I love Christmas! I have so many wonderful childhood memories of Christmas. My parents always made such an effort to make it special. As I grew up and started having children of my own, my mom frequently reminded me (and still does) of how important it is to do special things for them. She would tell me, "Raising kids is tough and doing special things may not always be easy or convenient for you, but you are making memories for your children." The great memories I have attest to the truth of that statement. And these great memories may be the reason for my love of Christmas traditions.

My family has many Christmas traditions. We have decorating days, baking days, tamale making days, and we follow the Jesse Tree advent, reading bible passages up until Christmas Day. But my absolute favorite tradition is our Christmas sleepover.

Every Christmas Eve we gather with extended family for dinner and exchanging gifts. Afterward, we drive around town looking at lights, and then my husband and I, along with our five kids and Charlie the Schnauzer, pack up and head to my parents' house for a sleepover. We get comfy, get the fire going, make chocolate and coffee, and turn on It's a Wonderful Life. In the morning, as my kids are creeping downstairs, my sister and her family arrive (somewhere around 6:30am). Coffee gets made, breakfast gets started, and we gather around the tree to take turns opening gifts. Christmas morning with my family is so special and something we all look forward to. And personally, I have never known anything else. In all my 44 years, I have never awakened on Christmas morning anywhere but in my parents' home. Thankfully, God has blessed me with a husband who loves my parents as his own and who loves this tradition as much as I do. I pray the memories being created during our Christmas sleepover stay with my children and cause them to go out of their way to "make memories" for their own children.

Now I praise you, brethren, that you remember me in all things and keep the traditions just as I delivered them to you

(1 Cor 11:2).

Audrey Martinez

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