Counting my Blessings & Wishing you all Christmas Blessings

A big Howdy Prim Friends... 6 days till Christmas....yep just 6 little bitty days till all the hussel and bussel will be over with and we can all sit back and relax..Hopefully take a few days to actually enjoy that Beautiful Christmas Tree we put up and all of the Trimmings around the house that made it so picture perfect when friends & family arrived to celebrate..remembering all the great conversations, great food, gift giving and sharing time with those we love. Giving thanks we made it threw another Holiday!!
Maybe as we sit back taking a moment to reflect on all the Christmas's in the past.
Counting our Blessings that we have so many warm and wonderful memories!!
I know that for many of us those wonderful memories get lost in all the hussel and bussel of the Holidays..
I have hundreds of pictues in albums and every Christmas I like to get the Christmas picture albums out and take time to look back and reflect on so many of those wonderful memories of the past...and count all of the wonderful Blessings I've had in my life time...I was a foster parent and one of the most precious Christmas memories was seeing one of my little boys come down the stairs seeing all the gifts under the tree.
Carmen was sitting in front of the tree... Little Robbie just stood on the steps looking with huge round Blue eyes..You see He had never had Christmas in his 4 short years of life...this was his first Christmas ever..His first Christmas Tree, his first gifts ever! Words can never describe the look on his face & his reaction to his first Christmas....
We had read stories about Santa and Jesus Birthday before the big day so he had an idea of  what Christmas was...Finally he said, " Santa Came" Carmen told him to come see what Santa brought.
As he opened his gifts he just sat there for the longest time looking at each gift, playing with it...
Carmen had all her gifts opened before Robbie had even opened half his gifts...It was a priceless moment in time when he came running up to me and hugged me and said Santa came momma Santa came...His favorite gift was a matchbox car little Race set.

My favorite memory of Christmas with Carmen is special in many ways. Carmen wanted a Doll house so my mother and bought a kit. My mother was dieing from cancer but she found the strength to work on it with me. Sadly she passed away before we got it finished but I have those memories of working on it with her.
I finished the doll house myself. It was sitting in front of the tree when Carmen came down the steps Christmas morning... She was jumping up and down with joy when she seen her doll house all furnished. yelling I got my doll house...LOL...She never really cared for Dolls but she played with her Doll house for years...There was always something special about watching her play with her Doll house and remembering those last days spent with my mother putting together her Doll house.

As a family I think my best memories were sitting around the Christmas tree on Christmas Eve after our extended family had left, reading Christmas stories. My mother read to us as kids then I started reading to Carmen on her first Christmas.... The kids would pick there favorite book and I would read them...Carmen had her favorite & I have to admit it was mine too.."Phorrumph was his name" ..it was a story about a tiny Elf that Road in Santa's pocket.. there was even an Elf Doll & a 45 record with a song that came with the story book...We would all sing the song after I read the story...funny we had this tradition long after Carmen was grown... Then a few years back we somehow miss placed the Christmas books and we stopped reading the Christmas Stories... I miss that very much...

Then when Carmen was married and had a place of her own I would help her decorate her house at Christmas... Putting all the Hallmark ornaments she collects on her wreaths, and making decorations for the tree.. Then she got more trees so we were decorating 2 then 3 trees.. Now she has gone Prim and the whole house is a beautiful Prim wonderland...
I regret that I no longer help her decorate but I have years of wonderful memories stored of all the fun we had decorating for Christmas...and getting ready for the Christmas Celebration!!

I have been blessed with so many warm and wonderful memories of Christmas both with my family as a child and then with my family as an adult. I cherish each and every wonderful memory.

Christmas can be such a stressful time leaving us drained before it has come and gone... but you know in the end there are so many wonderful things to remember and cherish.....

My Christmas wish for you is that each of you take the time to reflect, look back and enjoy some of your best memories before you take down the tree and all your decorations. Let those memories warm your heart and fill you with love and peace that last you till next Christmas...
Remember to Thank god for giving you his ever lasting love and filling your life with so many Blessings.. For it is Jesus Birthday that brings us all together at Christmas to celebrate as family's!!

It was a good Weekend..I actually had two very good days without severe pain... My neice came by again and gave me a neck & back massage which once again releived much of the pain in my arms for a little while.. I spent time out in the shop and actually created one new gathering before the pain took over again...but wow was it noce to be in the shop again...
I got all my Ebay packages packed and ready to ship today.. made Rag Balls for a rag ball order, worked on Rag Garland and watched a mess of Christmas movies... thank God for a few hours of releif...

the post office is calling me so I must run for now... I bid you all a good day filled with happy moments!!

Christmas Blessings
Tonya