Most everyone I know loves Christmas. There is something about the magic and wonder of the season that is unmatched during the rest of the year. There are so many reasons that I love Christmas I can hardly know where to begin.

I guess the biggest reason I love Christmas is because for me, it has always meant the gathering of family and friends. It is only during the Christmas season that we gather from a far and enjoy days filled with laughter, good conversation, good meals and tons of games. My four siblings and I have naturally spread out into our adulthood and usually it is only at Christmas that we get to reunite with each other and with our parents. You could take everything else about Christmas away from me and I would still love it just for this reason.

With my family and close friends around me, I love the sheer celebration and party that the Christmas season is. I love going from Christmas party to Christmas party and celebrating with the people I care about most. I am quite sure that there is nothing better than enjoying a day of sledding, making snow men, drinking hot chocolate, and then coming inside to watch old movies and eat great snacks by the Christmas tree. Even the smallest parts of Christmas feel like magic. I love the way the Christmas tree glows each year with white twinkle lights on it, and I love the way the house smells after my mom finishes baking her famous Christmas cookies. I love seeing my children sleeping side by side with each of their cousins right in front of the Christmas tree on Christmas Eve.

Another reason I love Christmas is because it happens near the end of the year. Many years Christmas becomes my Thanksgiving as well as I realize all of the ways that I have been blessed during the past year. I take time each Christmas to write a letter to each of my parents, siblings, my husband, children, and close friends. It takes me weeks to write them all, but I love sharing with each person in my life the ways that they have blessed my life during the past year. I never give a Christmas gift without a letter attached. I love that Christmas reminds me to be grateful and to cherish the best things and people in my life.

Take a little time and think about the reasons you love Christmas so much. I think you will find that it truly is the greatest time of the year.