Only 60 days left

I love this time of year (FALL) and knowing Christmas is right around the corner...only 60 days left til Christmas day to be exact! Some of you may be thinking "Oh, no, is it almost THAT time of year again??" I love it for new and different reasons this year, though.

Last Christmas, we were not able to attend church services around Christmas time because the month of December is when Tori was so sick and we feared to leave her side most of that month. Our church choir (who does a FABULOUS job at everything they put on) did a great musical that we only heard about, and I really missed being able to be there for it. I look forward to Christmas time at church this year and celebrating what Christmas first and foremost means. Our Savior's birth is something I am thankful for more than ever.

We also weren't able to have Christmas decorations, a tree, nothing in our new home. We had moved into our house a few months before Tori was born, so we've never had Christmas here in this home before. At Christmas time last year, I wanted nothing more than to be at home with my two girls celebrating Christmas in our home instead of a hospital room. We made the most of it, though, despite that being Savannah's first Christmas where she really understood everything and I so much wanted to have normalcy for her. I look forward to celebrating with her this year, and giving her the family Christmas' I grew up loving and cherish to this day. A piece of my heart won't be there with us, though, and that's sad to say the least.

The gifts are no longer a main focus for me as I've gotten older and also because of what last Christmas taught me. You don't need gifts to make Christmas special and worthwhile. We learned that on Thanksgiving day last year.

My whole family and I had Thanksgiving dinner outside of a family members home for the first time ever last year. We wanted to get out of the hospital for lunch, but the only place we could find serving Turkey and dressing closeby was...you won't believe it...Hard Rock Cafe. I assure you it was a Thanksgiving dinner like no other. We joked about making it a yearly tradition then, but I think we'll stay closer to home instead. :)

The fact that we were all together was all that mattered. We didn't need the fancy china or elaborate food traditions. When it came Christmas time, we realized having each other was more important than any gift we could give each other. I am reminded of that this year and will hold these lessons near and dear to my heart. I hope you will be reminded of the REASON FOR THE SEASON as well in the days to come.

There are still people just like us, that are where we were last year. I am not quick to forget about them. I think of all the children who will be in the hospital for Christmas this year with life threatening diseases, such as Cancer or complications like Tori had. Please pray for these families even now that their hearts will be comforted around this time of year. Tori had surgery last year and wasn't expected to live past December 12th, but the Lord brought her through that then and gave her a few more months to impact people's lives, most of all mine. So December is still a memorable month for me.

With Fall brings a transition...to the cool weather we are now enjoying, as well as holidays such as Halloween, Thanksgiving and then Christmas. This is by far my favorite time of year, but also a sentimental one as this was when Tori first became so sick and begin to change my life more than ever. It's hard to believe it's been almost a year since we went to vanderbilt (november 17th) and she began to get so sick. A lot of memories come back as I think about it all. It seems like just yesterday for me. I am thankful that the Lord has brought me this far, though, for it has truly been longer than just yesterday.