To be honest I get a little bit nostalgic during the Christmas season. Coming from a large extended family I’m used to big big Christmas dinners where two turkeys are barely enough to feed everyone. I’m used to waiting up until at least 10:00 pm to have dinner on Christmas eve, to wait until midnight to exchange presents and eat leftovers on Christmas day. I’m used to hitting a piñata and lighting up sparklers and sharing too many cookies, brownies and pies with my family and all our friends who come to my mom’s house after their own parties because they know ours will go on for longer.

Last year we spent Christmas in Mexico. Joshua was less than 20 days old and he got to experience Christmas, as I’ve always known it. Evan had such a great time helping my sister decorate the Christmas tree and an even greater time hitting a piñata and opening his presents while trying to stay awake.

This year it just feels different. This is our first Christmas in Jakarta and many of closest friends have already left or are about to. We don’t have concrete plans and this makes me feel a bit guilty. I feel like I should go all out and make Christmas special for the boys. I vowed not to throw another party until next year but I’m on the verge of giving in and I have actually already done so inviting some good friends to come over on Christmas Eve and decorate cookies with their kids.

And here a glimpse of what our Christmas in Jakarta looks like so far…

But then I realized what Christmas is all about. It’s not about how many people we have over for dinner or if we have a dinner at all. It’s not about getting the boys the latest kidget (my word for kid gadget). It’s not about the decorations or lack there of. It’s about remembering the birth of Jesus. It’s about being grateful for His sacrifice and for all the blessings in our lives. It’s about teaching Evan and Josh the importance of family and togetherness and spending time together. So yes, this Christmas is going to be special. It will be our first Christmas in Jakarta as a family of four and we are forever grateful for that.

On that note, I know my blogging has been very sporadic lately. It will probably become even more so since these next days will be all about enjoying having daddy at home and cuddling up with the boys drinking iced cocoa (it’s too hot in Jakarta for the hot kind), building new towers, playing with cars, and reading all of our new books and watching way to many cartoons.

Merry Christmas!