Team Smith

The tradition we started with Cassidy was that Santa brings only 3 gifts. There were three Kings that brought gifts of frankincense, gold, and myrrh to Jesus. If it was good enough for Jesus it is good enough for us! This year we are changing it up a bit after a conversation with a friend who does something similar but a little different. One gift comes from Santa, the girls will each buy or make each other a gift, and they get one gift from us. Same concept of 3 gifts and making that connection to symbolize Jesus, different delivery. I love hearing great ideas from others and bringing them home! Thank you Erin!  It was more adorable than you can imagine having the girls shop for each other. They had a budget and used their own allowance. And put a lot of thought into what "sissy likes". The girls wrote one letter to Santa together this year, asking for a sundry of things, knowing they were only getting one. Santa was most excited to deliver hours of entertainment, imagi

For the season of advent we have a family related activity every day. It is a fabulous way to help us remember what Christmas means to our *family. And the girls love taking turns every day picking the activity out of the silver slot to see what adventures we will embark on.  *I say this because Christmas means something different to everyone. In our house it is celebrating baby Jesus. It is a central part of our faith life. The Christian spectrum is longer than the river Jordan! And we believe God has created endless ways to know Him, Christianity being one river of many to continue with that analogy.  Advent is either the first 25 days of December or the 4 Sundays leading up to Christmas. In Latin it translates to "Coming"  so we are celebrating the coming of Christ.  Some  would argue that Jesus was not born in December and there is some incredible  research  out there that explains how Dec 25 came to be.  However it happened, for us here and now, tis the seaso