I’ve gotta say…it was really tough for me to get in the spirit of Christmas this year.  I’m not sure what it was.  It’s my favorite time of year and I usually can’t wait to put the tree up and start listening to my Christmas play list.  I love the decorations all over the house, the lights, the food, the get-togethers, the white elephant gift exchanges and the Christmas plays.  I don’t know why, but this year it felt like something I had to get through and I hate even saying that! Christmas day, though, was wonderful and festive and fun and all of the things it’s supposed to be and made me glad I dragged myself into the Christmas spirit.  My husband ordered some pastries from a local 5 star bakery for everyone to enjoy in the morning as we opened presents… …and I put out some bing cherries

For those who don’t know, I have a musical background.  Musical theatre was my hobby and passion throughout my childhood (and I later earned my degree in that field) and I played a variety of instruments.  My mom was a music teacher and taught everyone in my family how to play guitar and music was always a part of our home. When I met Jeff, my husband, I didn’t know he could sing.  I’ve always been a ham, but he was shy about that sort of thing.  One day in the car, I was listening to Les Miserables and he started singing along.  I gasped.  It was God’s gift to me.  It took a few years to get him to sing in public, but he joined the praise team at our last church and started to develop his ear for harmonies. A couple of years ago, I sang a song