MWE...Things I Got To Do......12.24.2012....Barbara H....

.....it has been an unorthodox Christmas celebration this year from the very beginning when the first family plans were made.

First off daughter Beth had to change the large family Christmas dinner for both sides of the family of parents, grands, uncles aunts and whoever they brought, because her hubby, my son-in-law, Jeffrey has to work. Thus the dinner will be held on the Thursday following Christmas day.

But since Christmas falls technically (not exactly on but just after the weekend (Monday and Tuesday) and my grandson comes down on weekends to spend them with me and his dad and sister, we held an impromptu early Santa arrival and opened gifts on Saturday morning before Christmas, then I came back to my house, cooked a great big Christmas dinner (my first in years) and the kids went "over the river and thru the woods" to MY house for a dinner. I'm the gramma and I live over the river and thru the woods. (smile, lucky am I not?)

Now what does a gramma do on Christmas morning when some of the gifts have already been opened and the remainder will not be opened till after Christmas? Well in another very different move, I will arise early because my son's new ladyfriend, who is a horseriding woman, has taken my granddaughter under her wing, brought Caitlin's (granddaughter) horse to her farm near here and the two will go on a Christmas day horse ride with the goal being grammas house....(me again, lucky am I not?) I will take photos of my girls with their new bridles and saddles and baby blue and lavender barn coats then feed them till the are stuffed with pancakes, sausage and hot cocoa. (They are both too skinny!)

Because I was finished wrapping gifts for today, I made my rounds to the other grandsons and their families and hand delivered their gifts, receving in return so many hugs and kisses and all the latest sports photos of my football and volley ball players and the latest school pictures. I can clean the fridge off now and start a new year photo display.

I spent the remainder of the day on the phone, returning calls, to my brother and sister-in-law in Phoenix. Then my son and his lady Michelle, came back for a supper of yesterday leftovers, which I might add, tasted better than when they were first served.

Tonight they will come to take me to our Christmas candlelight service, which always brings happy tears for me, I use to teach the babies there in Sunday School, now i sit with the elders in the back and watch those children walk with theie own babies to the alter.

There is nothing more beautiful than a young father of faith who brings his family along side him. THAT is a Christmas gift to me as  gramma, every time I witness it.

When I look over the title of this post "Things I Got To Do," for the holidays it is clear the change in the way things are being done has not interfered at all with Christmas arriving it has just been seen with a slightly different perspective.

The largest pint being that with Christ it is always the same, no matter how we humans view it. Ad sometimes doing a little changing in our human ways, adds a little flavor and reaches us in a much larger way....

may God bless us everyone...