What were your creative inspirations for making a Christmas album like O Holy Night?

Sara Groves: I usually gravitate towards peaceful Christmas records, so I came to [producer] Ben Shive with the request that this album be "the embodiment of peace." I love all of the Amy Grant Christmas albums, but I knew we would not be able to use a full orchestra. So we used a lot of ethereal guitar, vocal, and keyboard sounds instead, with a small string ensemble on just a few songs.

What about your spiritual mindset in making this album? What part of the Christmas message are you specifically trying to convey?

Groves: Originally I was going to make an Advent album, sticking strictly to the Bethlehem story. But partway through, I thought that it would be very sad for me to make a Christmas album without mentioning my family at Christmas, or what Christmas means to me personally. I am glad for the change, and I feel like it gave the album a more integrated view of Christmas.

How did you go about selecting which songs and carols to cover?

Groves: I was overwhelmed with my choices! There are so many great songs, but I've been making a little list over the years, so that made my work easy when it came down to finalizing. I had to do "Silent Night" and "O Holy Night" and "Cradle in Bethlehem." By the time I was done making my best-of list, there wasn't much room left.

Tell us a little more about the four originals you wrote for the album.

Groves: "It's True" [is about having] a vast imagination as a child. The only story that's bigger than my ability to grasp is the story of the Christ Child, Emmanuel, God with us—and it's a true story! I wanted this song to capture the feel of childhood fairy tales.

"To Be with You" is a snapshot of my family at Christmas. To anyone else, I think these images will seem simple, but to our family they are loaded with meaning. My Grammie is always with the baby-of-the-year, humming. My Grandad always pulls out toys from his childhood, including a toy train that runs on real steam. And my mother is always baking and making the most amazing food. We always sing the Doxology before dinner, some years with tears and other years with great joy.

"Toy Packaging" is my letter to toy companies everywhere concerning my greatest pet peeve. It is a little much for me when a toy requires scissors, wire cutters, a screwdriver and a near-death experience to open it.

And "Peace Peace" is the song I sing after I have opened the aforementioned toy! No, really, this song borrows from a line in "Oh Little Town of Bethlehem" that has always been a favorite of mine: "The hopes and fears of all the years are met in him tonight."

It seems like it's important for you to continuously push the envelope in your artistic endeavors, even when it's a simple specialty project like your children's album or this Christmas collection.

Groves: I don't think about it as pushing the envelope, but I do love creativity and the never ending well of new ideas. I always want to be thinking in fresh ways about music for my own sake, because it is good for me to learn and grow. That said, I feel like each album is more and more of a revelation of who I am. No single album has been able to sum that up.

Are you planning your next "regular" album yet?

Groves: I am just starting to write for the next album, and am keeping myself wide open. I just had a conversation with our label president that helped me get some clarity on this. The last two albums have been very thematic. On "Add to the Beauty" I was looking at the Kingdom of God and what that means to us now, while on "Tell Me What You Know" I took that conversation to a more practical level in terms of social justice and God's heart for people. I feel like it is time for me to document my life as a 36-year-old woman. A lot has happened since "Conversations", so I think it is time to take inventory and write in a more personal way about my life as far as getting older, raising kids, and stuff like that.

courtesy christianitytoday.com