Auld Lang Syne

It's hard to explain the "New Year" to the boys who already have a hard time with a new day or week since calendars are a relatively new concept in their world. But there are a few things we do to celebrate the blessings of the past 365 days and ring in the beginning of the new year.

1.) Over the year we collect mementos from special occasions, ticket stubs, arm bands, concert passes, etc, and place them in a clear ball ornament. We wrap a ribbon around the top with the year written on it and tuck it away with the Christmas decorations. Each Christmas we pull out the ornaments full of memories and have fun reminiscing.

2.) Most Christmas cards are thrown into the trash after the season is over, and some maybe before that. But in our home, after being hung up throughout Christmas, each is stacked and placed in a basket. Then at night after family devotions, we each take a card from the pile and pray over your smiling faces and hand written notes.

3.) While it's never healthy to "live in the past", it sure is a rich feeling to take a look back at where you've been the last 365 days. We've kept a journal of the "stones" (see Joshua 4) God has set up in our lives, the miracles, the blessings, the moments clearly ordained by our Heavenly Father we never want to forget. We make sure to take a few moments and remember these stones and talk about them with the boys, praising God for the gift of the old year and dedicating to Him new year to come!

Happy New Year!