Making Christmas Magical (or Not)
This Christmas is unlike any Christmas I’ve ever experienced before. This year, I will see Christmas through the eyes of my son, which is truly remarkable and something I will not take for granted.
Yet, I also do not want to pretend that it will be picture perfect.
For starters, we are doing the insane family juggle that we’ve boycotted for the last 5 years. Our crazy starts on December 23 and doesn’t end until January 1, and we return to work full time on January 2. I’m dreading nearly every single second of driving hundreds of kilometers late at night from one house to another, hosting dinners, preparing meals, cleaning bedding between different guests, managing a naptime/bedtime schedule, etc. I truthfully think I am going to need a vacation to recover from Christmas this year, and I honestly have no idea what we were thinking when we agreed to a number of things this year.
Also, since my mom and sister died, Christmas just hasn’t been the same. This year, like every year, they will be on my mind.
Photo Source: Adapted from Office.com Clip Art
I found a set of beautiful family stockings. You know, the cute hand-made looking stockings that will have everyone’s names on them – Mom, Dad and Baby MPB. I asked a friend to put the names on them about a month ago, since I’m not artistically inclined. She agreed at the time, but now has told me she wont have them to us before Christmas and she lives too far away for me to get them back from her plain before Christmas. I’m totally disappointed!
Photo Source: Adapted from Office.com Clip Art
Oh, and let’s not forget that we spent yesterday building and wrapping Baby MPB’s Christmas gifts, and that was just an argument waiting to happen. Not really sure what the cause was, but I felt like Mr. MPB didn’t want help and he was complaining the entire time – I’m told there is no point on wrapping Baby MPB’s gifts because he’s too little to get it. Yet, when I explained that I want his first Christmas to have a sense of magic and I really want photo of him with the Christmas tree on his first ever Christmas morning, it didn’t seem to matter. Eventually we just built/wrapped in silence because we simply weren’t about to agree.
Heck, even just putting up the Christmas tree this year felt like a chore. I did almost all of it on my own while Mr. MPB watched TV. In fact, at one
Photo Source: Adapted from Office.com Clip Art
point he wasn’t even helping me even find the Christmas stuff in the storage room so I stopped for the night and just gave up until he’d show a bit of interest. The next night we decorated, but never even bothered to decorate the back part of the tree that no-one really sees (Mr. MPB’s idea, not mine, and I just didn’t care anymore).
So, needless to say, preparing for Baby MPB’s first Christmas has been less then the ideal vision I’ve held in my head for so many years.
And, I guess what I’m saying is that I’m trying to make Christmas magical this year, but it’s still not perfect. And, I’m mostly okay with that. More then anything, I just want Baby MPB to be loved and to enjoy Christmas. And I realize that even if the back of the tree isn’t decorated and the MPB adults couldn’t get along while wrapping presents, Baby MPB is still going to have a great Christmas and I will get to watch his eyes light up as he plays with his new toys (or boxes and wrapping paper). And even if the insane family juggle has the MPB adults wanting to cancel Christmas, Baby MPB is going to be surrounded by family and friends, he is going to be loved by everyone. And that really is all that matters.
And maybe, I’ll just have to have an extra Candy Cane martini when the Christmas crazy gets to be too much!
Photo Source: Office.com Clip Art
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Love to see the excitement on their faces when they open their gifts!!
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Yup, the excitement on his face will be the best part!
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Yup!
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Why wouldn’t you wrap baby MPB’s gifts? If he’s anything like S, playing with the paper is going to be his favorite part of the whole shebang! 🙂
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Couldn’t agree with you more!!! 😊
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I’ve found in my life that the greatest source of unhappiness for me has been unmet expectations or things not measuring up to the picture I had in my mind. I seem unable to NOT to have expectations (I’m a thinker and a planner), so it’s a dilemma.
For our sons’ first Christmas, they were 11 months old. They didn’t really understand how to unwrap their gifts (or why we wanted them to), but they loved the Christmas tree and lights and playing with the boxes. 😉
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I am so much like you! I am not able to let go of expectations 99% of the time. But I am working really hard to remember what matters about this Christmas – playing with boxes and wrapping paper with family and friends.
