Little angels.....

Christmas at the Nelson home is a very special time of year. Our home is full of cookie baking, tree trimming and lots of traditional festivities. It is such a wondrous time of year for us to reflect on the greatest gift we have ever been given, and this is the most important part of the Christmas celebration in our home. One of my favorite parts is our tradition of lighting the Advent candle each night and reading The Advent Book. This book is amazing!! There is a door that kids can open each night that tells a portion of the story of Christ's birth. The boys LOVE it!! They cannot wait to open the new door and see what is behind it. We let them help us light the candles and when the story for that night is complete, we ask them if they want to say a prayer. Most times, they don't, but this night, they did!! I had to be quick, (and yes, they chastised me for having my eyes open during their prayer), but I just had to capture this sweetness!! Oh, how the Father must love seeing a child on bended knee in prayer. Like Mary, I will ponder these things in my heart forever.

And, just when I thought I heard angels singing "Hallelujah" as my children prayed, real life smacked me right upside my head! A few days later, I see Evan at the foot of the Christmas tree playing with the Veggie Tales nativity scene. "How adorable," I thought, and raced to get my camera to capture the moment and reflect on the spiritual maturity of my youngest son. As I snapped photos, I soon realized he was trying to cram his great white shark through the creche window...with great force. Just as I was about to break the wondrous moment, he picked up the creche, slammed it down on the rug and shouted, "Crashing down on Baby Jesus!!"
Oh my!! God gave me quite a bit of perspective that day...Evan and I had a talk about not crashing Baby Jesus and I had a talk with my Creator about staying humble and courageous in this role as parent!!

The link to The Advent book website is www.adventbook.com