Christmas

We took down the Christmas decorations yesterday. The boxes are all still in the corner, because I know I'll run across odds and ends of holiday stuff for a few more days.

Next year, I'm doing a few things differently. I've been disappointed the last few Christmases, and I think I figured out part of what's behind it. We don't have any real holiday traditions, routines, or whatever you want to call them. I hung two strands of lights a couple weeks before Christmas, and pulled out the fiber-optic tree (only 28 inches tall - the only decorating it gets is a strand of metallic beads). Other than the wreath I made this year, that was the grand total of our decorating.

We went to watch a local tree-lighting. That was very anti-climactic, it took all of 10 minutes. We spent more time driving there and back than we did at the actual ceremony. (I think someone was in a hurry that night.) And there was one Christmas party, at the church.

The one thing we did this year that was new, was drive through a light display back where my parents live. The city did a lot of work on it, and it was pretty cool. I meant to drive around town here and see the lights, but between the weather and DH being a workaholic, it never happened.

That's it. No cookies, no baking, no caroling, no decent decorating. No standing in line at the mall to see Santa. Our Christmas is crap. No wonder it seemed like it was all over in two days. It really was.

So, next year, I've decided that things will be different. We're going to have a little more ceremony, and start the holiday prep sometime around Thanksgiving. By then, we'll have a house, so I can put up more than two measly strings of lights. We can get the full-size tree out of storage, and the ornaments. I'll dig out the box of Breyer Christmas horses and put them all on display, and line up my Hallmark rocking horse ornaments. Maybe I'll make holiday cookies with El Burrito - I've already got red and green sugar-sprinkles for them. Maybe we'll get a little Nativity scene. Or not - I'd probably get a better one in the after-holiday sales. I'll remember earlier to go look at the holiday lights around town. Maybe I'll get organized and we'll do some kind of countdown - Advent calendar, wall calendar, whatever.

And maybe, I hope, it'll feel more like Christmas. Because this year didn't. So much for things being "more magical" with kids. All I've experienced is a bigger headache from trying to make sure someone gets a nap in between car trips and late-night church.