Tradition...

I had often told Nickie of a tradition I fondly remember from my childhood- each year around Thanksgiving time, my mom or sister would make a paper chain out of construction paper. They would cut loops and lock them together with tape. Each "link" would represent a day, and the number of links in the chain represented how many days there were until Christmas day. As a child, I loved tearing a link off each morning, and watching the chain grow smaller, knowing I was that much closer to Christmas morning. 

I came home yesterday to find that Nickie had made a paper chain with Natalie in order to continue that tradition. It was so thoughtful of Nickie and it made me very nostalgic when Natalie and I tore off the first link yesterday. Thank you, Nickie, and thank you Natalie, for bringing me joy in unexpected ways!