It all begins with fall vibes with a slow transition into Thanksgiving / Pre-Christmas (which culminates on a holiday I created called “Thanksmas”....get into it!) Then BOOM!! Tis the season!! “We get it Alex. Clearly we’re here reading a whole holiday newsletter”...I hear you. Have you ever had a bright light blind you? You know what I mean. I’m talking about that “open the blackout curtain at the hotel at 11am to be abruptly attacked by a full on summer day in your face” kinda bright light. Also, I’ve yet to find those hotel curtains anywhere! I've been thinking a bit more on the Christmas season and about the feeling around it all. Anyone who knows me knows that I’m a Christmas fanatic. If you REALLY know me, you know that I drag my family into ridiculous Christmas photo shoots each year. If you really REALLY know me, you know that I have a 3 phase ramp up to the holidays. HOLIDAZE 2021 ALL IS BRIGHT A Holiday Thought from Alex You’re welcome to have your Coca Cola vs Jesus debate at family dinner. For the purposes of this thought, we’ll stick to the narrative that resonates for me; which is Jesus being born and bringing a new hope into the world. What do you call an obnoxious reindeer? A Sneed Family Newsletter One of the things I’ve always found particularly interesting about the Jesus birth story is this idea of these 3 wise men following a star and actually finding Jesus in this random manger. Real talk, if you tell me to head east I’ma just head out. I can NOT compute direction like that! I know they lived in a different time and that may have been the norm, but it’s still peculiar to me. Ok here’s my point. Christmas is my favorite holiday for sure. No doubt about it. But this year I’ve been asking myself why. What is it about the season that means so much to me? There’s a lot of conversations around where Christmas came from. It’s our hopeful connection of August’s sounds to words and his facial expressions to emotions that gave us a narrative of his personality that we’ve begun to nurture. Aliyah has been maturing and becoming a little lady. She’s still a child but her emotions are more complex. Sometimes in ways that drives me to an extra glass of wine; but that’s for another anonymous newsletter. Her new thoughts and feelings are giving us glimpses into who she might become. We don’t know all the ins and outs of her future, but we see her strengths, giftings and challenges. There’s enough light there to guide us down the path of raising her. Let’s say I did know how to follow stars. Why would I do that? Nothing I’ve read ever described the star as so bright that it was blinding. It was just one somewhat noticeable star. What moved on those men to make then want to follow? These questions sent me into thoughts of my kids. This year, we really got to see August’s personality develop. New words and sounds everyday. He’s got his own little language that our house understands. We think it’s pretty clear until someone new comes around and they think it’s babble. Isn’t that interesting? How can one person hear clear language and intention, while another hears gibberish from the same source? RUDE-olph! Circling back to Christmas... Consider the star that the wise men followed again. Yes there was a king on the other side, but the star in itself represented a peak into possibility. I, personally, have found myself intrigued this year more by possibility than outcome. Producing unscripted television is like that. You never quite know how it’s going to turn out. You just catch the glimpse of the possible and follow the light down the path. Full of hope and acceptance. In reflection, I realize that the reason I love Christmas so much is because it’s a time where all of the lights are on. Some brighter, some dimmer. But they’re all on. If you look around, you can find something hopeful to hold onto and who knows; it just might lead you to something that can change the world. In this next year, I plan to start living out Christmas even earlier. Not by putting up my tree any sooner, but by seeking out the glimmers of light that I can follow along the path of possibility. You are most welcome to join me. FAST FACTS * S T A R T E D P L A Y I N G P I A N O A N D I S S U C H A F A S T L E A R N E R ! M I G H T H A V E A M O Z A R T O N O U R H A N D S * S H E I S A M A T H W I Z ( B U T D O N ' T C A L L H E R T H A T B E C A U S E S H E ' S N O T I N T O L A B E L S ) . . . . J U S T K N O W T H A T T H E G I R L T H I N K S I N N U M B E R S A N D C U R R E N C Y ! * A C T I V E L Y P R A C T I C I N G H I P - H O P & G Y M N A S T I C S A N D J U S T J O I N E D G I R L S C O U T S ! W E A R E S O P R O U D O F O U R S W E E T , W E L L R O U N D E D G I R L . ALIYAH * L O V E S T H R O W I N G T H I N G S O N P U R P O S E A N D S A Y I N G " U H O H " * F L O U R I S H I N G A T H I S M O N T E S S O R I P R E S C H O O L . H E ' S S O S M A R T ! * A N O T E W A S S E N T H O M E T H A T O N E D A Y H I S L A U G H W A S S O I N F E C T I O U S T H A T T H E T E A C H E R S A N D S T U D E N T S C O U L D N ' T M O V E F O R W A R D W I T H T H E L E S S O N . T H A T ' S O U R B O Y ! AUGUST * W E T O O K 5 T R I P S T H I S Y E A R ; T O G E T H E R , A S A F A M I L Y A N D A P A R T - A B U N D A N C E & S E L F C A R E F O R T H E W I N ! * S A H E E D H A S B E E N F I N D I N G H I S V O I C E A N D U N I Q U E V A L U E ; S T A R T I N G A P O D C A S T F O R V I B E R I G H T E X P E R I E N C E , D O I N G I G B O O K R E V I E W S A N D L A N D I N G M U L T I P L E N E W J O B O F F E R S A T T H E E N D O F T H E Y E A R ! * A L E X G O T T O C R E A T E A L L Y E A R ! J U S T C A S U A L L Y P R O D U C I N G W I T H F O L K S L I K E E R Y K A H B A D U , A V A D U V E R N A Y , B R E N É B R O W N A N D A F E W M O R E . S H E ' S R E A L C H I L L A B O U T I T A L L . . . . SAHEED & ALEX FAST FACTS FAST FACTS HOLIDAZE 2021 A Quick Sneed Family Recap