Jesus Archives – Jamieson Diaries

Merry Christmas everyone! We thoroughly enjoyed our Christmas day here in the Jamieson household. We were even lucky enough to have my Mother-in-law here to celebrate this special day with all of us.

Christmas is my absolute favorite day of the year (followed closely by my birthday) so it’s safe to say I’m the cheesy, corny, overly excited person on Christmas day. I expect, starting on Christmas Eve, to play Christmas music, watch Christmas movies, cook Christmas-y foods, and spread Christmas cheer and love. Yesterday I hosted Christmas Eve dinner with our Montana “framily”. It was always a tradition with my immediate family to have a large Christmas Eve dinner so we could all relax and eat leftovers on Christmas Day. Last night we all ate plenty of food and shared even more laughs. It is always a great time to create more memories with the people closest to you.

This morning Jordyn woke up after 9:30 a.m. due to her running around with her friends the night before and staying up later than usual to mingle with our guests. However, once she was awake we got the party started! We facetimed my Mom, Grandma, and sisters in Chicago while Jordyn opened her gifts, and we all opened our gifts to/from each other. Although Jordyn loved all of her gifts, she particularly loved her kitchen set and shopping cart from Grandma Kim. Grandma Toni was awesome enough to put both of them together so little miss Jordyn could enjoy them right away. Yay for having two awesome Grandmas! 🙂

We have spent the rest of the day lounging around the house watching Jordyn and Ares play with their presents, the Bulls won, we called family members, and felt more than thankful to have so many loved ones to create awesome memories with. Oh, and of course eating plenty of leftovers!

The Jamieson family hopes all of you had a blessed Christmas day and an even more blessed Christmas night. Remember through all of the gifts and material things that will cross your path today what the day is actually about. If you didn’t get the chance to thank God for the birth of His son this morning, it’s not too late to do so now. There is simply no Christmas without CHRIST.

Merry Christmas family and friends!

Brie <3

[12.25.15]

In the spirit of the season, I have decided to make my Sunday blog posts for the month of November about giving and gratefulness. I know this tends to be the cliché trend of everything in the month of November, but what is wrong with doing something for others and sharing positivity? In a world where hatred and sadness seems to be more popular than love and happiness, I think a month of thankfulness is needed.

This won’t be a long blog post, because this post is simple. I challenge everyone (myself included) to be less selfish and more selfless this month. It is quite an easy task if we truly find the compassion in our hearts to put others before self. Becoming a wife and mother has taught me this lesson more than I could have ever imagined, but I can still be and do better. It doesn’t have to be some grand gesture to prove selflessness either. Maybe instead of buying that new shirt or pants for yourself, you buy a few pairs of sweatpants and sweatshirts at Walmart for the homeless. An alternative for those who may not be in the financial place to buy such items can go through your closet of clothes and give away anything you don’t wear or need anymore to the less fortunate.

Another example of a small, but large impact gesture, could be buying some cheap canned goods on sale at your local grocery stores and donating some to your local food bank or church. The alternative, you may be shocked at what you have in your own pantry and don’t eat/need that can be donated to someone else.

A few other examples of selflessness is donating your time to a cause to help others. Find a local church or shelter who may be looking for volunteers to bless someone in need this holiday season. You would be amazed how appreciative people are to those who share their time and love with complete strangers. Another idea is making sure your coworkers or neighbors have somewhere to go on Thanksgiving. As hard as it is for some people to understand, there are many people who do not have family and/or close friends to share Thanksgiving dinner with. So ask your friends, coworkers, and neighbors if they have plans for the holiday. Not only will you be given the opportunity to bless someone else who will always be grateful for your hospitality, but you have the opportunity to strengthen a relationship or make a new friend.

I hope we all have the opportunity to show multiple acts of selflessness this holiday season. I pray all of us are able to be a blessing to someone else, and in turn be blessed by them as well. What other ideas would you like to share of selflessness with others? Please comment below. Also, as the month goes on, please share your acts of selflessness with me and other readers by commenting below, and/or tweeting and Instagraming me @JamiesonDiaries.

Here is to a wonderful season of spreading love and happiness to those around us!

Happy and blessed Sunday everyone!

Brie <3

[11.08.15]