I absolutely LOVE this time of year. It seems that no matter what is going on in my life, I can always get into the Christmas spirit. The mood, the songs, the crazy shoppers, the Christmas displays, food, family...I love it all. Even the cranky shoppers to whom I can’t resist but say, “And a very Merry Christmas to you, too!”.
Decorating the tree is one of the highlights for me. Digging the dusty boxes out of our crowded garage and dragging them into the house and praying that a spider didn’t somehow get into one of my boxes...what a great time. It’s almost like receiving a present every time I open those boxes and find an ornament or a decoration of sorts that I had completely forgotten about, or that I treasure deeply.
Probably the best part is watching my boys unwrap their presents. They wait and wait for that day, hoping that they’ll get what they put on their wish list. My heart swells and my eyes fill with tears as I watch them tear into their gifts with great enthusiasm. Gift-giving, for me, is an incredible feeling. It doesn’t matter the gift, it could be a can of silly string or baked goods or even just a card. Just seeing the smile on someone’s face is a gift in itself.
I remember the anticipation of Christmas morning as a child. However, I was an impatient child. It’s not that I needed to have my gift sooner, I just needed to know what I was getting. It killed me to look at those presents and not know what was under that wrapping paper.
I was a big-time snooper. I couldn’t wait for my parents to leave so I could go snooping. One year I even went as far as to unwrap one of my gifts and re-wrap it before my parents returned. I even remember the gift. It was a pair of roller skates. They weren’t the kind that you put on and laced up. These were hard plastic ones that fit over your shoe and buckled.
Another year, I remember my brother and I looking into the back of the truck (which had a topper) and seeing bicycles! We were so excited! The hardest part of the snooping was not letting on that you knew what you were getting. I think I slipped about seeing those bikes, and then tried to make it sound like it was a dream that I had had.
I tell my kids not to snoop. I tell them that if they snoop, I will know, and I will take everything back to the store. Now that’s Christmas spirit for ya, huh? It seems to work though. Either they don’t snoop or they’re really good at not letting on.
What’s your favorite part of Christmas? What are some of your favorite memories as a child?
HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!!
SIS Bren
Decorating the tree is one of the highlights for me. Digging the dusty boxes out of our crowded garage and dragging them into the house and praying that a spider didn’t somehow get into one of my boxes...what a great time. It’s almost like receiving a present every time I open those boxes and find an ornament or a decoration of sorts that I had completely forgotten about, or that I treasure deeply.
Probably the best part is watching my boys unwrap their presents. They wait and wait for that day, hoping that they’ll get what they put on their wish list. My heart swells and my eyes fill with tears as I watch them tear into their gifts with great enthusiasm. Gift-giving, for me, is an incredible feeling. It doesn’t matter the gift, it could be a can of silly string or baked goods or even just a card. Just seeing the smile on someone’s face is a gift in itself.
I remember the anticipation of Christmas morning as a child. However, I was an impatient child. It’s not that I needed to have my gift sooner, I just needed to know what I was getting. It killed me to look at those presents and not know what was under that wrapping paper.
I was a big-time snooper. I couldn’t wait for my parents to leave so I could go snooping. One year I even went as far as to unwrap one of my gifts and re-wrap it before my parents returned. I even remember the gift. It was a pair of roller skates. They weren’t the kind that you put on and laced up. These were hard plastic ones that fit over your shoe and buckled.
Another year, I remember my brother and I looking into the back of the truck (which had a topper) and seeing bicycles! We were so excited! The hardest part of the snooping was not letting on that you knew what you were getting. I think I slipped about seeing those bikes, and then tried to make it sound like it was a dream that I had had.
I tell my kids not to snoop. I tell them that if they snoop, I will know, and I will take everything back to the store. Now that’s Christmas spirit for ya, huh? It seems to work though. Either they don’t snoop or they’re really good at not letting on.
What’s your favorite part of Christmas? What are some of your favorite memories as a child?
HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!!
SIS Bren
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9 comments:
Hi Brenda,
I always think a spider is going to crawl out of the boxes as well. I hate spiders!
This year the girls decorated the tree on their own. There are several candy canes hanging in one spot and alot of bare places on the tree. I don't have the heart to fix it because they had a great time doing it.
My favotite part of Christmas is going for a drive to look at all the pretty Cristmas displays and lights.
I love Christmas too. Don't care much for the cold weather that comes with it, but Brenda doesn't have to worry much about that!
My favorite part is watching the girls open their gifts. I also love how pretty the house looks all decorated.
What great memories, Brenda. And how wonderful that you still experience the same kind of excitement and joy through the boys. Not having kids myself, and not being around them on Christmas, deprives me of that special element. However, I still get that special Christmas-y feeling when I get to lose myself in any Christmas movie. I also enjoy spending Christmas with my husband and his family. It's always very festive. Lots of food, pretty decorations, and lots of laughs.
Happy Holidays!
SIS Beth
B.J.
I let the boys do most of the tree-decorating too. I always let them put theirs up first and then I put mine. It's funny how they hang certain things in clumps.
I love going for drives and looking at the lights too. We have some pretty remarkable Christmas displays around here. Today, Jerry and I actually built a house for this guy to put animated characters in. He is not only decorating his house and yard, but both of his neighbors too!
SIS Bren
Brandy,
I absolutely enjoy my holiday season in the warm weather. My only wish is that for Christmas Eve and Christmas morning ONLY, it would drop into the 30's. But by noon on Christmas day, it had better be back to a balmy 80!
SIS Bren
HEY! I posted a reply to Brandy and blogger ate it. I'm not going to repeat it just yet though, in case it happens to come back somehow.
SIS Bren
AH-HA! There it is! I had a feeling my reply to Brandy would show up.
Beth,
I've already watched almost all of the Christmas movies I have. I've seen a few of them 3 times each already. You know the ones I mean: A Christmas Story, It's a Wonderful Life, Miracle on 34th Street! I never grow tired of them.
I've had the honor of spending time with your in-laws a few times. They are gracious and generous and lots of fun to be with! You couldn't ask for a better group of people to enjoy the holidays with!
SIS Bren
Hola!
My favorite part is the lights and the music. To be honest, I don't care for the gift portion of Christmas. Too much pressure. Too much greed. I'm not a scrooge at all, I do partake in the gift giving events but I find them stressful.
I do remember my favorite gift growing up. Mother got me a NY Giants winter coat and I almost fell off the couch. I loved that coat. I was a huge Giants fan. Now I'm all about Tampa and Indianapolis, but that time Mother nailed it and I will always remember that day.
SIS Barb
My fave part probably would be the hope that the new year will be better than the old one. Happy holidays to everyone!
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