Christmastime is the most wonderful time of the year

Christmastime may be our favorite time of the year. We really get into the holiday spirit. Over the past few weeks, we have been able to attend a few holiday parties and participate in some of our favorite holiday traditions. I want to remember some of the activities that brought the Christmas spirit in 2015.

The Festival of Trees

This is one of our favorite things to do at Christmastime. Alison loves decorating our tree each year. It brings her so much joy. So going to see hundreds of beautifully decorated trees is fun and provides Alison with some inspiration for the trees she will decorate in the future. Alison appreciated when I would point out how well her tree would fit within the festival. Plus the whole festival is held to support such a good cause. I did not realize until this year that on the back of the nameplate for each tree is a statement written by the decorators explaining why they created the tree. As we walked up and down the aisles of trees I got a sense of the beautiful stories that inspired these trees.

A Christmas Sweater for CC

Yesterday we had a few errands to run in the morning. One of our errands took us over to the pet store. While we were there we saw some Christmas sweaters for pets. We found one we liked. It was marked at $20, which would not have been worth it, but then Alison noticed it was on sale for $8. It was definitely $8 funny. We bought it and took it home for CC. She of course hated it, but it was a really good look on her. We left it on her long enough to get a few pictures. After that, she was ready to take it off. She kept walking backward hoping that she could walk right out of it. It was sad. Alison helped her out and it took a few minutes for her to trust us again. 

The Lights at Temple Square 

Last night we went downtown with Blake and Debbie to see the light at temple square. Being a weekend before Christmas traffic downtown was hectic. We decided to park at the Marriott and get dinner at Alamexo. It is a fresh, upscale Mexican restaurant. It is very good. After dinner, we walked a few blocks to temple square. It was good we all dressed warm because it was pretty cold. We started over by the Church Office Building and wandered through temple square, enjoying the lights and nativities. Debbie and I both brought our cameras so that we could take some pictures. Alison and Blake often got to wait while we tried to get the perfect shot. They were good at being patient. After we made a loop through temple square we made our way back to our car through City Creek.

I love seeing the lights at temple square every year. It is a good place to reflect upon the true meaning of Christmas. Everything about temple square points to Christ. As you enter temple square the focus is on the peace of the gospel. It is a good reminder that the truly important things this time of year are not the presents and trappings of the season. Rather they are spending time with family and following the example of Christ. This is a reminder I need every year. Merry Christmas.