It's Christmas morning, the day we remember and celebrate our dear Saviour's birth. The alarm blares out an hour before any of the roosters roosting in the stable with the holy Babe would have dared to crow. You drag yourself out of bed and after starting the coffee-maker, setting out food to ready for all the different stops you will make today, you wake up each family member. Are you greeted this important day with, "Merry Christmas, Dear!"? Or, "Merry Christmas, Mommy!"? OR do the noises emanating from your family sound more like something that a bear family roused too early from hibernation would sound like? Makes you wonder if you should have skipped that beautiful candle-light Christmas Eve service last night, doesn't it?
But does it stop there? Oh, no. Once everyone is up and running, the kids dive down the stairs, rip open their presents, quick "thank you's" are passed around, and breakfast is eaten half-way between the kitchen and the car as we all pile in, stowing presents for extended family members (that probably won't be appreciated) and a collection of casserole dishes as we go.
And thus begins the long tour of various family members' homes. What a holiday.
This scenario became far too familiar at our house. Each Christmas morning I would become depressed. Not because of the rush, rush of getting everyone dressed, fed and packages ready; but because I would remember my childhood Christmas memories. We had plenty of time to open and enjoy our presents, play with our new toys, put things together, try on our new oufits, to laugh and...to make memories!
When our oldest was around five years old, my husband and I made the decision that we really did want our children to have their own Christmas memories at their own home! Since then, our family gets up on Christmas Eve morning and we make our own memories. We take our time and open our gifts; we ooo and ahhh and pass around our "thank you's" and hugs and kisses. My husband and I can relax and sip our coffee and watch the girls enjoy their presents while carols play in the background to remind us of our greatest Gift: Emmanuel, God with us.
Christmas 2008
Have any of you modified your Christmas schedule to make your own family memories? Tell us about them!
Blessings from Ohio, Kim Wolf<><
This is exactly what we have done! We used to live in a different state, so our family never saw us on Christmas (Eric was a pastor and couldn't really travel on Christmas). When our kids were 2 and 5, we lived in Ohio for the first time since being married. We saw everyone that Christmas, and it was the most miserable Christmas we ever had. The kids were tired and cranky and barely touched their new things before going from one place to the next (especially since we started in Coshocton and ended in Columbus). Toddler meltdowns are the worst, especially on a holiday when family is watching. We thought it would be great to see everyone on Christmas, but we learned quickly that the sacrifice was too great. Since then, we have spent the past 3 Christmases at home the entire day and told everyone they are welcome to stop by. My parents have stayed over on Christmas Eve all three years, which is a blessing, and my husband's parents stop by for a little while on Christmas morning. It has made us a little unpopular at times, but it is an incredible blessing to our kids and to us to simply enjoy a relaxing, peaceful day at home together. We have time for a slow-paced, Christmas Day devotional. We play with all their new toys and games and usually end up watching a new movie together. We have a traditional Christmas dinner and dessert and simply enjoy being together. Still, I feel a little guilt for not going where we are pretty much expected. It's the people pleaser in me. Thanks for posting this. It was very encouraging to me. This year, my mother-in-law tried to convince us to change our plans and come to her house (with my parents in tow) because the kids are older (they're 5 and 8, not really grown up yet), and we still opted to stay home. I'm so glad we did! It was our best Christmas ever! I can't imagine that we'll be changing this tradition any time soon.
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