Twas the Night before Christmas…
This used to be a very busy day in our house. With five kids and a iron clad desire to maintain the sense of magic and whimsy in the world we would go all out. The day was spent in last minute preparations, one more gift that must be wrapped, a dish that needed to be prepared for the next day, cartoons to watch, music to fill the house and a high tech radar tracking website to see where Santa was and how long until he would be at our home. At eight o clock we would all tuck into the living room and watch a Christmas Story as it began its 24 hour marathon. Cookies and eggnog, hot chocolate and snacks. Laughter and excitement would be oozing out of the house the whole day. Then the kids would write their letter to Santa, prepare a drink and some snacks for him, maybe toss some reindeer food in the yard and then scurry up to a shared bedroom usually for all five on this special night. Blanket forts were set up and giggling and rough housing were expected as the excitement of the day and the next fought with the need to fall asleep. We came up with the idea of a laser maze in the hallway to make sure no kids were sneaking downstairs to catch a peak at the old Elf on his duties. This in turn meant in the morning they would have to slink their way through to get downstairs. Our kids were great sports about it, especially the older ones and each year that spectacle of them laughing and giggling their way through the “lasers” just to get downstairs and see what Santa had left was always a favorite. My wife was the first one awake on Christmas without fail, some years she didn’t sleep, just waited until she couldn’t deal with the excitement anymore and then woke me up. We would make a pot of coffee, kiss in front of the tree and then blast the theme song to Mission Impossible up the stairs to wake the kids and begin the gauntlet.
Now that the kids are all grown and moved out our Christmas Eve is much more sedate. We are lounging in our pajamas, sleeping in and watching our favorite shows. We do Yule these days instead of Christmas Day and that makes for less stress on the single day I think for all our kids and us really. We have leftovers and gifts to play with and all time to simply relax and enjoy the day.
I hope all my kids know how much they are loved, how proud we are of them and how much we enjoy being their parents. Our day is very calm and relaxed today but I still hear their little voices in my memory and can feel the excitement of the day when I think back.
The magic and the whimsy is still in the world and we all saw it with our Grandson, he had such a great day on Yule and I know he will have a great day tomorrow.
I hope anyone reading this has warmth in their lives and keeps the light alive however they see fit. Enjoy your time and pay attention to the details.
Sharing some memories from our family to yours. Happy holidays one and all!
