I admit it, I bought into the hoopla and got Giggy with the fantasy behind the commercialized monster that is Christmas. I mean it is a little silly these days to get excited about a fat guy in red to break into our house. Usually we try hard to avoid break ins, right?
Now I know well enough that Saint Nicholas {for a great informative site, visit St. Nicholas Center}was a man of God hoping to spread love and cheer to the less fortunate who were suffering to provide the bare necessities to their families during a time of great religious persecution, but I also know the 2k Santa Claus that sits in the shopping malls and offers to listen to kids' deepest desires for the low, low cost of $20 for a {used to be Polaroid, now digital insta-print} photo. Mommy refuses to pay this fee, so I had planned to take the kids to a school sponsored Breakfast with Santa... but alas, it was canceled on Code Red and vacation began three days early.
But we needed (yes, we really needed) photos of the kids caught in the merriement, so I took these:
I will not succumb to the holiday hype. At least that is what I tell myself each year. Nevertheless, Chi is a modern child, and kids are conossuers of commercialism. She refused to share with me what she wanted from Santa, saying only that he could get her whatever he thought she needed. I confessed to her that I hoped he picked out something that would bring the family together. She prepared the cookies (okay, MommyR doesn't really bake, so we used Graham Crackers) and set out the "Magic Reindeer Food" for the sleigh pullers. Initially, she also put out a cup of milk, but Mommy insisted that sitting milk out of the fridge for any length of time might make Santa ill. This appeared in the place of the cup:
We pushed Chi to bed at 9 p.m. ... she peeked in at us at 10:30 p.m. and mentioned sleep was not coming easy. I crashed by 11 p.m. and woke early (to the dumb alarm - hello Friday - at 5 a.m. and the second at 6 a.m.) and Chi was on the floor in my room wrapped in her blanket. I forced coaxed her to stay in the room until 8 a.m. and she waited [im]patiently for the clock to change.
On Christmas morning, we donned our hats and flashed a few grins while opening our gifts.
Now I know well enough that Saint Nicholas {for a great informative site, visit St. Nicholas Center}was a man of God hoping to spread love and cheer to the less fortunate who were suffering to provide the bare necessities to their families during a time of great religious persecution, but I also know the 2k Santa Claus that sits in the shopping malls and offers to listen to kids' deepest desires for the low, low cost of $20 for a {used to be Polaroid, now digital insta-print} photo. Mommy refuses to pay this fee, so I had planned to take the kids to a school sponsored Breakfast with Santa... but alas, it was canceled on Code Red and vacation began three days early.
But we needed (yes, we really needed) photos of the kids caught in the merriement, so I took these:
I will not succumb to the holiday hype. At least that is what I tell myself each year. Nevertheless, Chi is a modern child, and kids are conossuers of commercialism. She refused to share with me what she wanted from Santa, saying only that he could get her whatever he thought she needed. I confessed to her that I hoped he picked out something that would bring the family together. She prepared the cookies (okay, MommyR doesn't really bake, so we used Graham Crackers) and set out the "Magic Reindeer Food" for the sleigh pullers. Initially, she also put out a cup of milk, but Mommy insisted that sitting milk out of the fridge for any length of time might make Santa ill. This appeared in the place of the cup:
We pushed Chi to bed at 9 p.m. ... she peeked in at us at 10:30 p.m. and mentioned sleep was not coming easy. I crashed by 11 p.m. and woke early (to the dumb alarm - hello Friday - at 5 a.m. and the second at 6 a.m.) and Chi was on the floor in my room wrapped in her blanket. I On Christmas morning, we donned our hats and flashed a few grins while opening our gifts.
Commercialized or not, it was a beautiful Christmas. Outside was still white from our birthday blizzard, and the weatherman was wrong about the freezing rain/sleet/messy mix he predicted. (That's more like it, Mr. Meteorologist. I swear, though, you must be in cahoots with the grocery store folk and the dairy people.)
The Santa gifts -- an indoor teepee/tent/tube set up for the kids and a Wii system for the whole family - -were a big hit. The gifts we selected for one another were well-received, as less was truly more: limited funds meant practical gifts that were really wanted and/or needed were chosen instead of the hottest toys and gifts advertised.
And as I sit down at Dad's PC (remember, I killed mine) editing photos of the day, I cannot help but smile. I am reminded daily, and especially on holidays, just how truly blessed we are as a family.
The Santa gifts -- an indoor teepee/tent/tube set up for the kids and a Wii system for the whole family - -were a big hit. The gifts we selected for one another were well-received, as less was truly more: limited funds meant practical gifts that were really wanted and/or needed were chosen instead of the hottest toys and gifts advertised.
And as I sit down at Dad's PC (remember, I killed mine) editing photos of the day, I cannot help but smile. I am reminded daily, and especially on holidays, just how truly blessed we are as a family.
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