How to Hide Away from the Bustle this Christmas

A creamy winter moon sits high as I crunch across the lawn. Crimson grapefruit dried and sliced in thin orbs dangle from a blue spruce tree out front, natural ornaments in a recent experiment.Two tiny clementines and an off-white apple hang in dehydrated slivers beside miniature pine cones. The setting sun slants tangerine across the road and into my snow-capped yard. A passing car honks and comments as I photograph the tree.

Indoors, we relax in simultaneous projects. Christmas lights sparkle, as Morgan bends down to adjust the timer settings on the tree. "My cheeks are still numb from the paper route," she laughs, massaging her face into caricatures.

A stack of Christmas letters that need to be finished rests beside marching elephants and an extravagant blooming orchid. My daughter grabs the camera and captures beauty and nostalgia.

Over family games last night and savored cups of eggnog, we pause, plan simple special meals, and see Christmas through the eyes of our children. School is put aside for a few weeks, outside events are kept to a minimum, and I love this opportunity to sprawl on the floor beside my youngest, teaching him the amazing true story of Christmas. His folded paper nativity figures fall over, or are joined by Legos, as we walk out the tale.

The late afternoon suns burns low, my Christmas jazz finishes its song, as my man and I cuddle up for a romantic movie on the couch.

I remember the words from paper-thin pages earlier this week about "Emmanuel, God with us." God with us in our marriages, in our family conversations, in our mealtimes, with us on our errands, and settling deep into our homes. Emmanuel, God with us. 

Merry Christmas, friend! What are you savoring this weekend?