Traditions Old and New

Merry Christmas Eve!

You always hear people say, “The holidays are so much more fun when you’re a kid.”

I used to think, yeah, they’re totally right. The innocence. The excitement and vulnerability when making sure you went to bed on Christmas Eve in time for Santa to deliver your presents. Waking up in the middle of the night and wondering if he had come to your house already or not. Did you hear that? Maybe it was a reindeer hoof on the roof. Will he bring me everything I asked for? Imaginations running wild. Waking your parents well before sunrise to rush downstairs and see what awaits. Playing with new toys and lying around the house watching movies all day. No real responsibilities, but to just enjoy the holiday and everything it has to offer.

Now that I’m a mom of two I am beginning to disagree. The new statement should be, “The holidays are much more fun when you’re seeing everything through the eyes of a child.” If you have children of your own, then you will totally understand this. It’s like the joy of all things Christmas related has been taken to a whole new level. You can take your excitement for the season and multiply that by ten. Things you thought brought you happiness before will certainly be different. When Christmas is seen through the eyes of a child it becomes magical. It’s almost like reliving your childhood, but better.

This is Stella’s fourth Christmas and Scarlett’s second. Scarlett doesn’t quite know that one day is any different from the next yet, but that doesn’t stop her from enjoying every bit of it. Stella, on the other hand, she has caught on to the Christmas spirit and has run with it. We have been able to honor old traditions and even begin some new ones. Honestly, I’m not sure which makes me happier; Showing Stella all the things I did as a child or trying new things that are something she will remember forever.

Growing up, my sister and I did the same things, the same way, every year. The weekend before Christmas was spent with my mom’s family in Lexington. Christmas Eve was spent making the trip back to Lexington to be with my dad’s family. My favorite memory during this is the hours spent in the car jamming to Christmas music. Mariah Carey’s cd to be exact. Christmas morning we would wake up at my dad’s house and the afternoon was spent with our mom. Our holiday looked like this for many years. You didn’t even have to ask what it was going to look like, we just knew exactly where we would be and when. I loved the certainty of it all. To me that was Christmas and I believed making changes would’ve made it feel less Christmassy.

There will always be several things I do or see that give me that feeling. Visiting my Gran’s house on Christmas Eve was spent stuffing our faces, opening presents, and watching the only movie she owned… Home Alone 2. We would all crack up at the part, “Wow, what a hole.” Sometimes we would even rewind it and watch that part again. Gran also had several of those ceramic, light up Christmas trees. I used to think they were so old school and a little bit ugly. I don’t know if my style has changed or I’m reaching for that little bit of [old Christmas] in my life, but I searched many stores this year to find the right tree (pictured). Walking past the Hallmark store, I was stopped in my tracks, it was perfect. I was drawn right in and found myself explaining to the clerk who checked me out just why that tree was so special to me.

Fast forward to today. Christmastime doesn’t look exactly like it used to. Christmas Eve is no longer spent at my Gran’s house. It’s not even spent with my side of the family. My sister and her husband live in Chicago, where she is now a nurse, who will be working this Christmas day (So send her some extra love this year). We cram our Lexington family trip all in one weekend before the big day and now Kyle and I can focus on the girls and the new traditions we have started.

This was our first year to have an “Elf on the Shelf.” Remembering to move her every night was a challenge and Stella naming her “Sarah” was a bit awkward. Every morning, I’m not kidding, every morning when Stella’s feet hit the floor she would start searching for Sarah to see what she was up to. That alone was worth the hassle. We started an advent calendar with Hershey kisses for the girls each day. Pretty sure that one is Scarlett’s favorite. She’s an eater. Ha! Home Alone (movies 1, 2, & 3) has been watched at least 35265 times this month. Stella is actually obsessed and I’m okay with it. We have baked and decorated countless amounts of cookies. Made a gingerbread house and iced a Gingerbread man. Eating most of the candy along the way.   Daddy seems to think Santa would prefer mommy’s special chocolate chip cookies, so that is what we will make! Christmas Eve is now a day spent at home, baking cookies for Santa and going to the early Christmas service at church, and ending the night with Kyle’s family. We will not be rushing around to fit everything in and with that I am content.

So while I do believe the spirit of Christmas is magical as a child, I also think there’s something incredible to be said about watching your children grow older and experience the magic. Traditions are not as they were when I was a child, but instead they’re a mixture of old and new. Opening up to the idea of change for the holidays hasn’t made it feel less Christmassy. Instead, I am filled with a sense of pure joy as I experience Christmas with this little family of my own. Some day the girls will look back on their childhood and want to continue these very traditions we’ve started. It’s just the way life goes. Old is good and New is even better.

Wish you all a Very Merry Christmas!

XO

Sarah