O Christmas Tree…O Christmas Tree… It was an exciting day in the Bocanegra house when our tree finally went up.  Christmas happens to be my all time favorite holiday.  I deck out the entire house, every room in the house is covered in holiday cheer and of course outside is lit up but not as close to the Griswolds.  This past weekend we had our plans set to leave for Dallas to spend time with our middle son and his girlfriend and spend an entire day in Grapevine, TX…The Christmas Capital of Texas.  And trust me when I say this, that is definitely not an exaggeration…It’s definitely a magical place.  So we decorate our tree on Thursday night before we leave Friday night.  Yes, I just had to have it all set up before we left for the weekend.  Everything looked amazing and I was so happy to have our tree up and decorated.  While we were out of town our tree toppled over and of course, we ended up with broken ornaments scattered.  Now you can only imagine how I must have felt.  We are talking about over 10 years of a collection of ornaments and I have no idea what’s okay and what’s broken.  My favorites of all are the 3 little boys that for me represented each of my boys.  Now, I could have easily and understandably gone off the handle and wigged out when I got the news.  But instead I was calm.  I chose to enjoy a beautiful day with my family enjoying this magical Christmas Town instead of allowing myself to get upset.  My husband was surprised.  You see I realized they were just ornaments…it’s just a tree.  I wasn’t about to allow this to steal my joy.  Yes the ornaments represented years of memories but the greatest memories are the laughs and cheerful times we spend together with our family and friends during the holidays.  I was making memories this day instead of focusing on the problem that from Grapevine could not get resolved.  Christmas is stressful for many as it is and usually I’m one of those stressed out people during the holidays.  But this year, I have chosen to not allow the stresses of the holidays and of life to overwhelm me.  We spend so much time focused on trying to create the perfect magical Christmas setting in our homes that we lose track of what Christmas is truly about.  It’s not about buying the perfect gifts, or decking out the house to look like you stepped into a Hallmark Channel Christmas movie.  We should be more focused on celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ.  It’s a time of the year we create wonderful memories with our families, friends and loved ones.  We should open our hearts to those less fortunate, as Jesus would want us to.  It’s a beautiful time of the year that we should cherish because it’s all about the gift that God gave to each one of us…the birth of His son that would one day give his life for us.  That’s the best gift any of us could receive.  Share what God has done for you and cherish the gift that God gave to you.  I can only imagine the joy and peace Mary felt when she gave birth to her beautiful baby boy.  I pray you enjoy the season that God has blessed us all with.  Enjoy everyday and find peace in all you do.  By the way, 2 of my 3 boys ornaments were broken but I still hung them up till I find replacements.  I’m glad God has filled my heart with peace.  Without Him, I would not be who I am today.

XOXO…Ileen

Psst…God Loves You

“Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people.  For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.”  Luke 2:10-11