For my Mama...

One of my favorite memories as a child was each year when mom bought a new advent calender!  I LOVED counting down the days until Jesus' birthday!

I had been staring at an advent calender every time I went to Amani Ya Juu .  It was a beautiful hand sewn fabric hanging advent calender.  It was a big tree with all African animals that you would take out of the little pockets for each day counting down to Christmas then you would hang them on the tree on buttons.  There was just one problem:  I looked and looked and couldn't find baby Jesus among the animals.  But I really like the advent calender and knew if I bought one it would be in our family for years to come for all of our children to look forward to each Christmas.  There were 2 reasons I couldn't buy it though: 1- there was no baby Jesus.  2- it was EXPENSIVE! ($60!).  So every time we'd go I'd just look at it until finally one day I told my friend Maggie that works there- that I would consider buying it if she could get someone to carve me a baby Jesus.  So she said she would present it to the board and let me know.  Next time I went back, still no baby Jesus.  Maggie said it was still being discussed.  Life got busy and I didn't go back for a while.  The next time I came back- there is was!!  A BEAUTIFUL wall hanging advent- nativity complete with BABY JESUS!!  (Go ahead- click and ENLARGE!)

I said "MAGGIE!!  It's BABY JESUS!"  She came right over and said "Isn't it lovely!?" I said "Lovely- this is perfect!"  But I still couldn't pay that for it.  I told her I would buy it as soon as I could.  She told me that i just HAD to buy it b/c she said I had given them the inspiration for it!  She said they even thought about stitching my initials on the back of each calender but they didn't not my sir name.  I told her I was so glad they didn't do that b/c I can't claim Baby Jesus as my idea.  

So the NEXT time I went I was able to purchase it.  My Mama, not even knowing about this calender, put some monies in my account and said I could use it for whatever i wanted to pertaining to the adoption so of COURSE this was the first thing I went for!  Now, let's pray we get to use it THIS Christmas with our child!  

Ma, you love it don't you?