The Stay at Home Mother

Merry Christmas!!!!!!!!

That's right, I said it, Merry Christmas! Not Happy Holidays and not Season's Greetings.

I am sick of all the seasonal semantics - and worrying that we are going to offend someone by wishing them all the best. How could you possibly take offense to that?!!!!

We have wasted too much time debating this issue, when it really comes down to practising what we preach during this time.....

Well it's officially Christmas in White Rock. Today we received a considerable amount of snow, that makes it feel a heck of a lot more like Christmas.

Although I have lived here for almost for twenty years, I still remember what it was like to live on the Prairies - and for it to snow for six months of the year......

With all the snow that White Rock has received over the past few days - we have been pretty much confined to the home (unless we REALLY need to get something from the store).

Today, the snow is starting to turn to slush and with it comes the possibility of flooding.

It hasn't been all that bad though - as we have really enjoyed spending this time with the children playing and keeping them entertained with the Wii (and us too!)....

I wanted to take the time to wish all my readers a very Merry Christmas.

Appreciate being near the ones who mean the most and reflect on all the things you are thankful for.

Or reach out to someone who has been on your mind, but you just haven't been able to "get around" to making that call. It will make their holiday.

I have lots of stories to share about Christmas in the coming days - but not today.

May today bring you lots of happiness and love to you and your family.
MERRY CHRISTMAS!

So - along with the magic of Christmas came something very unexpected this past week....my son lost his first tooth.

And of course, losing your very first tooth is very special and we explained that to my five year old son when his bottom front tooth started to wiggle. He was very afraid to pull it out but when it came time for it to pop out - it was anything but simple....

We have worked very hard to have Christmas be more than just about the opening of presents for our children.

This week, I thought it would be fun to have an article written almost entirely by my five -year old son and what Christmas means to him.

The article is going to be published in its entirety this Sunday in Black Press newspapers, however, I am posting some of his random, but very meaningful thoughts in this blog to share with you....

One of the best Christmas movies I have ever seen (and not your traditional oldie) is the movie Love Actually. I own it and wait each year until December hits to watch it. I love Hugh Grant, Colin Ferth, Liam Neeson, Emma Thompson and Kiera Knightley in it.

But most of all - I love the message of the movie, that if you look around, you will find that love is actually all around us. Sometimes we get weighted down with all the negative stuff that goes on in the world, that we forget the great things right in front of us - things that are really important and that we should be grateful for....

I can't believe that Christmas is almost upon us. The whole month of December has been a complete blur. From the gift buying, to the card writing to the baking and tree decorating - it all has passed by so quickly.

I really want to thank all my loyal readers and supporters this Christmas as I feel truly blessed to be able to do what I do - and to be a stay at home mom to my children...

This week we went to Stanley Park to ride on the Christmas Train. It was raining and seemed like a really miserable day... but because we went during the week, and purchased tickets for the 4:30 train ride - it was actually pretty great.

There weren't any crowds, it was dark, and we were able to park right at the front entrance. And were able to walk right on to the train without any waiting around in line ups (as we have in the past)....yep....this year we finally learned how to do it right...

Today was a fantastic day - as I was able to catch up on my sleep last night (still don't have a voice) but feel stronger today for sure. And yesterday my husband sent me flowers to cheer me up...awwwww.....he's so thoughtful.

And this morning - we went to pick out a Christmas tree. That's one of my favourite parts of Christmas. We all pile in to the car and sing Christmas songs all the way to the Tree Yard, which is about twenty minutes away from us. Of course, after twenty minutes of driving, usually I'm the only one left singing in the car....