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Friend, Charlotte’s first Christmas was EASILY the worst Christmas in my 35 years of Christmases. I remember at one point we were driving to my family’s Christmas dinner and I was sobbing as Catch threw out the D word and Charlotte cried in the back seat. AWFUL. We fought about every last detail. Things that were SO important to me were totally not important to her. We were spread too thin. Not getting enough sleep. Charlotte was nursing every 45 minutes (and her first tooth broke through on Dec 26th). I wanted the magical first Christmas and instead, all I got was a load of NOPE from the universe. Fortunately, the pictures tell a completely different story. This year, things are COMPLETELY different. Catch is all about the holiday magic. Charlotte (kind of) appreciates our efforts, and things are just generally happier and less stressful–I attribute a good chunk of that to having the pressure of the magical first Christmas behind us. Seriously–who can live up to those expectations? We are only human, mama! Get through this one–the pictures will be magical regardless of the actual situation. Next year the magic will find you organically!
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Oh my friend, thank you for this reminder! I am going to try to let go of the pressure and just enjoy this Christmas for whatever it will be. And when I’m stressed I’m just going to try to remember that there is always next year! 😊
Wishing your beautiful family a wonderful Christmas!! 🎄
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I M so envious of your post. As new canadians we have no family here. All the people I can familt in Canada sleep in the same room as me! So any festivity, we long for the chaos that comes with it.
Have fun! Dont have any expectations, go with the flow!
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Thank you for this reminder that even though I grouch a lot about our family, we are fortunate to be able to see then pretty easily. Sending your family love this holiday season!
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Sorry things aren’t going the way you dreamed they would. To be fair, I always decorate the tree pretty much on my own because I’m a control freak and I also love Christmas way more than B does lol! I also never decorate the back of the tree, because I can’t get back there to enjoy the ornaments. Lastly, none of C’s presents are wrapped, except her clothes from us that are in a gift bag to keep them clean, because she’s far too small to even attempt to unwrap anything. That all being said…YOUR baby IS big enough to unwrap, even if he doesn’t understand, so I’m completely with you on that one! I actually feel kinda sad that we didn’t wrap her stuff. We do have things from my mom for her to unwrap though, so it won’t be a complete loss.
As for the chaos…that’s always been what I kinda love about the holidays. Yes it’s hectic and stressful and you have to see some people that you really would rather avoid…but it’s about family, and that’s just part of the deal. Just think how much fun baby will have seeing everyone and being doted on, and seeing new places and getting new toys to play with. Hopefully you’ll be able to look back on the memories you make this Christmas with joy and happiness, and forget the stress that came with it!!
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We also struggled to decorate this year but had to do it for Adrian! He is so tiny so we just got him three small gifts so we can have some memories of the gift opening portion of the holiday. He is intrigued by the tree but mostly ignores it. He’s just still so little! I bet Baby MBP has a lot of fun! He might not remember but I bet he really enjoys the festivities! Aww, so exciting!
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Ya Baby MPB is old enough now to be in LOVE with the tree. We have the baby cage set up around the tree and no decorations within Baby MPB’s arms reach. Needless to say the tree looks a bit funny! But I am so excited for Christmas morning when we move the cage for at least a photo or two! As for gifts, we are just using Christmas as an excuse to get a few age appropriate new toy and some new books. Nothing too over the top. 😊
I hope you have an amazing first christmas with Adrian!
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Thank you! Life is so fun right now! 🎄👏🏻🎄👏🏻
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You’re not alone with the husband who watches you decorate the house. Brian organized the garage for two days while I created the magic, then was upset that I called him on it. “but I was organizing the garage.”. “That was your way of avoiding decorating! I’m not stupid!” Every year…. Every damn year.
Cut yourself some slack. It doesn’t have to be perfect!
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I’m with you! Presents need to be wrapped regardless of age 🙂 I’m sure this Christmas will be magical even if it isn’t perfect x
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It’s so true that expectation is the thief of Joy. And yet, I totally want and aim for the perfect Christmas each year (I anticipate this will get worse once we finally have kids!)…and of course I haven’t had it. But then when I sit back and look at everything, I realize it was perfect in it’s own crazy, exhausting, loud and expensive way. It’s natural to want everything to be magical and wonderful – especially for the very first Christmas of a very wanted and well loved boy! – and I have no doubt you will find the magic and the wonder in everything you do (even if the rest is chaos and leads to excessive alcohol consumption!). Merry Christmas!
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Tell Mr. MPB that I wrapping Annabelle’s gifts and she definitely doesn’t know the difference, lol. I also decorate our tree by myself every year but since I’m cod about it, I guess that’s okay. Next year will probably be the last year I get away with it before it becomes a family event. I hope all the craziness goes as smoothly as it can. Wishing the MPB family a very Merry Christmas!!!!
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It certainly is the time of year for a candy cane martini. I’ve been scrambling trying to get things together before we see family. I pray that things slow down a bit and that you are able to enjoy your time visiting.
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