The Season of Giving

I am so excited to share this Christmas season with my husband!  Christmas really is the best time of year.  We get to celebrate the birth of our Savior and spend time with loved ones.  This year is special for Tyler and I because we get to establish our own traditions.  We are our own "family" and get to make the decisions for us, much like our parents did when they started their family.


One thing my parents always told my brothers and I was that this is the season of giving.  We are to give our gifts with a happy heart.  I might not have understood this when I was 3 or 4, but the older I get, the more excited I am to give my family their Christmas presents.


Tyler and I want to start our own traditions, and why not start now?  We don't have to wait until we have kids, we can start now.  One thing I'm really excited about is our decision to adopt a child for Christmas.  There are tons of people that are not as fortunate as we are, even being in college.  We both know that we've been blessed, and that as Christians, we need to give back.


We've adopted a little boy, age 2, and he needs a coat.  He also wants some dinosaur toys.  How easy is that?  He doesn't have a long, detailed list like some of us might.  I thought we could definitely handle his wish list, and we could also buy him some extras.


I can definitely see this becoming a tradition in our family.  It's humbling to buy gifts for people you don't know, especially when they don't have a long list.  It makes us realize that we don't need anything.  God has blessed us with everything we need.  It puts our wants into perspective.


I pray that this little boy will grow up to one day know Christ and the real reason we celebrate Christmas.  God has been good to us, and it's our turn to show that love to others.