Christmas is always a very exciting celebration among billions of people around the world. The traditional colors of Christmas decorations are red, green, and gold. Most people all over the world decorating their homes, putting up Christmas trees, families reunite to cook a special meal, exchange christmas cards and gifts, while listening to Christmas songs. Some towns hold special events for kids and adults to enjoy.
As a Christian, participating in a religious service plays an important part in our family. We are celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ. Attending church on Christmas Eve is part of our tradition and we enjoy celebrating this special event among people who are also celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ with us. Being a member of Tabernacle Church for the past few months now, we've had an honor to join them for a Christmas Eve Candlelight event. It was a spectacular and breathtaking.
This is our second year celebrating Christmas in Sarasota. And let me tell you, it feels like we are celebrating Christmas in July. The weather here is warm, about 70 degrees. Sunny and breezy. Few clouds here and there, but overall a perfect time to spend a day at the beach, away from overcrowded places, to enjoy the sound of the ocean and bear your feet into a warm sand.
This year we decided not to attend any major events happening in the city, even though, there are plenty to choose from. Instead, we spending time just us as a family. Unfortunatelly, both of our families spread out all over the world, so it's very hard to gather all together.
On Christmas Eve, we all went to see Christmas lights at University Town Center, by a new mall they just opened up couple months ago. It's less then 10 minutes away from our home and it's free to see for all Sarasota residents or people who are visiting. Sarasota county did an amazing work this year putting up all the lights up on palm trees, bushes and setting up all kinds of exhibits around the area. We parked our car on the side walk by the mall and took a walk down the streets of Cattleman Road, taking pictures and enjoying each others company. If you are passing through or a resident here, I encourage you to see it for yourself. If you are hungry, there are a lot of good restaurants in the area to choose from with variety of different cuisines. Or, you can check out University Town Center mall, where you can find everything you need in one place, variety of different stores, coffee shops, food court and even a play area for small children to play.
On Christmas Day, we spent our morning unwrapping gifts, it's the best time of the year watching your kids faces light up everytime they unwrap the gift. For breakfast, my husband cooked us some delicious waffles. After breakfast, all of us enjoyed spending time outside, watching Annabella riding her bike, while Angelika rode her scooter. In the evening, it was time to enjoy our Christmas Day dinner. Baked Ham with pineapple glaze, homemade mash potatoes with gravy, corn on the cob and stufffing. For desert, peanut butter and chocolate chip cookies.
We are so blessed to be able to celebrate this Christmas together, have food on our table, gifts to exchange, TV to watch and a place to call home. Of course, we miss our families and wish that we were all together this holiday season, but being so far from each other is very hard to gather everybody in one place. Let's pray for those who are alone this holiday season, for those who don't have a luxury of homemade food or a place they can call home and let's not forget that Christmas is not all about gifts and a Christmas tree, but about the birth of Jesus Christ and spending time with family.
❤ How did you spend your Christmas? Share in the comments section below! ❤
Labels: celebrating christmas in florida, christmas, christmas 2014, christmas in sarasota, Lifestyle
