One of my favorite things about Christmas is all the new things that come around this time of year…things that help us think about Christ, things that are just fun, and things that are seasonal like end of the year Christmas parties.

For the things that help us think about Christ…

nativity sets – we are loving our new Fisher Price Little People nativity set.  The girls love playing with it and I love using it along with school and just talking about Christ and the true meaning of Christmas.

The Advent Event – I debated about doing this again this year because we already have so many things we are memorizing and learning through school, but I decided it was well worth it.  Kinsley is definitely loving it again this year and I love that while she is still having a hard time sitting through everything, she definitely is doing better than last year.  Check this out at http://www.theadventevent.com/.  Its a great resource to teach your children about Christ and the big picture of the Bible.

gift giving and giving to others – we have tried to take every opportunity this year to talk about why we give to each others and to others.  We did Operation christmas child and loved getting to share with her about it going to others overseas who may not get gifts and don’t have much.  How special that Ed got to actually see some kids open Operation Christmas Child boxes this summer in Senegal and that he can attest to the joy they had in receiving them!  We also have loved sharing with her that its not about what we get or give but that the reason we give is because God gave us the ultimate gift through Christ.

Not sure she is getting all these things at age 3, but praying the Lord softens her heart and lets it sink in.

For the things that are just fun….

Christmas tree decorating.  What a difference a year makes in Kinsley being able to help us decorate.  She LOVED decorating the tree and was so sad that we made her stop to go to bed (such mean parents we are!).  And she did a great job…only a few ornaments were broken.

Elf on the Shelf.  We don’t really use this as naughty vs. nice or as Santa is watching you, we have loved making it into a game where we find out what silly Scout (his name) is doing that morning.  Here are some of the ways we have found him so far…

and lastly, things that are seasonal like end of the year parties.  We went with our team to see Meadow Lights in Benson, NC.  To make a very long story very short, we had a lot of hiccups that night which lead to us having to forgo our original dinner plans, run into the tree lighting ceremony which held up traffic on the way to our backup dinner plans, and then having to wait in an amazingly long line for the lights.  When you get in line at 8:15 and know that you will have to wait for an hour or longer and your kids are supposed to go to bed at 8, you know its trouble.  But the girls did amazing (like ah-mazing!…couldn’t have asked for better) and we had a great time with our team.   We rode in a train while we looked at lights and both girls LOVED it.  Here is a pic of Kinsley waiting.

Also check out this CUTE pic of the girls we had taken for year-end pictures….

Adorable, right?  And this isn’t Christmas related, but check out my Pinterest-inspired bow holder I made for the girls.  I have seen a few to buy but they have been nowhere near big enough, so when I saw this one, I thought “I can make it for cheap” and thanks to a great sale on Black Friday at Michaels and my amazing husband for helping (I do not like operating a staple gun…the thought of it going through my finger hits me every time I hear it go off), it is a success.  I wish you could see the ribbon more because it is so cute!

Way too many bows right?  Thanks to my facebook co-ops that have allowed me to get them for WAY cheap, we now have way too many!!  Somehow with two girls I am sure we will use them a lot.