The Manger

Here is my second "installment" of my favorite Christmas memories...to read yesterday's post about the Birthstone Ornament go here!

As a kid, I always loved to listen to the Christmas Story.  My Grandpa Horace would read the story from the Bible every year.  We talked about it in church and my parents reminded me each year that Santa was not the only important person at Christmas.  We always had a Nativity scene as part of our Christmas decorations and one of my favorite parts of decorating the house was setting it up.  I am a little embarrassed to say that as a child it was not because of what it symbolized, I just loved setting up those little figurines and putting them in the perfect spot.  It was kind of like playing with my Barbies, but more special.  

My brother and I both had a Nativity scene.  When the time came to set up them up, I would find the perfect spot on the shelf.  I would slowly unwrap each figurine, gently placing them to the side until they were all free from their storage cocoons.  Then, I would place each piece in just the perfect place.  I loved the fact that my Nativity had animals too, they were my favorite part!  (I know, I should have like Baby Jesus the most, but hey, I was a kid who loved animals, can you blame me?)  And the years my brother did not want to set his up was like an early Christmas present!  You mean I get to set up TWO Nativity scenes?  Score! 

Even as I grew older, I still looked forward to setting up the Nativity scene each year.  Every year the same excitement would wash over me and I would be like a kid again.  My old Nativity scene is packed away in a box at my parents house.  It makes it out every so often at Christmas, but I am not usually around when my parents decorate.  The first few years, when I was no longer living with my parents and I had my own Christmas decorations, I often missed setting up the Nativity scene. 

Then, after Hubby and I got married, his Pop and Nanny gave us the most beautiful Nativity scene as a Christmas gift.  I was so excited to have a Nativity for my own house.  Although this one will never take the place of my childhood Nativity, I still have the same excitement each year when I drag the Christmas decorations down from the attic.  I slowly open the boxes for each figurine, unwrap them and place them in the perfect spot.  I still feel like a kid when I set it all up and step back to admire the scene.  Not to mention, this Nativity scene has animals too!  As an adult, I now truly cherish the meaning of the Nativity scene and what it represents...but I have to admit that the animals are still one of my favorite parts!