How Christ has touched my Christmas

I have felt so blessed this Christmas, and tonight I feel the spirit of Christ particularly sweetly.  Here are the ways that I have seen Christ touch my Christmas season.

Christ left his Father when he came to earth, but he was welcomed by a new family.

This was my first Christmas away from home (other than the mission, where it couldn't be avoided).  I was pretty nervous about missing out on all of the family traditions that we have.  I would miss having almost my entire family together.  I have always been the one to bring out the Christmas decorations and make sure the tree gets decorated.  I love the games, movies, conversations, and food.  We do a talent show and read the nativity on Christmas Eve, play basketball, and a handful of other holiday traditions.  I came home crying the night that I had dropped my sister off at the airport, because I was picturing all the family arriving at my parents' home, and I wouldn't be there.

But Christ touched my Christmas through my loving husband and his wonderful family.  When I got home that day crying, my husband had cleaned the kitchen and was waiting with a warm hug and a reminded me how much he loved me.  His family has always welcomed me with open arms, and I forgot my homesickness on Christmas Eve and Christmas as I was invited into new holiday traditions of a white elephant gift exchange, Mexican food (always my favorite), and Rummy (pride came before the fall for me in that one, among other things.

Christ touched my Christmas by opening my heart to love and be loved by even more family.


Christ gave and received.

Christ gave us the most wonderful gift of all with the Atonement--which is in its beauty the gifts of peace, joy, love, and every good thing.  As a child, Jesus also received the gift of life through Mary, frankincense, myrrh, and gold from the wise men, and the gifts of obedience and love from each of his disciples.

I did give a few small gifts this Christmas, and I felt good doing so.  I love when I can add some small pleasure to someone else's life.  I also received several gifts from friends and family.  I feel so grateful to have these people around me.  But I felt Christ's love with one gift especially.

A few weeks ago, I was searching for a paper of some kind, and I found a stash of money in one of our drawers.  I figured that we had never gotten around to depositing it after the wedding.  When I mentioned it to Eliott, I eventually found out that he had hidden it on purpose.  He was saving it there so that for Christmas, he could get me a piano keyboard.  He knew that I would love it, and since it would be a more expensive gift, he had been planning for months to get it.  He was researching the best kinds, and debating about how to surprise me.

I felt so loved and known.  Christ touched my Christmas by showing me the beauty of both giving and receiving.  I only hope that I can give as much as I have received from so many this year.


Christ was surrounded by a support group...including family, shepherds, wise men, and angels.

My friends make me so happy.  I love spending time with them.  They are my support network, and this Christmas, one night in particular stood out.  I was really hoping for something Christmas-y to do some night, and Gretzel went with me to the Festival of Lights.  I loved the Christmas lights and Christmas spirit that I felt, and I think that will be a special memory that I have with Greta for a long time!  She is so fun to be around and so easy to talk to.  It was just what I needed that night.


Christ showed that humble moments can be at the same time the sacred and special ones.

Christ came into the world in a manger.  We had a woman visit our apartment with her newborn, and when she was gone I was left thinking of how she must have all the sleepless nights, exhaustion, but also the joy that mothers experience.  I thought of how even Jesus probably woke Mary and Joseph up all night, but that he also brought a peaceful and perfect spirit to their lives.

I can't even begin to tell every moment that I had this Christmas season that touched my life.  I have had worried moments, stressful ones, angry, scared, sick, and bored ones.  But those moments have been inseparably connected to the moments of connection, satisfaction, relief, forgiveness, humility, gratitude, and love.  I am grateful for the quiet moments that I have had in prayer and in spiritual study, for the serious and light-hearted conversations with friends and family, the love I have felt, and the ways in which I have grown.



God bless us, every one.

Hormones and (Future) Hubby

A tiny little stick in my arm is sending emotional messages bouncing off the walls of my body.

For those of you that don't know (I highly doubt that will be the case, seeing as my roommates read this blog and not that many others), I am engaged to be married.  Hands-down, this is the best feeling of my life.  Or was.  No, it still is.  But now, added to the joys of engagement and all the wedding planning is....the joys of birth control.

It might be weird to talk about birth control on a blog, but...as I said above...my roommates read this.

So I chose to go with Nexplanon birth control, which is a little stick the size of a match that they slide creepily under the skin of my inner left arm, below my armpit.  I can feel it just under the surface and that's a weird feeling.

Lisa joked about it reminding her of people that get mind-controlled with those kinds of injections.  We laughed but to be honest, it almost seems as if that were the case.  It is like a demon has taken possession of my body.

They warn you that you can get side-effects like weakness, change of appetite, moodiness or depression, nausea, etc, etc, etc times one thousand.

I thought that I was immune to those effects because, well, I'm awesome.

Coincidentally, though, in the few days after I get this device implanted in my arm, I begin to get moody.  Like, really.  I get mad at my dearly beloved fiancee over NOTHINGS.  He found it funny at first and then confusing.  (Side note, he is now VERY excited for my pregnant mood swings......)

It got to the point where I had calmed down and got a good sleep.  I felt very sane in the morning.  I was at peace with myself and the world.  I didn't even freak out when my dearly beloved fiancee asked tentatively IF I THOUGHT MY MOODINESS WAS A RESULT OF THE BIRTH CONTROL.

**Here is the thing.  It's different for everyone.  But when I am hormonally moody, the WORST thing you ask is if it is because I'm hormonal.  I mean, I feel like that's just asking, "So are your feelings fake and do I not have to take them seriously?"  Eliott says that it's more like asking, "Should I be extra nice to you and also are your feelings fake so I do not have to take them seriously?"  Since I am hormonally sober right now, I find that funny.  If I were under the hormonal influence, I would not be amused.

Anyway.  I was mad.  I was hungry for everything and nothing.  I cried for hours for no reason.  I sobbed over my books.  I spent an hour in Smith's trying to find food I wanted for ONE meal.  I couldn't concentrate on work.  I was tired and lightheaded.

But hey--a little drama can be a good thing :)