Christmas Angels

When I was a little girl, my parents divorced. I was 3-4 when it happened. We moved from our house to an apartment. And life was very different. Now I must say that truthfully, I don't remember much. I remember that mom was very sad and would sometimes cry. But I don't remember my dad ever living with us but I do remember visiting him often. I also remember that while I knew we couldn't always get what we wanted when we went to the store, I never felt like we were broke or poor. As far back as I can remember we had family around and lots of church friends. Mom, sister and I have always been very close. For so long it was just the 3 of us and we didn't mind at all. Mom worked really hard and still made time to hang out with us. She made birthdays fun and special. We didn't do parties every year - only for "big" birthdays. And for Christmas she would work an extra job so that we could have a few  special Santa presents. One year I guess things were extra tight Mom went back to school (yay mom!) And when Christmas rolled around, she wasn't able to work the extra job. So she went to the Salvation Army (I could do a whole post on them!!) And we were added to the Angel Tree. I was 8 that year and we were spending Christmas Day at our dad's. Obviously by this point I knew and understood that toys and stuff cost money. So I didn't expect much more than things I needed like socks and school clothes. Little did I know that a stranger had picked mine and my sister's name off the Angel Tree and waiting for me from "Santa" was the pink and white roller skates I'd asked for, Along with a brown teddy bear. I also knew by this time that "Santa" was really mom and dad. That bear is currently in my guestroom. For many years I assumed it came from my dad. And years ago, when sister and I had a little fight and teddy got damaged, my dad stuffed him and sewed him back up. And when mom bought our first home and I was 15 and sister was 13, we celebrated Christmas that year by going to the grocery store and picking two angels off the tree. When we asked why (selfish question - we didn't want anything to take away from our presents)And mom explained to us that when we were little and she didn't only had enough to give us the things we needed, we were on the Angel Tree. And that's when I found out where those skates I loved and the teddy bear I still slept with every night came from. And for years after we would pick an Angel. This year husband and I had a Christmas budget meeting. We're a one income family so we do have to be careful not to overspend. And then we decided instead to pick an Angel off the tree. I must say, looking at the number of kids in need broke my heart. Even more when I realized that there were easily a hundred little boys left to be picked, and like 20 girls. But I suppose that's normal - for one thing women typically pick the Angel. But also girls and babies are easier to shop for than little boys. I figured husband would be helpful in little boy shopping and I was right. He really enjoyed it. He picked books that I wouldn't have thought about but I'm sure an 8 year old boy would love! And he was much better about picking out the video game than I would have been! (though I had to remind him that we were shopping for an 8 year old and should probably keep it to E or T rating!) And even though hubby is a lifelong Cowboys fan, he had a great time picking out some Raven's gear! In fact, he had so much fun doing it, we went over our budget but husband said we don't know if this kid is going to get much else. So lets get him everything on the list. I love my husband for so many reasons. His love for others is one of them. He.Is.Amazing. And that is our new Christmas Tradition. Now we're gearing up for the next best part of the Holiday Season - On Monday we will celebrate having made it through our 2nd year of marriage! I can hardly wait to see what year three will bring us!