Monday, December 5, 2011

Guest Blogger: Jennifer Neugent Thomason

I am so excited to welcome Jennifer Neugent Thomason, The Christmas Angel herself, as a guest blogger today! The Christmas Angel is a new product to help parents teach their children about the true meaning of Christmas. Jennifer is here to share about some favorite Christmas memories and traditions from her childhood. Welcome, Jennifer!
 
Ah, the sweet memories I had as a child at Christmas-time. Most of them I recall from stories my parents tell me each year. Of course, when I was a little girl there was not a fun product out, like the “Elf on the Shelf” or “The Christmas Angel” to promote creativity. But boy did my family have exceptional imagination! Not only did we do the typical Christmas traditions, but we also had a blast ministering and serving others.

My parents taught me at a very young age that it is better to give, than to receive. They are truly remarkable individuals! I respect and love them with all of my heart! My mom is a self-less angel who is willing to do anything for anyone. My dad is a minister and missionary who always gives his whole heart to serving others. They made serving and ministry look like so much fun; so my brother and I are inevitably drawn to that lifestyle even to this day. Because my family is also extremely musical, most of my memories at Christmas time are harmoniously pleasant. We would go caroling at nursing homes, visit home-bound church members and sing old hymns. Dad would take us to Jimmy Hale Missions to serve meals, pass out candy canes, and of course sing popular Christmas tunes! I also prize the moments when my family came together, danced around in the kitchen and made countless Christmas goodies and home-aid cards for our teachers, neighbors, Sunday school teachers, and friends.

Another Christmas tradition that most families did, and still do to this day, is drive out to the mall to wait in a long line to sit in Santa’s lap, reading out a detailed list of wishes one could only dream of. Walking away with a pleasant memory and a photo framed as a keep-sake. Well, that tradition was particularly special to me, because my very own dad dressed up as Santa Clause at The Hoover Commons Mall. He was, to me, the best Santa in the whole wide world. I absolutely loved that he did that! It was such a blessing to others. That may be the very reason that I love to dress up like princesses, story-book characters, and The Christmas Angel at special events and hospital visitations. My dad’s service, ministry, and prayers to God set an example for me, which paved a way for me becoming a servant of God.

Lastly, a memory that I will always cherish, was something that my mom did every year. Mom would always allow us to open up one Christmas present under the tree on Christmas Eve. She wrapped it up especially bright, so it made it all the more exciting. The gift was always a brand new pair of Christmas pajamas. We would put them on, snuggle into our beds, and she would read to us, “The Night Before Christmas.” As we fell asleep in our new p.j.’s, she would put on bright red lipstick and give us each a big sloppy kiss from "Santa Clause," of course.

We would wake up waaay too early the next morning to find our kiss from Santa and to see what gifts we had received. But before we could open any of them, we had to sing a very special song, to an exceedingly special Someone. “Happy Birthday”… to JESUS! My parents never let us to forget Who the true meaning of Christmas is all about.

The true meaning of Christmas is the birth of our sweet Lord.
He’s the reason for this season to be praised and adored.
May every Christmas remind you, to have faith and to believe.
And remember the greater blessing is to give than to receive.

Merry CHRISTmas to all!

Jennifer, thank you so much for stopping by! For more information about The Christmas Angel, you can connect with them on their website, Facebook, or Twitter. Also, be sure to check out my interview with Lisa Dorough, the creator of The Christmas Angel. 



