Holidays are always a big deal around our house. The kids get excited; Jeremy & I get excited. And this year is no exception! Logan is old enough to really enjoy Christmas- so he and Chloe are besides themselves with excitement. So far I think we have done a great job of showing the kids that Christmas is not about gifts, although that is a fun part. Around Halloween I started asking myself, "If there were no presents at Christmas, would my kids still be excited about holidays?" And the answer has been YES! Don't get me wrong, we are having presents at Christmas. I just don't want that to be the main focus or their only memories. We have had weeks of parties, activities, special nights out, baking, decorating and gift/letter making.
This year we had to make a decision about Santa. In the past, Chloe hated him so it wasn't an issue. We just didn't have Santa. But Logan likes the guy and Chloe is now interested because of kids at school. So the verdict in our house...
There is a great book that talks about the fun of Santa and St. Nicholas. The basics of the story is that St. Nicholas was a God-fearing man who gave gifts to orphans and poor families (coins in shoes). He shared God's love in such a great way that we honor his memory each year, now in the form of Santa. Our kids know that Santa is not real but it is fun to pretend- and to keep the secret! I just loved that this explanation allowed for the fun of Santa but still focuses on God's love and the birth of Jesus!!!!
This year we added a second tree. I decorated the one in the front living room and let the kids decorate the one in the family room. It was a big moment in our house. I didn't do any of the kids' tree!!!! The lights are not evenly dispersed, the bulbs have clumps of the same colors, there are gaps, UGH!!! But I made it through and I have not "fixed" any of it. I even took pictures of it (below) as proof that I let everyone else do it :)
No comments:
Post a Comment