From our family to yours, we wish you a Merry Christmas and a blessed 2017!  

As we enjoy the Christmas season, we can’t help but think about traditions.

So much of the Christmas season is about traditions and memories and there is something about these traditions and memories that stick with us for years and years.  Growing up worlds apart Nate and I remember Christmas very differently.  

For me, there are memories of going to get our family Christmas tree by horse and wagon ride singing carols and sipping hot chocolate.  For Nate, it was the lights of Quito and the Ecuadorian fireworks in the streets.  For me, it was the hope of a white Christmas. For Nate, it was that perfect 75 degree weather and no thought of white stuff falling from the sky. 

When we got married, it was a mixing of all of these traditions and memories and creating our own Christmas.   Living in Pennsylvania gave way to the cold weather traditions like a real Christmas tree, but like all areas of our life, the Ecuadorian side shines through. One of our favorite Christmas memories is Decker.  Six years ago Nate surprised me with an early Christmas present: Decker!  Since then we have described him as the gift that keeps on giving.  

As we head to Panama we are excited to experience Christmas in brand new ways and incorporate some of our new culture into our Pennsylvania-Quito way of doing things.  The idea of it being warm for Christmas is so odd to me, but will be like going home for Nate.

What we are looking forward to most is experiencing an international Christmas.  LifeBridge is a church of people from all over the world.  So not only will we get to experience Christmas in Panama, but we will learn the traditions of our new friends from all corners of the world.  For us, that sounds like the best kind of Christmas.   

We hope you enjoy your family and traditions this Christmas season.  We hope for a blessed 2017 for you all and look forward to sharing with you our 2017 adventures.