Whoa now!

I told y'all I'm not an English major and have no qualifications that allow me to suggest a book to you. I just want to share this book with you because it's my very favorite Christmas book for 4 year olds and under. The Story of Christmas (finally figured out how to underline!) by Patricia A. Pingry. It's a board book perfect for the toddler ages. I love it because the pictures are detailed and colorful, it explains in very simple terms why we give presents at Christmas, and it tells the story of Mary and Joseph's journey to Bethlehem, the birth of Jesus, and the visit from the wise men. The language is perfect for little kids. And it's also perfect for my 8 and 6 year old to read to their younger sisters. It is great for your own children or even better as a gift to someone you know with young children.
Just wanted to share. ( They also have one for Valentine's Day and Easter).

My Sunday School class was very interesting today, although at times maybe a little heated. But mainly funny. Last week we started a series titled,Christmas from the Backside . The author's creative approach clarifies basic teachings and introduces new possibilities of meaning to the Christmas story by entering the Gospel scriptures through the "back side" - through a unique starting point, a creative retelling, a new "lens", or the eyes of a minor unsympathetic character. Last week's lesson was from Chapter One, "The Scandal of Christmas." Today, my adorable, precious, wise, (otherwise) wonderful Sunday School teachers (married couple) announced that on the way home from Sunday School last week, they told their 5 year old that Santa wasn't real!! They had been convicted during our SS class that they, too, had fallen into the "trap" of saying one thing at Christmas and yet "doing" another. I get that part - really, I do. I'm constantly telling the kids about the real meaning of Christmas. And they only get three gifts from Santa because "Jesus received three gifts from the wise men." And then I turn around and attend Christmas party after Christmas party (alcohol involved, of course!) and spend way too much money on gifts for people near and far. And I stress out over the perfect Christmas card and Christmas tree. And I've already admitted my need for the wrapping paper to match my living room. So - are the children really buying it when I tell them the real meaning of Christmas? Or are they thinking, "Whatever, mommy." To make matters worse, I bought into the whole "Elf on the Shelf" magic. The problem with the Elf is that I really want my children to be good and behave for the sake of being good. Because it's the right thing to do. Not because some Elf on a Shelf is going to tell Santa if they misbehave and then they might not get any toys. (Don't worry, Mimi, I'm not getting rid of the Elf. It' is the only thing that is keeping KK in line!). I keep telling myself, "What's the big deal? My parents always pretended their were elves watching. And I turned out O.Kay." (At least I though I had - until I heard that my parents, brothers, and sisters sat around the table at Thanksgiving and, in my absence, dissected and analyzed me and my childhood at length. I heard it was really fun. Sorry I missed it!) Anyway... so my SS teachers announce that they told their 5 year old the truth about Santa! Whoa now...I'm not THAT serious about all of this. To say it is one thing, but to put it into practice is another thing! Their little girl's reaction, " I know he's real because he ate those cookies we left for him last year!" Good point! Later they heard her singing, "Santa Clause is not coming to town." Hehe. Anyway - this is all just food for thought. I'm not convicted one way or another, but it does make me think about the emphasis that I put on the unimportant during the Christmas season.

By the way, the name of my Sunday School class is "Family Essentials." We are all married couples with young children. You can imagine the opinions of the couples in the class when the SS teachers shared their news. One or two people agreed (their spouses disagreed, I think), but for the most part, we all threw our bagels at our teachers and put them (and their little girl) on the prayer list!