorations up and prayed thanking God for putting such wonderful people in her life. The girl in this story is me and that Christmas really changed my heart about what Christmas to me was about. God showed such love to us by sending His son, to this unruly earth. I could go on about the rest of His story but I think you all know it. Christmas to me is about Jesus but it also about your heart and where it is. There can be santa's, giving and goodies but make sure where your heart lies.