There
are four days until Christmas, and you know how many people in this
house are freaking out? Not one. Not a single one. Mainly because half
of us are under the age of 2 and don't know what Christmas is.
It's
hard when you're a mom of young ones not to try to make all the family
traditions in the first thirty seconds your kids are alive.
I'm reminding myself that we don't have to do it all before either of the kids are two years old. It will come.
I
remember so fondly how special my parents made Christmas. We ate chili
for supper on Christmas Eve accompanied by plates of crackers and pickles and
veggies, and then got dressed in itchy matching dresses our mom made us
(staying up until midnight for nights on end, I imagine) for the
Christmas pageant at church.
After
it was over, we would nibble on appetizers and try to con our dad into
playing a board or card game with us. Then it was off to bed.
When
we were older, my sisters and their husbands slept in the upstairs
bedrooms, and I would sleep on the couch. The last thing I'd see every
Christmas Eve -- through blind as a bat glass-less eyes -- was the white
blur of our mom's beautiful vintage Christmas tree. The glimmering lights -- combined with the smell of fresh pine -- seemed just a little magical in our cozy farmhouse.
In the morning, when
we were still young, our dad would announce up the stairs that it was
Christmas and time to get up. I was out of bed with teeth brushed in no
time flat, sitting on the floor by the tree while Mom made coffee and
Dad passed out blankets to keep warm while the house heated up.
My
middle sister -- God bless her -- took what seemed like HOURS to get
ready. It was basically Christmas of the next year by the time she had
her contacts in and hair done.
In the meantime, Mom would bring in a tray of cocoa and coffee and muffins and stollen for us to eat while opening presents.
And
then, like little pagans, we would skip church (Lord, look on us in
mercy.) and spend the morning opening presents, taking turns so that we
could all see what each person had received.
After
presents were opened, we cleared away the wrapping paper while Mom
cooked a feast -- tantamount to a Cracker Barrel breakfast -- replete
with biscuits and gravy and bacon and eggs and grits.
They are sweet memories, and they're etched in my mind as I think on how to make Christmas special for my own children.
So
as my husband and I start our own family traditions, we, too, will get
up Christmas morning and open presents. Then we'll put the kids in itchy
clothes and take them to church, where they will rejoice in Christ's
birth, the one who came as a lowly child Himself.
Next
year perhaps, we'll come home and eat our own massive brunch, take
naps, open a few more presents, and then gather around the piano to sing
Christmas hymns, where my farmer will undoubtedly do his best to make
everyone else laugh at some point in the singing.
We
will gather with family to eat too much, talk vigorously about the
beauty of our faith and confession, and do our best to give at least one
horrendous gift that causes everyone else to shrink back in horror and
then collapse in giggles.
We
will not panic about everything being perfect or getting done in time.
We will simply receive: from our Savior and from one another.
And
it's my hope that while my Christmas tree is not as pretty as my mom's
and while I may will never make stollen (because honestly I never liked the taste
of it...sorry, Mom.), my children will know that Christ came for us . . .
and that is the only part of Christmas that matters -- itchy clothes, Christmas tree lights and all.
Merry Christmas!
ReplyDeleteSame to you and your sweet family! (And since the 12 Days of Christmas don't end until Saturday, I'm technically not late. :) )
DeleteYou are so right.
ReplyDeleteExcept about the stollen.
I love that all of you have and are making your own traditions and that you include loving and serving your neighbor in need.
Thank you for this grace-filled reminder. With a 3.5 year old, 20 month and expecting again, I want to make Christmas just like my PK self remembers. But then, I look at my little ones and realize we need to celebrate Jesus' birth in a way we can all enjoy and appreciate. No morning service today, but we'll stay up for the children's service tonight. And open presents in the morning before more church. Store bought cinnamon rolls this morning, and maybe I'll get homemade monkey bread made tomorrow? We shall see. Either way, it will be a joyful Christmas here...and I pray the same for you and your family!
ReplyDeleteCongratulations, girl! That's so exciting. And something tells me your husband and little ones will look back on those cinnamon rolls and time with you and in Christ's Word with just as much fondness as you look back on your own Christmas. :)
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