What I Love Most Of All About Christmas

It's here! It's here! It's Christmas!!!

Do you know what I love most of all about Christmas? It's the reason we celebrate.

Jesus is what I love most about Christmas!

That holy infant born thousands of years ago is reborn anew in my heart every Christmas day. As I ponder that very special birth, I'm overcome with awe. The world was no less chaotic then than it is today. Humanity was just as imperfect then as now. And yet, He loved us enough to step out of heaven and into the physical world.

On Christmas that divine love feels more real than on any other day of the year. He was born as a fragile baby because He loved us. No, He loves us. That is the best gift of all.

Merry Christmas, my friend. 

What I Love About Christmas #1

Christmas Eve has always been a magical time for me. Here's another thing I love about Christmas.

I love family traditions. My family gathers on Christmas Eve and have a huge feast. Most of us don’t exchange gifts anymore, but we all play the gift stealing game, and that can get heated at times. Then we go caroling at the local nursing home. What a joy to see my 5-yr-old grandson singing to elderly people who have no one to celebrate the holiday with. Then back to Grammy’s house, where we join hands around an angel-food cake with a candle and sing “Happy Birthday to Jesus.” There’s nothing like my family’s Christmas!

How about you? How will you spend Christmas Eve? Leave a comment and tell me about it!

Note: This post first appeared at Marshall Books, when they featured a giveaway of A Goose Creek Christmas. Good folks over there. Check them out!

What I Love About Christmas #2

Christmas is almost here! Is your shopping finished?

I love giving gifts that mean something. Sometimes Christmas shopping can drain the joy right out of the season. I don’t like giving OR receiving a gift just for the sake of having something to open. Instead, I put thought into the gifts I give. One year, for instance, I bought a goat for a third world family on behalf of my mission-minded aunt. She loved it. Once I wrote a poem for my sister, and that poem became the illustrated children’s book, “The Last Christmas Cookie.” 

How about you? Do you like Christmas shopping, or would you rather write a poem? Leave a comment!

Note: This post first appeared at Marshall Books, when they featured a giveaway of A Goose Creek Christmas. Good folks over there. Check them out!

What I Love About Christmas #3

Christmas is almost here! And today I'll tell you how my sister and I celebrate.

I love giving Ugly Ornaments to my sister. The tradition began many years ago as a joke. She had a “designer” tree, one that looked like it ought to be in a magazine. I found a really hideous fur-covered brown ball and hung it on the tree for her to find. A few days later at our family Christmas gathering I received an anonymous gift, and it was the ugliest ornament I’ve ever seen - a horribly tacky woman with glittery octopus legs. Also in the box was a note: “You realize that THIS MEANS WAR!” Each year we search high and low for the ugliest, tackiest Christmas ornament we can find, and exchange them on Christmas Eve.

How about you? Do you have any silly Christmas gift traditions? Leave a comment and tell me about it!

Note: This post first appeared at Marshall Books, when they featured a giveaway of A Goose Creek Christmas. Good folks over there. Check them out!

What I Love About Christmas #4

Are you ready for Christmas? You only have a few days left! Here's something else I love about Christmas:

I love Christmas games. My family is big on games anyway, but at Christmas we all look for new ones to play. We’ve stuffed balloons into panty hose to make reindeer antlers (particularly funny when worn by my husband), and played pick-up sticks with candy canes. My granddaughter won $50 one year in a highly competitive game of Left-Right-Center. We have a traditional Gift Stealing game played on Christmas Eve, and it’s a highlight of our celebration.

How about you? Leave a comment and tell me about a game your family plays at Christmas.

Note: This post first appeared at Marshall Books, when they featured a giveaway of A Goose Creek Christmas. Good folks over there. Check them out!

What I Love About Christmas #5

Only 6 more days! Two of my grandkids are here this week, and that makes the countdown even more special. 

Here's something else I love about Christmas:

I love Christmas movies. They’re sappy, romantic, often funny, and always heartwarming. Christmas is the only time I can get my husband to watch that kind of movie with me. During the month of December we watch the Hallmark or Lifetime channels almost every night, and we call it “Sappy Christmas Movie Time.” Sometime during the month we watch our favorite version of A Christmas Carol – the one with George C. Scott. The only movie we don’t agree on is Dr. Seuss’s “How the Grinch Stole Christmas.” I love the original cartoon version – Ted can’t stand either version.

How about you? Leave a comment and tell me your favorite Christmas movie.

Note: This post first appeared at Marshall Books, when they featured a giveaway of A Goose Creek Christmas. Good folks over there. Check them out!

What I Love About Christmas #6

Christmas is in a week, folks! Can you feel the excitement? Over the next 6 days I'll tell you a few things I love about Christmas.

I love Christmas music. It can be overdone, though. Radio stations that start playing Christmas carols before December 1 drive me a little nuts, because there are a limited number of holiday songs to play, so they repeat. Plus, the songs that have the deepest meaning for me are the ones about the true meaning of Christmas, like “Silent Night” and “O Come All Ye Faithful.” Most radio stations won’t play faith-based songs and that’s just plain irritating. Thank goodness for Pandora and my iPhone!

How about you? Leave a comment and tell me your favorite Christmas song.

Note: This post first appeared at Marshall Books, when they featured a giveaway of A Goose Creek Christmas. Good folks over there. Check them out!

