When I was a younger Mom, there were many traditions outside of the home as well as inside the home. Many of those involved church services and events, such as Choir Cantatas, Christmas plays( which could include both those of your children and those for adults), live manger scenes, Christmas dinners, Christmas Eve services, the lighting of the greens, and many, many other things. This past year has brought change to many of us involving these sorts of outside of the home activities because of the Covid pandemic and Christmas for many just doesn’t look the same as it did in years past.
When my kids were younger, I started thinking about what kinds of traditions I might want to incorporate into our holiday season. One day while riding around in my car, I heard a radio station asking people what their favorite family traditions were. I took to heart some of them and initiated them myself in my own home. Traditions are a fun way to install some great memories and can be used to bring the family back together after your kids grow up to experience them over and over again.
One tradition I started that I heard someone else participated in was putting the kids pictures with Santa out on display every year. Another tradition was to keep all of the ornaments the kids made in school and at church and use them to decorate the tree every year. Also, when we decorated the tree, we would drink hot chocolate and listen to The Chipmunks sing Christmas songs.
When grand kids came along, I started making handmade Christmas stockings while we were waiting for their birth and gave them to their parents when they were born. When my kids married, I made stockings for their wives that I hang on my mantle every year for Christmas. I don’t have stockings at my home for my grand kids. I tell their parents filling their kid’s stockings is their job, however, I do fill my son’s stockings and their wive’s stockings every year so they can still have the experience of some of the magic of a surprise in a stocking just like they did when they were little kids. The grand kids get to decorate a cake for Jesus’s birthday every year. I give them little cakes and bottles of sprinkles, and a plastic knife to put frosting on them. Then we put candles in them and sing the birthday song to Jesus before we blow our candles out. These are just some of things we have done in the past.
Now as I place the old Santa photos out, even the grand kids like to look at their parents screaming in the pictures as babies. On occasion, I will catch them just staring and looking at them. We laugh at some of the ornaments the kids made as we place them on the tree. We brag about the wonderful hot chocolate that my Mother-in-law makes and we tell her no one would ever be able to replace the love she seems to be able to put into each of the cups because the taste is so good. The grand kids make messes while decorating their cakes and sometimes they eat them and sometimes they don’t. The point of all of it is getting to spend time with each other and sharing a memorable experience that will be looked back on for years to come.
Sometimes the expectancy of the traditions can become a burden to many. If you are not careful, you can find yourself being overwhelmed with trying to fit all of these activities into the season before it’s end. This year, being quarantined, I have watched many Hallmark Christmas movies and even in those I have heard many of the characters mention how strressed they are with getting everything done that is on their lists. In real life I have heard people state how they are so exhausted and stressed by the end of the holiday season. If this is you, realize that it doesn’t have to be that way. While the traditions are sweet and fun, they are not a necessity to make the Christmas season merry and bright.
Last year I bought tiny little trees for each of my five grand kids to decorate with ornament crafts I had bought for us all to do together. We did not have time to do them, however. I did not let it bother me. Instead I packed them up and we did them this year instead. One of the ornaments had 2019 on it instead of 2020. The point wasn’t that it was all perfect. The point was doing it together when it worked for us to do it together.
When your kids get grown and they move out of the house sometimes alterations have to be made depending on what is going on that year. This year we got to do the little trees and the Jesus cakes, but we did not get to decorate the tree together and have hot chocolate. I have two son’s who are Pastors and they need to be with their congregation on Christmas Eve. This meant this year, the only time we could get together to celebrate was on December 11. I came down with the Covid myself, so I was so glad we had already celebrated since I’ve had to isolate myself even more than before when I did not have the virus.
One of the greatest Christmas gifts I’ve given myself is allowing myself to just go with the flow of what is going on with each year and making sure it doesn’t become about all of the activities to the point that I forget it is Jesus’ birth that we truly are celebrating. For the past few years, I have really made myself concentrate on keeping it that way. Last year when I was going through counseling and dealing with some old baggage, I didn’t even put but half of my decorations out because I just felt like it was too much for me emotionally at the time. This year, I put everything out because I felt up to it. Last year, as a family, we also made the decision to draw names so that financially it would not be the burden of trying to come up with the money to afford a gift for everyone in our family because our family is growing and it is just too much. It has been fun drawing the names and finding out who you will be buying for. I have even been accused of fixing the names drawn and it has been a joke every since…..all in fun.
Have you been letting yourself be bogged down by all that you have put on yourself as far as expectations? Maybe this year is the time for realizing and taking stock on what traditions you should hold onto and what traditions you should let go of, understanding that next year it may look totally different and that is okay. Merry Christmas!!
SeasonedMomBlog 