Christmas Memories...

Today I was thinking about some of my Christmas memories and how very much they have changed over the years...

For most of my childhood, each and every Christmas arrived pretty much on schedule like a cookie cutter version of the last one. I always knew exactly what to depend on and what to expect...

• Laying under the tree on Christmas eve, my head resting amongst the packages and staring up through the branches at those beautiful frosted lights above, pine needles falling in my face. It was magical.
  
  
• Trying to get to sleep at night but never succeeding, not realizing that my mom who would stay up all night wrapping presents would probably have given anything to be in my place.
  
  
• Never understanding how, even though I hadn't slept a wink all night, there was always that pajama and slippers present lying on the floor next to my bed the next morning. Again, like magic.
  
  
• That really sick feeling I would always have in my stomach while waiting to go into the living room and my sisters and I all being allowed to open just one additional present our rooms in order to give mom time to put on all the finishing touches.
  
  
• Finally being allowed to open the door and the next hour of saying "Oh my goodness, Oh my GOODNESS!" over and over again at all the many treasures I would discover.
  
  
• Opening presents until 2:00 in the afternoon...
  
  
• Choosing my own corner of the room in which to pile my loot...
  
  
• Seperating the wrapping paper from the ribbons/tags/boxes/etc and putting them each in their appropriate recyclable place...
  
  
• A dining room table covered end to end with goodies... jelly fruit, chocolate covered cherries, nuts of every kind... See's Candy!
  

Fast forward to Christmas's many years later...

Pretty much exactly the same scenario with the added traditions of "The Nutcracker"... Amy Grant and Slim Jims... and that this time I was the mom and the one staying up all night wrapping presents... plus I've always been a little less stringent about ripping the wrapping paper....

Anyway, I just really miss all of that for some reason, even while sometimes majorly questioning it...

But now with my kids both on their own and celebrating with their own families (in, thankfully, much more moderate ways!) even with the small gifts being shipped back and forth I realize how truly unimportant the gifts really are and probably ever were! Because looking back, when I squeeze my eyes shut and really try to selectively choose my best Christmas memories, they always come back to the images of just being together with my family. Most of the other gifts have unfortunately long since been sent off to Goodwill or D.I.... and some, even more unfortunately, to the trash.

I would, one year, like to spend a Christmas with just my family and without any presents at all. I think...



I Photoshopped that earlier today but after writing this I think I've had a major change of heart. Because afterall, Skype is a miraculous and perfectly FREE and selfless gift that somebody somehow gave to us! But I'm just not exactly sure who... Mike maybe?

At any rate, I think I just really need to start all over again from scratch on this Christmas thing...