Monday, January 3, 2011

The Twelve Gifts of Christmas




GIFT 1- THE GIFT OF SERVICE Dennis made the mangers last year, so we added the bag with straw and name cards , along with the book to start their family service projects.
GIFT 2- THE GIFT OF MUSIC I made a Christmas CD with some our favorites!!
GIFT 3- GIFT OF LOVE They made Red Velvet Cookies to give to neighbors.
GIFT 4- THE GIFT OF FRIENDS They wrote letters to their closest friend.
GIFT 5- THE GIFT OF KNOWLEDGE
GIFT 6- THE GIFT OF SACRIFICE- We gave them money in the envelopes, they in turn took that money and used it to help someone in need. I loved hearing all their stories afterwards.
GIFT 7- GIFT OF MEMORIES ( a favorite!! I pulled out about 12 family photos from Christmases past, then Den and I recorded our voices sharing our memories from those years)
GIFT 8- THE GIFT OF WORK (OPPS! that one landed on a Sunday!?)
GIFT 9- THE GIFT OF FOOD
GIFT 10- GIFT OF TIME (TELISA made amazing family calendars again this year!!)
GIFT 11- GIFT OF THE GOSPEL OF JESUS CHRIST (She also made darling ABC Gospel books for the children)
GIFT 12- GIFT OF FAMILY

For Christmas this year we changed things up a bit. Instead of giving regular Christmas presents, Den and I decided to do the 12 Gifts of Christmas. I tried to focus this gifts of the importance of the season and hopefully give a cherished memory to our family in lieu of the traditional kind of gifts. After each gift was completed, the kids could put a magnet that I attached to the envelope, on the Christmas Tree magnet board. The idea was born from my friend, Carol Lambert, who has done it with her family for years. Boy, it was a lot of work!! But it turned into quite a spiritual journey for me. I hope my family enjoyed the journey, as well.
On Christmas Eve, we discovered our stockings were completely jammed with letters of Gratitude and Appreciation from nearly every family member!!! It meant the world to us! Best Christmas present ever!

6 comments:

Stephie said...

I am so amazed!! What a beautiful idea and beautifully executed. I KNOW that too A LOT of time and a lot of LOVE went into all that!! I love that it brought forth the true meaning of Christmas!! I love you! YOU ARE SO AMAZING!!!! xoxo

Unknown said...

It was TRULY amazing!!! WOW!! I can't tell you enough how heart warming it was to have something that came from you guys to open every day. Bodie, Tatum and I looked forward to it everyday!!!! You are incredible!!! P.S. Did you get Bodie and Tatum's letters?

Mama Beus said...

Yes it was truly appreciated by all of the Beus Family!! The kids loved opening a gift each day! Rylee has listened to you guys read the Christmas book a million times! The cd with Christmas music was another big hit!! And the yummy red cookies! I did give most of them away, but of course I had to eat a few also!! Thank you Telisa for the fantastic calendar & abc book!

Sara said...

Thank you so very much for making our Christmas season so fabulous. The love and generosity you give is constant and endless. We are so grateful for amazing Grandparents!

Tristen said...

It was an awesome Christmas gift! I loved each day and so did my kids, even if they didn't quite understand. Thank you for all of the hours that went into it! I loved looking at the twelve 'gifts' on my cabinet and reading them over and over. It was priceless. Thank you for everything!

Kim said...

Thank you seems so inadequate for all you do for us. I hope you can feel our eternal gratitude for you and the love and care you give to each and every one of us. We love you right back!