Christmas is coming

I love Christmas. The hopeless romantic in me died years ago, but it is resurrected every December when I revel in the wonder of Christmas with its pretty lights and Christmas music and tasty treats. I'm very sentimental about a lot of things during the Christmas season, but this year I'm especially excited about a new tradition we started at the very last minute in 2009. Now in its second year, I'm anxious to sit down with my family over the next few weeks to choose birthday gifts for Jesus.

I came across the idea on a blog last December, and it just made sense. Why hadn't I thought of it before? We tell the kids that Christmas is Jesus' birthday, but then we give each other gifts instead of buying them for the birthday boy. Kids know that birthday parties don't work that way, but we got it confused somewhere along the way.

So over the next few weeks we'll be talking about what kinds of gifts Jesus might like to receive for his birthday. Then we'll pick a gift or two or three from our family and put them under the tree. I'm pretty sure Jesus will be excited to see them waiting there until December 25th, even if he does already know what's inside.

As we go through the process, I'll share some of the gifts we discuss in case you want to buy Jesus presents as well. Or maybe you want a unique gift for someone who already has everything they need. I have ideas for that, too.