This week’s blog is all about Christmas Spirit. Today is Christmas Eve, and at this point, we can look back at the month of December and really analyze our experiences. Cindy Lou Who is a character from The Grinch. (I assume you’ve read this book, or have seen this movie, if not, go Prime it immediately) You might recall that she is the sole reason why the Grinch exchanges his anger for joy. She sees an opportunity. More appropriately, a challenge. A MASSIVE, GIGANTIC, (seemingly) IMPOSSIBLE challenge to help the Grinch regain his Christmas Spirit. Cindy put forth true love and kindness toward the Grinch, even though he set out to ruin Christmas for all the Who’s down in Whoville. Cindy’s actions are a perfect comparison to the love that Christ shows for us. He was born for one reason. To selflessly give His life so that we could experience ours in abundance; a perfect image of love. Not necessarily an abundance of THINGS or GIFTS, but blessings beyond measure. How can you be more like Cindy Lou Who this year and always? How can you create Christmas memories and traditions without spending a dime? I asked a few friends this question, and here is what they had to say.

Classic Christmas

By: Jessica Skaife

Our family gets into the Christmas Spirit by way of traditions. We start off by decorating our home and drive around to go look at other’s Christmas lights! Our daughter, Mara, loves to eat ice cream while we view the Christmas decor around our neighborhood. I display a nativity in my home, to show that we celebrate Christmas as the birth of Christ. Our most important family tradition is to have a big family meal on Christmas Eve, while watching a Christmas movie. I traditionally make crab legs and steak for our meal. Our favorite Christmas movie is Polar Express! These are just some of the ways my family and I get into the Christmas Spirit.

Carrying Christmas Throughout the Year

By: Justine Kellett

One of my favorite things to do to get myself in the Christmas spirit is listen to music.  There are specific songs that take me back to my childhood Christmases and it’s the first thing I start every year.  I’m sure it drives my husband crazy, but I love my old country Christmas music! 

Displaying Christ’s love during the Christmas season isn’t much different than the entire year.  I think I’m just more aware and try to be more diligent with reaching out to others. Being a military spouse far away from family and my best friends, it’s easy to slump into myself and my family, but I also know how important it is to be reached out to when you’re feeling lonely.  So many feel lonely around the holidays. Either due to the military (far away from family, deployed spouse, etc.), grief over a lost loved one, or just simply the overwhelming stress that can easily overtake Christmas.  Offering a coffee or play date, calling that friend I haven’t seen in a while, holding the door for someone, having a conversation with the Walmart cashier rather than looking around aimlessly, anything to help someone else see that I see them and they aren’t alone. 

One of our family holiday traditions that I cherish is having the kids figure out and purchase gifts for each other.  Although we stress the fact that Christmas isn’t about gifts, we do teach them about bringing joy to others.  They have to ask and pay attention to what each other would want and then keep it a surprise from each other. It’s so sweet watching my kids being intentional with one another. 

Wreaths Across America: A Family Tradition with a Purpose

By: Alex Sallenger

It’s my son’s first Christmas, which has been so much fun to witness and he got me into the holiday spirit way (like wayyyy) sooner than usual. For the first time in my life, I started decorating and planning for Christmas before Thanksgiving. I was so excited that I was counting down to Thanksgiving not to celebrate, but because once it was over I could focus completely on Christmas. Then, when it came? I found myself less than motivated. Christmas was here, but I had promptly run out of steam and spirit. 

I don’t know why, maybe I only have so much per year and I’d already used it all up, maybe I secretly hate decorating the outside of the house, (actually, that’s not a secret, I do hate it.) Maybe being so far away from family just drained me. Whatever the cause, I was desperate to find my cheer again, and I started by carrying out one of our family’s favorite traditions- I made our donation to Wreaths Across America.

Those wreaths mean so much to us. Most of us have seen the pictures: rows and rows of the white headstones of Arlington National Cemetery, all supporting a wreath topped off with a red velvet bow. What people don’t realize is that behind those wreaths are thousands of volunteers who spend all year fundraising and then gather together to remember our country’s veterans. Not just at Arlington, but at cemeteries in all 50 states and across many other countries as well. As a military spouse, I love this tradition and each year, my husband Tom and I sponsor several wreaths.

Despite our annual donation, I have never been lucky enough to attend a ceremony or help place wreaths on graves due to work. Thankfully, this year was different. My son and I bundled ourselves up and rushed over to a nearby cemetery where the local Wreaths Across America chapter would be placing wreaths on 80 veterans’ graves. 

After a beautiful ceremony full of prayer, remembrance, and gratitude, everyone in attendance was encouraged to take a wreath and place it on one of the graves marked with a small American flag. We were encouraged to say the vet’s name out loud, and reminded that by placing our wreath there we weren’t decorating their graves, we were remembering their service. 

With only 80 graves and dozens and dozens of volunteers, I was only able to place one wreath, but it still touched me so much more than I expected. After saying my veteran’s name, “T Olai Hageness,” out loud and brushing some pine needles off of his headstone, I carefully laid my wreath down and fluffed it’s pretty red bow. My son is far too young to understand anything that was going on that day, but he sat quietly next to me as I prayed for Hageness and his family. I thanked him for his service and wished him a Merry Christmas. Then, we helped clean up a little bit and headed home. I had finally attended my first Wreaths Across America Day as a volunteer. It cost me nothing, yet I got so much out of it. 

All in all, it was a brief outing, but so very refreshing. As I left I was reminded that Christmas isn’t about getting my infant the correct number of gifts, making the perfect sugar cookies or figuring out how to string lights up on a house that doesn’t have a plug outside at all. First and foremost, it’s about Jesus. Period. But it is also a great time to reflect and be thankful. This year I am thankful for T Olai Hageness.   I’m thankful for my son, my husband and the rest of our family and friends. I’m thankful for Beka, and this blog. I’m also thankful that I’ve gotten quite a bit of my Christmas spirit back. 

If you are interested in supporting Wreaths Across America, click here.

•