Christmas Traditions

My favorite Christmas traditions are: (in no particular order)

Choosing the Christmas tree and seeing it lit up for the first time

Coming down the stairs in matching pajamas

Seeing the Nutcracker (that's a new one for us)

Drinking Eggnog

Eating summer sausage, green olives, and cheese ball and crackers (I'm still trying to convert the others)

Making gingerbread houses

Watching the boat parade

Caroling to the neighbors

Making (and eating) Christmas cookies

Getting Christmas cards and seeing pictures and updates from all my favorite people

Having Russ home for a few days and just hanging out together as a family.

Thinking about the Savior more often than usual, and in turn thinking of others more than myself.

I have to admit opening the presents is not my favorite part of the Holiday. It's stressful to know if everyone will like what they got, if the distribution is balanced, are the batteries working, and even though I'm an adult, it still hurts my feelings when innocent children say, this wasn't a very good Christmas, I sure hope we get more next year, etc. etc. Russ wasn't feeling too well, so I sent him to bed Christmas Eve and stayed up preparing. As I walked outside to get something hidden in my neighbors car port, I saw toys strewn all over our yard, bikes not put away (it was raining), and just a general amount of material excess. I had a little epiphany that it was time to simplify and enjoy a few simple things in life rather than have more than we could ever appreciate or care for. I came back in and reassessed what was going under the tree. The reigning in was a little painful for some, but I feel the best gift I can give my children is the joy that comes from anticipating, longing, working for, saving, and cherishing. Hopefully I will be guided in how exactly to teach that, but I figured the best place to start was by having a somewhat simple Christmas morning.