Happy Birthday, Danny!

It may seem odd to some, but for thirty-four years, we’ve taken down our Christmas decorations the day after Christmas. I know many leave them up until after Epiphany on the 6^th of January, and some even longer. But we don’t do that.

You see, we had our last baby on December 30^th. He wasn’t due until the end of February, so to say he was a bit early is an understatement. It was a difficult pregnancy. I was 41, way past the age where one is expected or even recommended to have a baby. Strong contractions began at just sixteen weeks; thus, I was confined to bed for the remainder of the pregnancy.

At one appointment my doctor asked me if I wanted to have amniocentesis to rule out any abnormalities.

What?

No!

This baby, like his three brothers before him – Ken, Christopher, and Adam, would be loved and adored just as they were—no matter what. Thus, we declined.

PERFECT NUMBER FOUR – CELEBRATING DANNY

Despite being born almost a full eight weeks prematurely, he was perfect. Of course, they kept him until he weighed five pounds, even against my protests. Babies number two and number three had both been preemies, so I knew what I was doing. Still . . . he had to stay for that five-pound mark.

Moving On - One Birthday to the Next @DDuPreeWilliams #family #birthday #writing Share on X

So, getting into full Danny-mode, on the 26th we begin the task of taking down all the decorations—the tree, mantel stuff, all the nativities—and we put the kitchen table back to its usual size. In other words, life goes back to normal as we get out of Christmas mode and move into celebrating Danny.

KEEP JESUS IN OUR HEARTS ALWAYS

Even with all this going on, we remember our precious Savior and the reason for the season. We pray each of our children and grands will carry Him in their hearts, not just for a day, but for the rest of their lives. We thank God for bringing Emmanuel to earth to dwell with us (Matthew 1:23).

How about you? When do you take down Christmas and move to your ordinary lives? Let’s all strive to keep Him at the center of all we do, think, and say no matter when we remove all the bright lights and baubles.

He is, after all, the Light of the World (Genesis 1:3).

Blessings, y’all!

 

Danny remained in the NICU for three long weeks. I sang this to him every visit as I sat and rocked him. My precious baby, all grown up now. So proud of the man you’ve become. But you will always, always be my Baby Boy.