Nativity

When I was a young girl, one of my favorite Christmas decorations was the nativity set that Mom always placed beneath the tree. Knowing my mom, I'm pretty sure that she placed it there so that her five children could enjoy it and play with it. All too often, we fought over the Baby Jesus. Well, at least we grasped the concept that he was the most important part of Christmas!

For years, I've wanted to get my girls a set that they could play with. I have three nativity figures that I got as a gift several years ago. My sweet Aunt Cass sent me them on behalf of my Granny who was in a nursing home at the time. They were old and scuffed, but I love them because they are a piece of my mom's past. Granny passed away ten years ago, and each year I'm reminded of her when I take out Mary, Joseph and Jesus. Because they are so precious, I've been hesitant to turn them into a plaything for my girls.

Finally, this year I finally bought one that the girls could play with. A couple of weeks ago, Toys R Us had a weekend sale on the Playmobil Nativity Set. Ella has developed a love of Playmobil and was very excited to get one. In fact I think her words were, "This is so great! I finally have a big box of Playmobil!" I'm not sure that we'll leave it beneath the tree -- there are too many tiny pieces that would get sucked up the vacuum. But, I plan on finding a spot where my girls can enjoy it throughout the season.