WHADJA GET 2007 EDITION

Truly, the presents are just the icing on the proverbial cake!

The older I get, the more Christmas has taken on a different flavor. Oh, I've always known that Jesus is the "reason for the season." I've always appreciated the separation between the materialism of the holidays and the spiritual implication of those holidays. But when I was younger, I remember the march to December 25 always seemed insufferably slow. I remember it was hard to sleep on Christmas Eve. And I remember, in spite of really, truly rejoicing in the birth of the Savior, that I was thrilled beyond measure to rip into the packages.

Now, Christmas arrives at lighting speed, with barely time to prepare. I tend to sleep in on Christmas day. And if Christmas dinner is ready before it's time to open presents, that's okay...I can wait. To borrow a cliche from movies: "this is bigger than the trappings!"

But, let's face it...the presents are nice. They show that someone thought of me and cared enough to purchase or make a gift. And, yes....presents are fun! I think they are intended to be enjoyed. Once again, I feel like a kid.

Soooo, in the spirit of kid-ness, I want to tell you some of the "stuff" I got for Christmas. And then I want to find out some of the stuff you got.

• Brand new Bible (if you saw my current one, you'd understand!)
• Shirts
• Socks
• Beard and mustache trimmer
• Nuts
• updated Quick Verse (Bible study software)
• Videos: Spider-Man 3, Fantastic Four 2, Batman Begins, Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
• Video fun: the Mr. Button video collection. Our kids grew up watching Mr. Button videos. They are as stilted and cheesy as you can get. I casually mentioned them to my wife as a point of nostalgia. Guess what showed up under the tree?
• Honorable mention: on my Secret Santa profile at the DayCare where I work, I mentioned that I wanted no mugs. I like mugs, but aside from getting at least one nearly every year, our cupboard is crammed full of mugs. So my delightful and resourceful co-workers each decided to get me the tackiest mugs they could find.
• Commentary

Okay, there's my list. Now you tell me: WHADJA GET?

MORE FREE ENTERTAINMENT ONLINE

If you are a child and have attended what we call "Large Group Celebration" at our church, you may be familiar with "Playtime Parables." Playtime Parables are Bible stories or Biblical principles acted out with action figures and other toys. The inspiration for this teaching method came from Mr. Karl Bastian, the Kidologist, who created an ongoing collection of action figure stories called "Tales from the Toybox." They are, in my humble opinion, the cadallac of "object stories."

Well, to make your season bright, Karl is uploading a different Christmas-themed Toybox Tale on each day leading up to Christmas. You can see what all the fun is about by going to http://www.kidologist.com/12-Days-of-ToyBoxTales.

Enjoy!

P.S. If you like these and want to see even more Toybox Tales, check out Karl's dedicated website www.toyboxtales.com.

MUSIC TO MAKE THE SEASON BRIGHT

It's very rare that you can get anything for nothing these days. But ever so often, the internet yields a treasure that is not only fun, but free. Such has been the case with Steve Tanner's 25 Days of Christmas Music. Since 2001, Steve has provided a daily holiday musical selection that spans the boundries of generations, genres, and familiarity. Some are well known, some are obscure, some are rare recordings not heard in decades. It's fun to listen, fun to collect, and (best of all), it's free.

Just click on the link above and enjoy the holiday season. And for the two of you who actually read this blog, tell them Teacher Tim sent you!