What I Enjoyed About Writing A Goose Creek Christmas - #1

It's 7 days until Christmas, and I'm sharing a tidbit each day. The first six are "What I Enjoyed About Writing A Goose Creek Christmas," because it's my most recent Christmas book. Beginning on day 7 I'll tell you six "Things I Love About Christmas."

What I Enjoyed About Writing A Goose Creek Christmas - #1

I loved writing the scene of Christmas morning at Al and Millie’s house, with the grandkids running into the room and bouncing on the bed shouting, “Santa came! Santa came!” Al is an old grouch with a perpetual frown, but inside he’s a marshmallow – especially for his grandkids. And he loves his wife with a passion that at times takes his breath away. His anticipation of the moment she opens her gift from him is priceless.

How about you? Leave a comment and tell me about Christmas morning at your house.

Note: This post first appeared at Marshall Books, when they featured a giveaway of A Goose Creek Christmas. Good folks over there. Check them out!

What I Enjoyed About Writing A Goose Creek Christmas - #2

It's 8 days until Christmas, and I'm sharing a tidbit each day. The first six are "What I Enjoyed About Writing A Goose Creek Christmas," because it's my most recent Christmas book. Then I'll tell you six "Things I Love About Christmas."

What I Enjoyed About Writing A Goose Creek Christmas - #3

Nothing spoils Christmas for me more than gratuitous giving – giving a gift to someone just because you have to put something under the tree. I love giving Christmas gifts that mean something to the recipient. In A Goose Creek Christmas I had a great time helping Al come up with exactly the right present for his wife, Millie.

How about you? Leave a comment and tell me about a gift you received that truly meant something.

Note: This post first appeared at Marshall Books, when they featured a giveaway of A Goose Creek Christmas. Good folks over there. Check them out!

What I Enjoyed About Writing A Goose Creek Christmas - #3

It's 9 days until Christmas, and I'm sharing a tidbit each day. The first six are "What I Enjoyed About Writing A Goose Creek Christmas," because it's my most recent Christmas book. Beginning on day 7 I'll tell you six "Things I Love About Christmas."

What I Enjoyed About Writing A Goose Creek Christmas - #3

They say one man’s trash is another man’s treasure. What does a small town do when the person in charge of decorating Main Street leans toward ‘tasteless tacky’ instead of ‘tasteful chic’? If you’re an outspoken business owner, you start a war! I enjoyed poking fun at the small-minded residents of Goose Creek. All in good fun, of course.

How about you? Leave a comment and tell me what kind of Christmas decorations you enjoy most.

Note: This post first appeared at Marshall Books, when they featured a giveaway of A Goose Creek Christmas. Good folks over there. Check them out!

What I Enjoyed About Writing A Goose Creek Christmas - #4

It's 10 days until Christmas, and I'm sharing a tidbit each day. The first six are "What I Enjoyed About Writing A Goose Creek Christmas," because it's my most recent Christmas book. Beginning on day 7 I'll tell you six "Things I Love About Christmas."

What I Enjoyed About Writing A Goose Creek Christmas - #4

One of the main characters, Al Richardson, is forced into early retirement at the beginning of the book. He doesn’t want to tell his wife, because then he’ll be forced to help her open a B&B, and he thinks its unmanly for a husband to work for his wife. He goes to outrageous lengths to keep his secret, which of course only digs the hole deeper. Is Al in for a Merry Christmas or a Marriage Crisis? In the end, he learns a painful and very public lesson. I loved redeeming Al and teaching him respect for the truth, and for his wife.

How about you? Leave a comment and tell me about a secret you kept, and how it turned out.

Note: This post first appeared at Marshall Books, when they featured a giveaway of A Goose Creek Christmas. Good folks over there. Check them out!

What I Enjoyed About Writing A Goose Creek Christmas - #5

It's 11 days until Christmas, and I'm sharing a tidbit each day. The first six are "What I Enjoyed About Writing A Goose Creek Christmas," because it's my most recent Christmas book. Beginning on day 7 I'll tell you six "Things I Love About Christmas."

What I Enjoyed About Writing A Goose Creek Christmas - #5

In A Goose Creek Christmas an annoying character, Franklin Thacker, fills every inch of his yard with inflatable Christmas figures, much to the displeasure of his neighbors. I love to drive by houses with that many decorations, but I’m not sure I’d like to have them next door. Franklin’s neighbors feel the same, except for two little boys who decide to ‘help’ him out – with hilarious results.

How about you? Leave a comment and tell me how you decorate your yard for Christmas. Or if you have a neighbor who decorates like Franklin Thacker!

Note: This post first appeared at Marshall Books, when they featured a giveaway of A Goose Creek Christmas. Good folks over there. Check them out!

What I Enjoyed About Writing A Goose Creek Christmas - #6

It's 12 days until Christmas, and I'm sharing a tidbit each day. The first six will be "What I Enjoyed About Writing A Goose Creek Christmas," because it's my most recent Christmas book. (I've only written two!)  Then I'll tell you six "Things I Love About Christmas."

What I Enjoyed About Writing A Goose Creek Christmas - #6

In writing this book, I was able to poke a bit of fun at some Christmas traditions that make me laugh. One is the tacky Christmas sweater. What do you do when a guest gives you a handmade one and is obviously pleased with the gift? A good southern woman smiles graciously and thanks her. And prays she never has to wear it in public.

How about you? Leave a comment and tell me about a Christmas tradition that makes you laugh.

Note: This post first appeared at Marshall Books, when they featured a giveaway of A Goose Creek Christmas. Good folks over there. Check them out!