Christmas Confessions

 

I have a confession to make...I have not been in the mood to decorate for Christmas, at all this year. 

There are several factors that play into that, such as not having a good place to store whatever I buy, so it sometimes seems like a waste of money. Also, anything I put on the porch that isn't covered, gets dirty by the end of the season. Again...a waste of money. 

Plus, when it's only December 2nd, but you feel like you're already behind, because everyone else has had their decorations up since November, you start to think you're late, so what's the use?

These were the thoughts rolling around in my mind the past few days, until I forced myself to go shopping and just get on with it. (I know, I'm sounding like a grinch.)

But, you know what happened when I got out and about? I started getting in the spirit of things and found myself getting excited about the season.  

Yesterday I went to Hobby Lobby - my go-to place for all things decorative and picked up a few things to do a simple porch theme, as well as something to hang on the gate at the end of the drive. 

I ended up with a basket full of items (all on sale!) and felt pretty much in the Christmas spirit when I left there to go meet my friend Kim for lunch. I mean, how can you not catch the feeling, when the store is full of people shopping and the Christmas music is playing? I know that would be a nightmare for some people, but it energizes me at this time of year. 

After lunch, I stopped at Barnes and Noble for a quick stroll through the bookstore. Ahhh...that's my happy place. Books, magazines, gifts and coffee, all in one place. What more can a girl ask for? As always, I bought way too much, but by the time I left there, I was ready for the season. 

When I got home and laid out all my goods, I was happy with the simplicity of what I bought and realized that this season doesn't have to be complicated. It is what we make it. 

We try and keep up with the Pinterest perfect pictures, the Instagram influencers, the Facebook fakery, and it makes us feel like we don't measure up and that just means we're focusing on the wrong things.

This year I didn't do a themed Christmas tree or try and use the latest color scheme for my ornaments. But instead, I got out all the old ornaments that my kids made 20 years ago and covered our small tree with those. What a joy it was to see their little faces in the ornaments they had made at Sunday school or Mother's Day Out. 

That's what Christmas is all about. The memories, the family pictures, the simple wreaths, the faded ornaments. The honoring of Jesus by focusing on him, instead of the latest and greatest fad. 

This morning when I was thinking about this post, it reminded me of another thing I'm not always in the mood for and that is reading my Bible (I told you it was confession time). But you know what? It's the same kind of thing...if you just open the book, start reading God's word, something happens and the next thing you know, you've read a page or a chapter and you've been blessed that you spent time in the Word.

Well, I'm glad I went shopping and glad it brought me to the point of being in the Christmas spirit. It's hot and muggy outside, so it's still going to take some work on my part, to continue in this mindset, but maybe if I put on a sweater and some boots, I can fake it. What do you think? 😀

Do you have any Christmas confessions? If so, I would love to hear them! 

Until Next Time...

Blessings!