After dinner, Chad read the Christmas story from the bible while the kids acted it out.
Mary and Joseph with baby Jesus:
Shepherds abiding their flocks:
And lo, and angel:
We had a wild beast in our Christmas story. Sarah has taken to biting. Not good.
Eventually, the shepherds made it to the manger and admired the baby. The 'wild beast' actually ripped the baby Jesus from the manger. I guess she wanted to play with the doll.
Then we cleaned up, had prayer and sent them off to bed. They were threatened with their lives if they came out of bed. We'd already told them that IF (when...we're not so clueless) they got up, they were not allowed to do anything but look. And they couldn't wake us up before 6 AM.
It took us about 2 hours to get to bed. We spent an hour setting up a train system. Then we had to stuff stockings and put Santa's gifts out. We were in bed by midnight, after everything was prepared and we got ourselves ready for bed.
I don't really know when the kids got up to peek, but Daniel said it was right after Chad checked in on them before we went to sleep. I did hear them in the living room right before 6 AM. They watched the clock and as soon as it turned to the magical number, they raced to our room to wake us up.
I had to wake up Sarah. She didn't handle the transition well.
The train was a big hit. I'd found someone selling it and talked them down, included a little barter and cash and now have hours of entertainment that fills more than 3 storage bins. (All I was really looking for was a small train set for Joseph, but she made me a WAY better deal on the whole set than she was offering for just a little train.)
While the kids played, I made cinnamon rolls. (Here is what I look like when I'm rudely awoken before dawn!)
After breakfast, the trains were cleaned up and we dumped out our stockings. Sarah loved the phone she found in hers.
Then it was time for presents. Grandma made the boys bathrobes. Daniel really liked his.
The girls got dresses from Grandma. Sarah's came with a little pair of panties. She immediately put them on!
It didn't take this little elf very long to get the hang of opening presents. Eventually, she just opened whatever package she got a hold of. This one happens to really belong to her.
And after a while, the morning got to be too much for Sarah. We found her under the couch. Every girl needs her time out!
The girls got a little sewing machine from Santa. Actually, Santa had been given this thing a few years back and pulled it out for the girls this year. It has been decided that Santa was a little cheap because the machine really doesn't work.
It was a good day and the kids were grateful for what they received. They each gave a coupon for service to every member of the family (excluding Sarah) and some of those have already been redeemed!
I work on Christmas throughout the year and everything under the tree is paid for. If it's something we'd likely get the kids anyway, and it can wait until Christmas (i.e., new clothes) we wrap it up and put it under the tree. If it can be added to something they already have, it will likely be a Christmas present. The kids wrap up some of their things for each other and put them under the tree. Santa doesn't wrap his gifts. Stockings have snacks and toothbrushes and band-aids, etc. (This year, there was no candy...for obvious reasons.) I make a few things. And there are a few new toys.
Even after I've said "No" to the kids all season, there are still a lot of things under the tree. So I wonder, should I make less of a big deal during Christmas and just give these things to them during the year? I don't want my kids thinking they're going to get stuff all the time. Do I consolidate more and have them open fewer packages, but with more inside? I feel like Christmas morning is a little too greedy. But I don't feel like we've spent too much money, just given too much.
I read somewhere that one family has a standard for Christmas. Each child gets 4 gifts: want it, need it, wear it, read it. The kids know what to expect and there are no fights (or so they say!). I think that's a great idea. I don't know if I can stream line everything quite so neatly, but it's a good start.
And while I was contemplating the guilt that I always seem to feel when I'm buying Christmas presents for my kids, I came to a liberating decision. Some people may not agree with me. I'm OK with that. What I decided is this:
There are two kinds of Christmas, and they are both good.
The first Christmas is the celebration of the birth of Christ. To me, there is very little about modern Christmas that really supports this kind of Christmas. Hymns, scripture and testimony are all that are needed to celebrate and teach this Christmas. And really, it should be done all year.
The second Christmas is the merry kind. The glitter, the excitement, the gift giving, the carols, the treats, the stockings and Santa. This is a wonderful time of year to celebrate our loved ones, show them what they mean to us and indulge just a little. Peanut Brittle has nothing to do with Christ, but it's a very important part of merry Christmas!
And so, I will enjoy the merry kind of Christmas along with the birth of Christ. And I won't feel guilty when I'm rushing around delivering gifts that I'm not thinking of the birth of the Savior. But I will use the extra reminder to be grateful for the humble birth that leads to the life of Christ and what it should mean in my life...all year long.
No comments:
Post a Comment