Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas! Just a couple more hours left and as my children are tucked into their beds, I am thinking about the day.  This year we weren't able to be with all of our family today like we usually are.  Today, we spent most of the morning slowly waking up, eating some breakfast, reading the story of Jesus' birth, opening presents, playing, cleaning up, etc.  It was almost magical how smoothly the day went.  Cutie Pie, Sweet Pea, and Honey Bear have been a little on the wild side this last week.  I am not sure if it was the anticipation of the presents piling up under the tree or all the Christmas goodies they have been sampling.

At any rate, I was beginning to wonder if they were able to think of what is so special about this time of year.  I want my girls to ultimately have a deep love for Christ, but to also have fruits of the spirit.  I want them to be more fearless about sharing their faith and God's love.  I see in Cutie Pie and Sweet Pea a love and concern for each other and Honey Bear.  I pray as they continue to grow up they see how special their sisterhood is.  I never had a sister growing up, but my brother was my hero.  When I was small he took up for me when some boys were teasing me at a picnic, when I was feeling low in my preteen years he would encourage me and tell me that things get better, and in my teen years, we would talk about our walk with Christ and I knew that no matter what was going on I could turn to my big brother.

Sisters, sometimes, get a bad wrap.  Many of the people we run into that have sisters have told me that the teen years are terrible &  that a lot of damage can be done in those few short years.  Preacher Man has told me that if you speak evil things over people they begin to believe it.  We will be speaking encouraging words over them.  Lately, the Taylors have been a little on the frazzled side of things and living in survival mode.  As hard as that is to admit, we are going to be working on encouraging and positive reinforcement as we ring in the new year.  I know that Sweet Pea can have a very strong will to do her own thing, when she feels like it.  I also believe that God is going to use that strong will for His glory.  Sweet Pea deeply loves her sisters and wants to desperately wants to take care of them.  We are so thankful for this special Christmas together.  We have enjoyed the holiday season with our friends and family near and far.