How to Have an Awesome Christmas

We all know at the real meaning of Christmas is in the giving and not the receiving. How many times are we blessed with the opportunity to give more then we will receive? I have such a story to tell, and to me that brought back, the real meaning of Christmas.

I was on the phone with my friend Debbie one day many years ago, and she told me that her brother and sister-in-law had just moved back into our hometown from out west in Arizona. They had not been in the state of Pennsylvania long enough, to get any state assistance, and the parents were having a hard time finding jobs in our depressed town.

Being new to our area, they were having a hard time adjusting to life in the country. It was a few weeks before Christmas, and when Debbie told me that these parents would be unable to afford presents for their five children. There were not a lot of toys in the house for their children as they had driven out to Pennsylvania with only the bare necessities.

I knew I had to do something, but I did not know what to do. Later that day, I was talking to my sister-in-law Brenda, and together she and I came up with a plan. Christmas is the time of giving, a time of laughter, a time of love, family, and a broke our hearts thinking that this these children would have no Christmas. We were not going to allow that to happen. As parents, we knew how our own children would feel.

Brenda and I realized that the answer was so simple. Our big family would help this new family have a nice Christmas, the same type of Christmas that we all would without a doubt. Brenda said that all we would have to do is have each buy 1 child a new toy. The other toys for that child would come from nice used toys that our children never played with any longer.

Over the next few days, Brenda, and I talked with other family members and let them know what we are planning. Everyone thought it was a great idea, and had plenty of other ideas to put in. Every child in that other family would have at least one new toy, under the tree chosen especially for him or her. In a family as big as our family is, it was easy to share the toys, and the joys of Christmas.

My family adopted the second son, who was six years old, as our middle child was and we bought him one new toy, and I went through our sons toys and removed stuff that they no longer played with. We were able to get this young boy and his siblings some very cool toys, and at the same time remove some of the clutter from my house.

As the females in the family shopped for their own children, they also shopped for another child. Buying one more toy did not hurt anybody's paycheck, or wallet and it did not make our children suffer. I think we were all learning some lessons that year, lessons we would never forget .Our children knew what we were doing, but they never spoke a word of this to the other children whom were getting the gifts.

The night before Christmas, my family began bringing the gifts to my house, so I could take them to this other family. I was very proud of my family for what they helped me accomplish for this family. Not only was there a brand-new gift for each child, along with some nice used gifts, there was also a complete Christmas dinner.

My brother-in-law had been given a ham at work and so did my sister, they did not need two, so they passed the other along. When my sister had mentioned that should be passing the ham to this family. Other members of my family got together and they made sure that family had a Christmas dinner of their own to celebrate Christmas in the new house.

As I helped Santa, my husband, and my children load the gifts in two the car for delivery, I looked up toward heaven, and I thanked God for my loving family, who is so gracious and kind. We drove the few miles to that family's house as the snow was gently falling.

I knocked on the door, and the dad Jim looked out and got a puzzled look on his face. I said "Jim I have something for you", and we began carrying it in. The five children were sitting quietly watching a Christmas special on TV, as we all piled in their house, our arms full of things.

I had the bag of new gifts, which it placed in the mother's hands and I told her merry Christmas. My husband handed the father that ham and a box full of food. Our three children, carried and bags of used toys for the children.

Together all eight of them sat and played on the floor. Then in walked Santa Claus. My children knew Santa was with us, but the other children did not, and they were amazed that Santa would come to their new house.

Santa Claus also had a brand-new gift for each child that night, including mine. As the children sat playing with their gifts, I helped the mom take care of the groceries. She said, "I cannot thank you enough". I replied, "It was not me. It was my whole family". It was about that time that she began to cry, the guess perhaps she was overwhelmed with emotions, knowing that there is really help out there. I know I sure was overwhelmed standing there, knowing I had helped touch a family so deeply. The mom's tears were not the only ones that fell that night.

I have had a lot of Christmas, in my 41 years, but that one right there takes the cake. It was the year; we helped another family have a great Christmas, as we always do. Christmas is not about the gifts you get or give. The real meaning of Christmas is family as my extended family found out that year.