The seventh Christmas tradition I absolutely love is the Johnsons' annual visit! It's so much fun and we really enjoy being able to spend some quality time with them!
This year we did a lot of shopping and hanging out and eating (cheese is always involved!!).
We celebrated Christmas together- which is a treat! Ethan was especially excited! Since they live in Pennsylvania, we only get to see them twice a year, but hopefully this year we'll get to see them an extra time! : )
We had a great visit with them and, as always, we will miss them a LOT!
Next to the true story of Christmas found in the gospels, my favorite Christmas tale is Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol. It's thought-provoking and redemptive themes help remind me each year of the true meaning of Christmas. The miserly old Scrooge's dynamic change from selfish greed to full-hearted giving and well-wishing are inspiring. I try to read some of it every year, or if I don't have the time, I try to watch it or listen to it. My favorite version is A Muppet Christmas Carol (it brings out the child in me... actually, I'm sure that is usually evident...). You can't beat cool looking puppets that dance and harmonize!
During this Season, goodwill and peace are abounding themes in songs and media and greeting cards. It wasn't this way in Dickens' time though- they didn't even have television or social media! Imagine that! The poor were on the streets being passed over by most, children and orphans were being shuttled off to work houses which were poorly conditioned and maliciously run. Christmas had become just another day. So, wanting to remedy this, Dickens went on a walk and came up with some of the best loved characters of all time- Mr. Fezziwig, Tiny Tim, Bob Cratchit, Jacob Marley.... the list goes on. People were inspired by the change in the life of Ebenezer Scrooge and Christmas cheer was rekindled.
In our time, Christmas has been, for some, reduced to commercialism and gain. We've forgotten the Babe in the straw and His power to redeem us. We must not let this be! We must not let gain be our master passion! 
The Fifth of my favorite Christmas traditions is taking a shopping trip to Freeport with friends. This year I took my friends Amanda and Ruthie. We had a lot of fun and good fellowship and got a bunch of good deals to boot!!
Where's your favorite shopping destination at Christmas time and why?
I think I enjoy the hand-made gifts that people give the most, because you know they take both time and thought. It's like they are giving you a piece of themselves in their artfulness.
Gift giving originated from a Roman pagan celebration called Saturnalia. From the birth of the celebration of Christmas, Christians frowned upon gift-giving as it seemed to encourage the pagan holiday. They would typically exchange gifts on New Year's Eve or Twelfth Night. Gradually, with the fame of St. Nicholas' selfless deeds of giving, Christians began to give gifts on the Savior's birthday. It may have began as a pagan ritual, but to believers today, it reminds us of the greatest Gift of all. 
What was your favorite hand-made Christmas gift? What does gift-giving at Christmas mean to you?
The Christmas tree is thought to be originated in Germany during the 16th century. It was brought to England when Queen Victoria married her German cousin, Albert and through an engraved picture of the royal family with their tree came over to the united states in the 1850s. 
We place The Peanuts Christmas CD in our CD player and turn up the volume.
Then, after we do some Snoopy dances, we dig into our Christmas boxes.
It's Ethan's job to set up the Veggie Tales manger scene while I set up our porcelain one. (He presses the star that sings "O Little Town of Bethlehem", Junior Asparagus' version, about fifty times during the course of its situating.)
Then we dig out our ornaments. Each ornament holds a special memory for me and makes me think of the people who gave them to us or Christmases past.
Ethan did a fine job with the tree. After giving him some instruction about how to space the ornaments, I had to exercise self-control and let him put them wherever. After all, it's more important for him to enjoy this experience than for us to have the perfect tree!
We always save this one little ornament for mom- it has a story. My Nana would let her kids decorate the tree, but when they went to bed she would rearrange it. She's got a great knack for decorating, so she probably was going mad by the ill-spaced and crowded ornaments!! Mom and my uncles would get up in the morning to find the tree decorated differently, but this little ornament that mom always put on was left in its original place. So, each year, we make sure mom gets to put her ornament on!
After all of the hard work, Ethan and I settle down for a Christmas movie- this year it was The Grinch- along with some hot chocolate and popcorn!