Jennifer is best characterized as a fun-loving, imaginative soul. She is overjoyed to be a part of the creative team of The Christmas Angel. She generates an animated energy, and offers a unique approach to life. She is full of love, because she is full of Jesus. Her heart’s desire is to glorify Christ in all she does. She has always had a passion for the Fine Arts: music, dance, drama, poetry, and creative writing. Her dream is to use her God-given gifts for His purpose. Jennifer is a graduate from The University of Montevallo, with a Bachelor’s degree in Performing Arts and Music. With her dedication to music and song writing, she was able to produce her debut CD, two years ago. She recently got married to the love of her life, Bryan, and she believes God truly blessed them with a fairy-tale romance. They are members of the Westwood Baptist Church in Alabaster, AL. There, Jennifer is involved in Westwood’s praise team and choir, the women and children’s ministry, the drama program, and the missions ministry. Her goal in life is to spread contagious joy, and let Christ’s love brilliantly shine through her! Christ inspires her to express herself, through the writing of her music, poems, and now story books for children. Her prayer is that when you read this story to your children, you will catch a glimpse of God’s amazing love, showering your family with many blessings. Jennifer also appears as the Christmas Angel character at book signings and special Christmas events.

No comments:

Post a Comment

I love comments! Thanks for letting me know what you think!

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...

Labels

(in)courage (in)mercy 1 star 12 Pearls of Christmas 12 Pearls of Christmas 2012 12 Pearls of Christmas 2013 2 star 2 stars 2.5 stars 2012 Review 3 stars 3.5 stars 4 stars 4.5 stars 5 Minute Friday 5 stars A Year of Weddings Abingdon Press Advent Announcements ARC August Author B-H Books Banned Books Week Barbour Publishing BBAW 2012 beauty Bethany House Blitz Blog Action Day blog hop Blog Mooch Blog Tour Blogaversary Blogging Blogging for Change Blogside Chat Book Blast Book Club Book Trailer Thursday Bout of Books Bout of Books 11.0 Bout of Books 13.0 Bout of Books 7.0 Bout of Books 8.0 Bout of Books 9.0 Brookes Faves celebration Center Street CFBA challenge accepted Character Meet and Greet Charisma Media Children's Christian Speaker Services christianaudio Christmas Christy Awards Clean Sweet community Compassion Compassion Blog Month Contemporary Countdown to Christmas Cover Love Cover Reveal Dani Pettrey David C. Cook Devotion Devotional DiAnn Mills DNF Easter Egg Blog Hop End of Summer Read-A-Thon Etsy Events Faith Words Fall Into Reading 2012 FB Chat Fiction FIRST Food Freebies Friday Five Getting To Know You Giveaway Giveaway Hop Glass Road PR goals Grand Finale Great Escapes Guest Blogger Guideposts Books Harlequin Heartwarming Harvest House High Summer Read-A-Thon Historical home goods Hope International Howard Books If the Shoe Fits Influenster Inspired Design Publications Jody Hedlund Jolly VoxBox Just for Fun Kenya Kregel Publications Literacy Read-A-Thon LitFuse Publicity Looking Ahead Love for Books Love Inspired Mailbox Fun Month in Review Moody Publishers Mother of Pearl Mother of Pearl 2013 Movie Music NavPress Net Galley New Hope Publishers New Leaf Publishers New Release Feature Non-Fiction Operation Christmas Child pinterest pray pray for the horn Prism Book Tours Promo Random Random House Random Question RCCleanup read-a-thon Reading Cram reflections Reformation Trust Release Day Retirement Community Revell Review in Haiku River North Road to the Christys Road Trip Romance Samaritan's Purse Sandra Byrd Sandra D Bricker Sandra Leesmith scripture Secret Church shutterfly snacks Snappy Reviews Sneak Peek Spring Break '11 Spring Reading Thing SSMT SSMT 2013 Sterling Summer Lovin' Read-A-Thon summer reading Summerside Press Susan May Warren Suspense Take a Chance on Me Tamera Alexander Tanzania Teaser Tuesday Tens List The B-B Media Group The Story Behind the Story The Travel Bug The Word Thomas Nelson Thursday 3 Top 10 Top Picks Top Ten Tuesday Trailer Tricia Goyer Tyndale House Waiting on Wednesday WaterBrook Multnomah webcast WestBow Press What Are You Reading What's Next Whitaker House WinePress Publishing World Watch List WWW Wednesdays YA Young Adult Zondervan
Powered by Blogger.