Being Merry
Christmas overseas, in a country that does not celebrate the holiday, is definitely different than celebrating with dear ones amidst the hustle and bustle in the States. And I admit, I missed the hustle and bustle that comes with the commercialism of Christmas. However, being away from it all gave our family a renewed perspective and reminded us of the true reason for our joy as we celebrate this holiday. Christ is everything. He is not simply an afterthought. He should not be confined to the phrase, "Jesus is the reason for the season" but forgotten in most of our celebrations. I am as guilty as anyone in this, which is why I am even more thankful for the opportunity to celebrate Christmas in a place where distractions are minimal and our family can more easily rejoice in Christ our Savior as the ONLY reason for celebration.
One of the new traditions we found helpful in our celebration is the Jesse Tree, which we found to be a wonderful way of celebrating advent with children. Basically, there is a Bible story and a corresponding ornament for every day of December leading up to Christmas. The stories begin at creation and end with Christ. We found a great branch that we used for our tree, and I made the ornaments out of paper, so it was pretty easy to do. And E, especially, loved it.
We also did something called Shepherd's Pouches, an idea I got from a book by Noel Piper called Treasuring God in Our Traditions (a book I highly recommend). We've decided not to do Santa Claus in our family, for a number of different reasons. So instead of stockings, we started the tradition of shepherd's pouches, symbolizing the gifts of worship given to the baby Jesus by the shepherds. Through the month of December, we save our pennies and put the money aside to be put towards a birthday gift for Jesus. Once the girls are older, they can do chores/odd jobs to earn the money. The gift can be different every year, but this Christmas, we decided to use the money to buy diapers and formula for a local orphanage. And then on Christmas morning, the gifts for Jesus that were in the shepherd's pouches are replaced with small gifts for the girls, symbolizing the many gifts God bestows upon us, His children.
We did have a Christmas tree and enjoyed the fun of giving gifts to each other. And thought it was difficult not being with our loved ones, we were able to Skype with our families, which was such a blessing. On Christmas night, we Skyped with my family for over two hours, as we opened gifts and enjoyed the sweet blessing of being able to celebrate together. I am sure our traditions will change through the years, especially as this foreign place becomes home and our family grows. But we are thankful...thankful for our little family and the opportunity to celebrate together. And we are thankful for the truth of John Piper's words: "Christmas is first Christ, second Christ, third Christ, and again and again Christ!" I pray we would always remember and practice this.
Here are some pics of us being merry.
Christmas Eve. Wrapped presents courtesy of my mom and sister.
Princess.
Ballerina.
Her father.
Princess and ballerina. Because why should she have to choose just one.
Opening our Shepherd's Pouches.
Sweet girls.
Toys. Yay!! It was fun buying some things for the girls, especially since we didn't bring many toys from home (or really any, except for books). They were VERY excited to have some new things to play with.
What every girl needs: a pink umbrella.
Being creative on their new easel.
Smiles.
The girls enjoying their gifts. A blessing.
One of the new traditions we found helpful in our celebration is the Jesse Tree, which we found to be a wonderful way of celebrating advent with children. Basically, there is a Bible story and a corresponding ornament for every day of December leading up to Christmas. The stories begin at creation and end with Christ. We found a great branch that we used for our tree, and I made the ornaments out of paper, so it was pretty easy to do. And E, especially, loved it.
We also did something called Shepherd's Pouches, an idea I got from a book by Noel Piper called Treasuring God in Our Traditions (a book I highly recommend). We've decided not to do Santa Claus in our family, for a number of different reasons. So instead of stockings, we started the tradition of shepherd's pouches, symbolizing the gifts of worship given to the baby Jesus by the shepherds. Through the month of December, we save our pennies and put the money aside to be put towards a birthday gift for Jesus. Once the girls are older, they can do chores/odd jobs to earn the money. The gift can be different every year, but this Christmas, we decided to use the money to buy diapers and formula for a local orphanage. And then on Christmas morning, the gifts for Jesus that were in the shepherd's pouches are replaced with small gifts for the girls, symbolizing the many gifts God bestows upon us, His children.
We did have a Christmas tree and enjoyed the fun of giving gifts to each other. And thought it was difficult not being with our loved ones, we were able to Skype with our families, which was such a blessing. On Christmas night, we Skyped with my family for over two hours, as we opened gifts and enjoyed the sweet blessing of being able to celebrate together. I am sure our traditions will change through the years, especially as this foreign place becomes home and our family grows. But we are thankful...thankful for our little family and the opportunity to celebrate together. And we are thankful for the truth of John Piper's words: "Christmas is first Christ, second Christ, third Christ, and again and again Christ!" I pray we would always remember and practice this.
Here are some pics of us being merry.
Christmas Eve. Wrapped presents courtesy of my mom and sister.
Princess.
Ballerina.
Her father.
Princess and ballerina. Because why should she have to choose just one.
Opening our Shepherd's Pouches.
Sweet girls.
Toys. Yay!! It was fun buying some things for the girls, especially since we didn't bring many toys from home (or really any, except for books). They were VERY excited to have some new things to play with.
What every girl needs: a pink umbrella.
Being creative on their new easel.
Smiles.
The girls enjoying their gifts. A blessing.
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