When I was a kid, it meant three things:
- My dad was using all of his vacation time at work so we could be together as a family,
- We had been practicing at school for weeks preparing for the Christmas Eve service, and
- We were going to eat a lot of food.
My brother and I believed in Santa, but Santa and the presents were never that big a deal to us. (Don’t be fooled, we did love the presents, they just weren’t our top priority.) We loved to watch Christmas movies like “Santa Clause is Coming to Town” and “Rudolph the Rednosed Reindeer” in front of the popping fire, while cracking peanuts open and eating oranges. Sometimes there’d be popcorn and hot chocolate.
When my brother and I went to a private elementary school, we always participated in the Christmas Eve service. Until recently, I could still sing the first verse of “Silent Night” in German.
Now, Christmas looks different.
We tried to watch “Santa Clause is Coming to Town” as a family, but we had to turn it off because our daughter got scared. (We’ll try again next year.)
We can’t serve peanuts yet because our son would choke on them. (We do all love our oranges!)
We can’t have a fire in the fireplace because… well, long story. Let’s just say we’d probably be smoked out of our house.
And there is definitely no ‘silent night,’ or casual, slow start to the morning. With two young children (the older of which very much believes in and is very much excited for Santa,) it will be a fun, vibrant morning.
It’s different, but it’s fun. It’s my new life, and I love the adventure it brings. I love my family.
Last Christmas was very hard because of the pandemic. Gathering with family was difficult. (If you want to read about what we did or find creative ideas to connect with your own family when distance or sickness keeps your seperated, check out my book on Kindle, Creative in COVID here.)
This year, I am going to cherish every moment with my family even more. I encourage you to do the same. Hopefully next year, things will be even better.
Thank you for following my journey on here. I appreciate you so much!
And thank you for letting me take a pause from “The Mirror.” Don’t worry – it will be back after the holidays! (There will be no post next week.)
Have a very merry Christmas, and happy holidays!
~ Caitlin