Welcome December!

It is a perfect December morning here- bright, sunny and cold. My car said 29 degrees as I drove Will to school this morning. It was beautiful to see the frost covering everything.
I must admit, I am glad to see November move on its way. We spent the first 2 weeks battling pnuemonia in Ryan, then Will ran a fever for a few days as well.
Although I do feel a slight panic as I realize Christmas is only a few weeks away, I still welcome it. We already have lights on the house, one tree up, and my gingerbread houses are coming out of their boxes. (I'm pretty sure JW has watched "Christmas Vacation" twice already.)
I try each year more and more to downplay the gifts of "stuff" and the ridiculous marketing and money-spending side of Christmas, and instead focus on the decorations, traditions, and family side of Christmas. We will build a gingerbread house, bake cookies and make Chex mix together. Will is already busy crafting Christmas items and is excited about our Elf on the Shelf making his appearance. It is a joy to see Christmas through his eyes. Ryan is mostly excited about getting to wear Christmas pajamas every night!

On another neat note, JW's firm moved into a new building last week. The Pinnacle at Symphony Place is a beautiful new building downtown across from the Schermerhorn Symphony Center. Nashville is really making some beautiful new additions to downtown. I am looking forward to going down there Friday afternoon to see the new building and his new office. We are also going to try to see the Georgia O'Keeffe exhibit at the Frist Center that ends in January while we are downtown.

We are all so blessed with our health and family. Hug your kids and have a great day!