Wednesday, December 18, 2013

Santa Santa...Ho Ho Ho!!!

First...I want you to know I have a few new tutorials coming. As well as a post about my latest obsessions, from hair (I totally can't wait to share this one with you!!!) to TV, to book,s to all kinds of other things. I'm pledging to become so much more better (ha ha) at this. What's the point of owning the blog if I'm not going to keep it up? New Years resolution time. 

But for now...let's talk about Christmas.

Husband-Man's family is Jewish. They do not celebrate Christmas. Which is cool because hey, at the holidays no one is complaining that we didn't spend enough time with them. WINNING!!!

I don't have any family to spend Christmas with so no problems there either. For years its just been me, the Husband-Man and the kids. Which is cool. We had traditions. Sushi. Karaoke. Movies. Presents. FUN!

There were a few years we even traveled for Christmas. Let me tell you. Waking up in Disney World was awesome! If you ever get the chance to do it...DO IT!!!

For years though, I have longed for the "traditional" Christmas holiday experience. You know...the one where everyone gathers together at a family members house, usually Grandma's, and everyone spends the day wearing ridiculously horrible Christmas sweaters and drinking egg nog. Inevitably there is an uncle who has a little too much nog and he passes out in the corner. The kids play with their toys on the rug in front of the fire and the adults stand or sit around telling stories of past holidays and laughing and loving each other. Does that even happen? Seriously..if it does please let me know in the comments. I think this is just a fantasy I made up.

I dream of this. 
I yearn for this. 
I love my family so much. I'm so blessed. 
I know that I am. 

But sometimes I just want the hectic insanity that everyone else has. I want to feel a part of a huge family unit. I want to have a grandmother who loves me, buy me socks and underwear and a mom to bake pies and cookies and cakes with. I want to have siblings who are genuinely interested in each other. I want them to love me and each other and be supportive and goofy.

I have none of that. 

But I will. Oh I know I will. 

One day I will be the Grandma. One day it will be my daughter baking cakes with me and my sons laughing and joking and snatching cookies from the cooling racks. One day I will have a hectic Christmas to end all hectic Christmases (seriously...is there a plural for Christmas?). 

One year Husband-Man and I will be so driven crazy by the planning of this event that he will say "Never again!!!" and I will pat his wrinkled and liver spotted hand and say "Yes, dear" and then start planning the next year.

I have to tell you. I have so many fantasies about that day I'm not sure it will ever live up to it when it finally comes. But that's OK. The memories will.

Until then though...I want you to know that I have the most loving and wonderful friends. These are people who adore my family as much as we adore them and their family. I may not have family family, but I sure do have a family of friends. This will be our second year being with them and I am looking forward to it so much. We plan to have Italian food and everyone will be bringing a dish of some sort. I've been designated to bring my fabulous green beans (You want a recipe? Keep coming back to the blog) and I know there is going to be baked ziti. I'm hoping for some canoli. This gathering is going to be epic and fun and full of love and laughter. Exactly as Christmas should be. 

I'm counting down the days.

Until then though, I'm going to leave you with some fun pics of G with Santa and some toy soldiers. Looking at them puts me in the holiday mood. I hope it does the same for you.

G posing with his new "friends" at our Lodge's Kids Christmas Party. He walked into the room and saw them and refused to be parted from them.

He played with them and moved them and carried them.
And refused to let any other kids play with them. They were HIS. He's normally really good at sharing...but not this time.

G on Santa's lap. He didn't cry or get upset. But he didn't want to look at Santa either. 

You can see the anxiety in his little hands though. We tried to prepare him for this Santa visit by showing him pictures of other kids (not crying) on Santa's lap and talking about it with him. It seems to have worked a bit.



In the end though, he was so tired that he decided he and his "Toy Soldier Friends" needed to take a nap. So he grabbed Brudda and made him lay down with him and his "friends" His little hand was patting the soldier on the back to help him get to sleep. Sooooo cute!
What do you long for at Christmas? Quiet? Noise? For it all to be over? For your house to be filled to bursting? 

Do me a favor and have a very Merry Christmas!!! Be safe! Be loving! Be filled with grace.

Smooches!
Shelley



1 comment:

Lisa Davis said...

This, without a doubt, will be the most difficult Christmas I have ever had. I wanted to close my eyes and when I opened them, it be over. But that won't happen. Nor would it change the unthinkable tragedy my family has gone through. What will happen is that I will spend Christmas night with family and friends that have become family and I will know love beyond the heartbreak. You are family, ShellBell! <3