I absolutely can’t believe Christmas is upon us. Yes, I’m one of those people that *loves* Thanksgiving, but prefers a red and green Thanksgiving :) As December sneaks up on us, I’ve started gathering a few ideas to share about our Christmas traditions. And this year, in particular, will be a special one for us. Not only is it our last Christmas as a family of three – it’s also going to be a little different than years past. Typically we spend Christmas with my family in Pensacola – LOTS of traditions there. It’s the same every year and I love it so much. This year, I’ll be a billion weeks pregnant at Christmas-time and unable to make the trip. We’ll be having our own little Christmas at home and creating our own Christmas traditions (while incorporating our favorites from back home). Don’t worry, we’ll have our “family” Christmas when my parents come to visit after the holiday.   I adore this Christmas tradition. We started it when Brady was just a baby, but he LOVES his two elves (Yes, he has two – one visits him at his house and the other visits him at Nana’s house in Pensacola). Scooter and Chippy report to Santa on his good choices every evening and show up in a new place when Brady wakes. I didn’t realize it, but Elf on a Shelf also makes some REALLY cute products outside of just the Elf and his book. They even have a Birthday Tradition that we’ll be doing with Brady in February (to help make that CRAZY month a little more special / that’s when the twins are due). Elf on a Shelf is a super fun thing to do with your kids – but more than anything, I just love the heart of this company. It was created by a mama for her girls and has spread around the world as a tradition millions of families incorporate into their holidays. Read their whole story – “From Family Tradition to Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade” here on Fast Company. This is near and dear to my heart. Last year, we hosted this fundraiser for the Cystinosis Research Foundation. My sweet friend, Christi, has a precious little boy affected by this disease. You can read their entire story here. Last year all of you came together to purchase our downloadable RAK Advent Calendar (something Christi does with her family) and helped us raise $10,000 for the foundation. Incredible. We’re so excited to host this fundraiser again this year. Purchase your RAK Advent Calendar (including 25 cards with random acts of kindness on them + “you’ve been RAK’d” cards) here for $20 – your gift will go to the CRF to support kiddos like little Braden. Simply print on your home printer, cut out and viola! You’re ready to go! Brady and I had the best time doing these last year. Our most memorable RAK was when we visited the veterinarian / oncologist who took care of our sweet Bull Mastiff, Briggs, during his chemotherapy for lymphoma before we lost him last summer. We took them doughnuts and Brady still remembers it and talks about how we did that every time we pass by their office (middle pic above). PURCHASE YOURS HERE.

Tell me about your family’s Christmas traditions! I’m excited to create our own this year but also a little sad this year will be “different.” Creating new memories with Bryan and Brady will be so special before the twins arrive, though. And… don’t forget to swing over to our shop and help support our Random Acts of Kindness fundraiser.