The Christmas Spirit Award

Hello Everyone!

This is a very special award dedicated to having wonderful Christmas spirit!
It was passed on to me by my friend Melissa at http://melissasheartandhome.blogspot.com/. Please visit her blog to see her wonderful home and get to know this sweet and special person.

Here are the rules for the Christmas award:
You must be a true Christmas lover to receive this award. The person to whom you give the award must also be in love with Christmas. You must link back to the person who gave you the award. You must list 5 things that you love about Christmas. If you can't limit it to 5 things, then keep going till you run out of space! Pass the award along to as many people as you like. That can be 1 or 50. It's up to you! But, you must pass it on to at least one person in order to keep the Christmas cheer going! Let your recipients know that you have tagged them by leaving them a comment.

Here are my Five Things:
1. The smell of a fresh Christmas tree- Several years ago, I switched to an artificial tree, but I still snitch some boughs from Home Depot that have been cut from the bottom of other trees just to have the smell. One of my old boyfriends was a Green Beret during the Viet Nam era. If you are my age, you know what that means. He once told me that when he was a little boy, he took some of the pine needles from the Christmas tree and tucked them under the corner of his mom's rug so that he could take them out and smell Christmas all year round. Somehow, the picture of that brave soldier having that sweet secret always touched my heart.

2. Baking cookies and making candy- I am the official cookie and candy maker for our family. Each year, I think maybe I'll leave off one or more of the items, but I can't because each person has his or her favorite and they are all different! lol

3. My grandson's face as he opens his presents- There's nothing like seeing Christmas through the eyes of a child! And as he told his mom..."I don't have to put that on my Christmas list. I just tell Granny!"

4. Santa Claus- You will think I am silly when I tell you this, but on my daughter's first Christmas, I was so disappointed when I woke up and there was nothing under the tree except what I had put there. I am still convinced that there was a mix-up because I know he is real. I cry in the scene in The Polar Express when the elves bring out the reindeer who can't wait to fly and then Santa comes out. I know that is how it really is and I want to be there!

5. Being with my family- We are a small family and it means the world to me to have all of us in the same room at the same time! We are so excited now that the children are getting married and having children of their own! We rejoice at each new addition to our merry band!

I have had such a wonderful time meeting and getting to know all of you, so it is hard for me to choose. However, I choose my special friend Kathy at Emptynester. She is the embodiment of the Christmas Spirit because she is such a caring and giving person who still looks at the world through a child's eyes. She is a new blogger like me, so please visit her at http://mbkatc230-emptynester.blogspot.com/ . You will be delighted that you did as she shows you around her wonderful all-American small town. Merry Christmas, Kathy!