My children made friends with the neighbor family’s kids when they moved in. It seemed like a match made in heaven: they had kids that exactly matched up with mine age-wise and the oldest two were girls. Nikki’s buddy was a boy, but they weren’t old enough to care. The six of them played together constantly and shared lots of ideas back and forth, but this one was about the funniest. Their family had a Christmas game of hiding the baby Jesus figure from their manager on the first day of December. Whoever found it hid it again and this went on until Christmas day, when the person who knew where the figure was got to open the first present. Sounded like fun to my group, so they asked permission to play it too. I was a bit of a stick in the mud. I had just purchased a “nice” nativity set and the pieces were ceramic. Reluctantly, after lots of pleading, I allowed them to take my baby Jesus and hide it.

They played the game happily for weeks, bragging back and forth about how they had hidden it in the “best” spot. A few days before Christmas, the chatter died way down, but I didn’t think anything of it. Too busy with everything else, I suppose. The Big Day came, and they all looked expectantly at one another. Who would get to open the first present?

Wait for it…..

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It’s coming…..

NO ONE knew where Jesus was!! They all wracked their brains and checked the last place they personally had hidden the figurine and it was absolutely nowhere to be found. I was just a little bit shy of furious, but in the interest of holiday spirit, I tried not to make too big of a fuss. But *I* opened the first present that year.

After Christmas was over, I made them clean and clean and clean, trying to find that figurine. After all, what’s a nativity without a baby in the manger??? There was no sign of it. Sadly, I put the set away without Jesus and started searching the Half – Off sales for a figure that would be about the right size and style. No luck.

We kept on searching for Jesus all through that winter. It surely did keep Christ in our minds long after Christmas LOL!

Sometime in June, we decided to go on a picnic. I got out the basket and the cooler and when I went to put the pop in the cooler, guess what I found in the bottom? There was the baby Jesus figurine staring up at me from his manger. Turned out that their father had found it in the spot where whichever kid had hidden it last and decided to take a hand in the game. Then in all of the hubbub, he had forgotten that he’d done that (at least I *think* he forgot…no telling!). I had my figure back, though, and I’m not sure the experience was negative. After all, everyone should spend time searching for Jesus, shouldn’t they? And isn’t it wonderful when we find Jesus in the midst of everyday activities?