I love the smell of Christmas tree wafting through my house.
I love our homemade stockings, hanging from our mantle, each one stitched in gold thread with the names of the five of us.
I love holding a stack of envelopes in my hand each day, eager to open them up and see the faces of friends and family on their Christmas cards.
I love the first familiar notes of Andy Williams’, “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year.”
I love packing the kids up in the car when the sun goes down, hot chocolate in hand, to admire the festive light displays.
I love the glowing candles and twinkling lights that illuminate our house in the wee hours of the night.
I love pulling out all the decorations we’ve collected throughout the years, remembering each Christmas we’ve celebrated together.
I love my little boys in matching Christmas pajamas, sitting on the couch reading books from our Christmas library.
I love our Chewbacca ornament, the unlikely tree topper from our first year of marriage, that has become our family’s annual tradition.
I love that my husband has “a system” for hanging the outside lights, one that has taken years of trial and error to develop.
I love wrapping presents. I really do! The sound of the scissors slicing through the paper and the gifts being enveloped in red and green.
I love all the festive sweaters, scarves and Santa hats that come out this time of year.
I love making candied fruit from the millions of oranges exploding from our citrus tree.
I love baking cookies with my kids, White Christmas playing in the background, sprinkles and flour covering the countertop and floor.
I love homemade cioppino on Christmas Eve with our table, stomachs and hearts full.
I love Santa and the belief in something so magical and wonderful that anything is possible.
I love Christmas!
Christmas time can be stressful with all the gifts and wrapping and lists but I challenge you to throw on a Santa hat, crank up the Christmas music and stop and smell the mistletoe!
