Dear Graysie:

I can't believe we are celebrating Christmas already.

Daddy loves Christmas and this time of year, and grew up with so much excitement surrounding it. I've heard stories over the last eight years about how daddy would sit and stare at the tree for hours and he'd arrange the gifts under it so they were placed perfectly, and then stare some more. When daddy and I were in college I remember as early as the end of August Christmas music billowing out from under his dorm room door. When other students were listening to country or rock, your daddy was preparing for Christmas cheerfulness…. in August! As the time has gone on, he has started the Christmas music earlier and earlier until it is now beginning in July. By this time I am a little over the Christmas music. His Christmas music collection has grown quite large because of my annoyance with the same songs over and over. Now he has the pleasure of annoying all of our staff with it too. Daddy also has a passion for gifts. He does like receiving them but more importantly he is almost obsessed with finding each person on our list the "perfect" gift. Sometimes it takes him much longer than I want to spend researching gift choices for a person.

My Christmas memories are not as fond. I am not sure if it is because I was over indulged as a child and therefore the gifts had no real value? It may be because Grampy has his birthday just ten days before Christmas and we never decorated until the 16Th of December and therefore the anticipation wasn't as agonizing. We never listened to Christmas music, didn't have any family traditions set in stone and rarely had extended family visiting. The extent of our decorating was a tree with ornaments, no lights on the house no nativity in the front yard. I guess it wasn't that much more exciting than a birthday to me. It's not that I didn't enjoy the season, no, it's just that it didn't have the affect on me that it had on your daddy.

Daddy's love for the holidays rubs off on all of us who are living close to him. From the time you walk through the doors of our home you realize it is Christmas. Every stocking is hung and every picture on the wall is wrapped in gift wrap with giant bows. The festivities begin the day after Thanksgiving and kept there until the day after Christmas when it all gets placed back in its box. Our collection has grown immensely over the years and we even have Christmas bedding and bathroom sets for every room and bathroom in the house. Now that we have the kids, Christmas is met with even more excitement and exuberance. I have learned not to do the shopping to early or we end up with enough gifts under our tree for four families. Daddy loves the crowded malls and hustle and bustle of crazy holiday shoppers. Even with two toddlers and an infant we find ourselves at the mall at the most crowded times so daddy can get his high!

We've even set up some really fantastic holiday traditions. We never miss a candle light serve on Christmas Eve where the Christmas story is told and never gets tiring. Grandy and Grampy spend the night every year on Christmas eve so they are here when little toes finally hit the floor. GG spends the day with us, and every year we just don't seem to get our timing coordinated for her arrival. Grampy and daddy bumble around in the kitchen but mommy typically does the cooking while barking orders to Grandy. Daddy hits Starbucks bright and early and brings yummy treats for everyone. We set out cookies for Santa. We sprinkle oats for the reindeer. Mommy is in charge of dispersing the gifts, but daddy and Grampy are the ones who transfer them to the correct room of the house. Everything, whether spoken or not, is our tradition surrounding Christmas. We love this time as a family. We love the reminder of our saviors birth.

Can't wait for you to be a part of this next year and for many years to come, you're going to love it too.

Love you forever!

Mommy