Merry Christmas my friend!

The snow is falling, carols are playing on the radio, the scent of baking apples is in the air. The boys have been sledding and soon they’ll come tramping into the house in a whoosh of frigid air and snowflakes, red-cheeked and asking for hot cocoa.  I do love this season!

This year I’ve felt, more and more, a need to slow down, to settle into the depths of what we celebrate and to pass that truth along to my children.  I would dearly love another ten days in this month of celebrating.  I said this yesterday at church and a friend said to me, “No, another ten days would just mean more time to try to do more, to cram more activity into an already busy season.”  She’s right.  The concerts and lights and parties and baking—all things I love to do, but they’re like candy. Enjoyable for the moment, but easily forgotten in the long run. As I “Come and worship Jesus Christ the newborn King” during this season of remembrance, I must tether myself to the anchor of His truth: Christmas isn’t about a whirlwind of activities—fun as they may be—it’s about the grace of a Savior who came to rescue me, and you too, and to give us life. And that gives me a quiet peace to my soul in all the flurries of the season.

In this Christmas edition of Letters From Home, you’ll find a window into some of what we’ve been up to: candle making, cake baking, carol singing, and even a history lesson.  As I write these words, I pray that you will find quiet peace in spite of the busyness and joy in the midst of troubled times.

With love,

Olivia

O Holy Night

I Did It!

A Wedding Surprise and a Christmas Tradition

Pondering Mary