This Christmas has been extra special for our family. On 12/17 we welcomed McClain Gore into the family, as Lindsey gave birth to her first child. This little girl has already brought so much love and joy to our family, and I thank God that she is happy and healthy.
Matt and I celebrated Christmas, but I was in West Columbia with my family and he went to Jasper to be with his family. It is very important to us to spend as much time with our family as possible, individually, before we commit our lives to each other. We love each other so very much, and love our families, too. Matt's family is turning into my second family, and I am so thankful that we both have families that we love and adore, and enjoy spending time with. We are so very blessed.
We had such a wonderful time on Christmas Eve, mass was absolutely beautiful, and the dinner afterwards with family was such a treat. One of my fave holiday traditions happens on Christmas Eve, when we all gather at Poppy and Yea Yea's for dinner. Poppy makes the most delicious CHILI, and we have that, and TAMALES. Yep, its quite the odd pairing, but my goodness it is divine. After dinner, we come home to another one of my most favorite traditions....the opening of ONE present each. Mom gets to choose the gift, and surprise, EACH year it is a new pair of Christmas PJs. The girls always match in their jammies, while Chad and my dad are the odd balls of the group. I love this tradition and can't wait to pass it along to my family one day. That evening Dad and I made our annual batch of peanut brittle, while Mom baked away. She made all sorts of sweet treats :) There is never a shortage of food in the Kresta house and my goodness Christmas was no exception. What an amazing feast.
That evening a few of us decided to go to church, and I am so thankful that I made this decision. This weekend was the feast of the Holy Family. The homily given by Father Tien was one for the ages. He truly struck a cord with me, reminding us to model our families (and future families) after the family of Joseph, Mary and Jesus. If you build your family on love and compassion, not only for the Lord, but for each other, then you will build a strong foundation for your family. You will be making not only your life better, but you will be enriching the lives of the people around you. He said you should take stock in your stability as a family, in regard to compassion and love, and should not worry about the financial security that our society gets caught up in. I am guilty of getting caught up in this as well. Matt and I discuss all the time what the future may or may not hold for us and our family, and now I truly understand, that I need to take stock in our Lord, and take stock in our spirituality as a family, and all will be ok :) It's a new outlook for 2011, and I can't wait to see what is in store.
BTW, I can't wait for Thursday to get here...MATT will be here and we will celebrate our Christmas together, as well as the New Year. WAHOOOO sooo happy and excited to see my lovey.
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