Christmas Countdown

I woke up on Sunday and looked at my calendar. It was December 17th. That meant eight more days to Christmas.

I found Nannie, Elizabeth, Kristy, Emily, David Michael, Andrew, and Sam in the kitchen eating breakfast.

“Hi, everyone. Where are Daddy and Charlie?” I asked.

“They are on a secret mission,” replied Sam.

“They will be home soon,” said Elizabeth. “You will know where they have been as soon as they walk through the door.”

I ate my favorite breakfast of Krispy Krunchy cereal. Nannie made me a cup of hot chocolate to go with it.

I was not sure what to do next. There were so many choices. I could make gifts for Hannie and Nancy. I could figure out what to do about getting an angel. I could decorate my room for Christmas.

“Karen, would you like to help Emily and me bake Christmas cookies this morning?” asked Nannie.

That was it! I could help Nannie and Emily bake Christmas cookies.

“Yes!” I said. “What kind will we make?”

“Ginger cookies and sugar cookies,” said Nannie.

“Yum and yum,” I replied.

My first job was to beat the eggs. While I was working, a Christmas song came on the radio. I sang along. “It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas!”

Then I made up my own words.

There are presents hidden everywhere.

It’s beginning to feel a lot like Christmas.

You will soon be smelling cookies in the air!

When the dough was ready, Nannie let me use the Christmas cookie cutters. They were shaped like trees and stars.

We had just popped the first batch of cookies into the oven when Daddy and Charlie came home. They were carrying a great big tree tied up with rope.

“You bought a Christmas tree! That was your secret mission,” I said.

We helped them carry the tree into the living room.

“We think we got a good one this year,” said Daddy.

He cut the rope off. The branches dropped down.

“It is so big,” said Kristy.

“And it is not one bit lopsided,” I said.

“It is an amazing tree,” said Elizabeth.

“Thank you, everyone, thank you,” said Charlie.

I wanted to decorate the tree right away. But we were going to save that job for Christmas Eve. So I spent the day baking cookies, making gifts, and listening to Kristy read stories from a very good book called Children of Christmas.

The next day when I returned from school, Sam was stringing up lights outside. Elizabeth came home from work early to help Sam decorate the house inside and out. (That was their job.)

By the time they finished, it was dark. Elizabeth called, “Come outside and look, everyone.”

My big-house family put on jackets and stood together in the yard. Sam flipped a switch. The Christmas lights flashed on. A wreath hung on the door. Red candles stood tall in the windows. Tinsel hung down around them. Our house was glowing.

I felt a tug on my jacket. It was Andrew.

“Hey, Karen,” he whispered. “What are we going to do about the angel? We have to get one. It is our job.”

Andrew sounded worried. I was not in the mood to worry with him. I was too happy.

“It is okay. We have time,” I replied.

It was December 18th. There were seven days till Christmas. Seven more days to worry about an angel.