Preparing for Christmas

I really love this time of the year! It's a time to do things that you have done every year ever since you were a child. I love traditions! And I love to make new traditions for my family. This year we have made a kind of sausages that is a tradition from my husband's family. It was the first time we have tryed to make them, and it turned out well! It was rather fun too (even though I'm a vegetarian at heart...)! And it is such a satisfaction to make food for the winter and fill up the freezer. You feel so prepared and secure! My children and I have also made traditional Christmas cookies, as we do each year.
Now the Christmas greetings are sent, the Christmas presents are baught (unfortunately I haven't a single homemade present, we have been ill for several weeks, so there has not been enough time to make any) and the house will hopefully be clean and sparkling very soon ;) But is this the most important things about Christmas? I try to not let them be! But oh my! I must admit, they take too much time and space from all that Christmas is really about: The little child in the manger, born for us. Dear Lord, help us all to focus most of all on the birth of Christ and not on the things the commercial world want us to believe is necessary for having a wonderful Christmas.