service, the greatest Christmas gift

On a daily basis, I am blown away and inspired by the service and love of friends and family our life.  I want to be more like them. Weather it be a phone call, a dinner, or simple acts of love like, "Hey, want to hang out today?!" or "Can I watch your kid?"  They all mean the world to me.  Usually, it is the simple things that do.

But this week was different, we had opportunities to serve those we love and even those we dont know.  I had been praying for some way to love more, and wow, the Lord really answers prayers.  I learned that both serving and being served bring the most incredible blessings.

It may sound funny, but I was asked to watch several of my friend's kids this week.  It really meant so much that first, they would ask, and second, how it really blessed my life by having these sweet kiddos in our home.  We had those most adorable little boy over so his mom could go to the doctors.  Not only was Jake thrilled to have a friend come play, it made the morning go so much smoother, and this little boy taught me how important friends are to everyone.  He also is seriously the sweetest boy.

We were also able to shop for families in need. My husband's work found several families that needed some extra love this Christmas and they all pitched in to help. Andy sent me an email that we were to shop for a mom and a son in one family.  We received the allotted donations from my husband's employees, and I went to the store to shop for them.  We were able to fulfill their whole list with the donations given.  I again was blown away at the selfless kindness of those that shared some of their means. I can just imagine this sweet little boy opening presents on Christmas day.  I also wonder if he ever thought he might not receive any, but how delighted he will be to find some great toys.  It was so fun shopping for them. I know it isnt toys or things that are important at Christmas, but as a child a toy can really mean the world.  I hope it does for these deserving families. 

Today, however, my husband really just blew me away.  He spent the whole day in the service of others.  We have a family member in need this holiday season, and as we received a list of what gifts we could provide for the darling children, we were so excited to get things for them. We had planned on going shopping sometime today, but our day was seriously jam packed with many MANY things.  The first on my husband's list was going to Camp Williams (his old Marine Corps Base) and helping out with the Toys for Tots program.  His old Marine buddy called and said they had so many toys and needed help sorting them out.  I wish I could have seen it, but Andy said the whole drill hall was stock full of incredible toys.  While he was matching toys to families, the woman in charge told them if they had any families in need, that they could grab a bag and fill them with toys.  They had been given so many toys this year that they had enough toys to share.  Andy brought home the biggest smile and a HUGE black bag of toys for his family members.  My heart was seriously full that while he was serving others, he too was able to receive service.  What a beautiful Christmas blessing.

We spent the rest of the day cleaning his sister's apartment and helping them move.  I just reflected on all the time they have served us and I wanted to help them so much.  Jake was such a good boy while we all scurried about cleaning and he remained happy and joyful.  I was so thankful for that and that we could help them.  I will miss them.

My heart is full of love and full of gratitude that this Christmas, as we serve and are served we can all be reminded of our Savior, who gave his love and his life in service to us.  Christmas time just really makes it special because there is always someone who needs a little more love this season.  I am thankful for all our friends and family who serve us in countless ways. I hope only that I can be more like them!