I love Christmas! Anyone who knows me know this. I love decorating for Christmas! The problem is this year, I am the only at home and will actually be traveling for the Christmas holiday season. While I love decorating, I hate cleaning and packing it up, especially by myself. So, I have decided to decorate without actually decorating... yeah... I'll go with that! I've been making ornaments lately and they're turning out pretty cute. It's taking a bit longer for some of them then I originally thought it would, but, since I don't have too much going on at this very second, I don't mind, although I'm pretty sure the dog is sick and tired of being covered in glitter. (Even if it does give her a bright, shiny coat!) Anyway, I get to have Christmas decorations without technically decorating. I figure, I will have these pretty decorations sitting around the house until I have to put them in the mail to friends and family and then it will all be cleaned up before I have to leave. Win-win, in my opinion! I will most likely set out a few of my "counter decorations" just to help get into the Holiday Spirit, but I won't be going overboard like I normally do. I'll leave that up to Mom!
Throughout the years of being an Army wife, I've noticed a marked difference in my holiday excitement between the years that my husband has been home to celebrate with us versus the years that he has been stationed over seas. It's very hard for me to get fully into the Holiday Spirit when he is stuck celebrating in another country, far from family and home. Don't get me wrong, I am very proud of his service and I can't imagine him doing anything else because that is just who he is. But, I do wish he were home, too!
I know that when he does finally come home we will celebrate the holidays that he wasn't able to be here for and will spend a few days looking at pictures and video and listening to the kids trying to fight for turns to tell them every little thing he missed. He will also spend months remembering little things that he forgot to tell us about his experiences in a foreign country. The kids will listen intently and in awe, but, sadly, will never fully understand why he had to be gone or why he had to miss certain things. They will never fully understand, until possibly when they grow up, what he gave up in order to protect our country and way of life. They will not understand, but, they, we, will ALWAYS be proud of him!
I hope everyone gets to enjoy their holiday with their family and friends. At the same time, I also hope that everyone takes time out of their holiday to remember to think about and pray for the military men and women that are missing these holidays with their family in order to protect and serve our country, way of life, and our freedom! I hope everyone takes a few minutes to tell their children about these brave men and women so that the children will grow up with respect and reverence for these military men and women. I hope that everyone will do whatever they can to let the military men and women know that their sacrifices are not forgotten and that we, as a people, are thankful for everything they do, everyday. If you are looking to make a Christmas donation, please, consider donating to Operation Homefront or some other military organization. Contact your local VFW or YMCA and see if there are any needs for things for veterans or military families. If you have a military family in your neighborhood, especially if they have a deployed loved one, please consider inviting them to dinner. It may be a small gesture to you and your family, but, I can tell you first hand, it will mean the world to them!
I wish everyone a happy Thanksgiving, A merry Christmas, and a wonderful New Year!!
