Nice Christmas and a New Approach

We had a really enjoyable Christmas, though the holidays are always a bit of a paradox. On the one hand, it’s a time to celebrate being together and having a nice time, but the holidays can also be thoughtful and contemplative, if not a little melancholy, as well. This situation can be amplified as the new year approaches.

This time around, we tried to move things along a little more slowly. In the past, it’s a bit of a frenzy as the kids open their presents, play with them for a bit, and then have this massive letdown as the reality sets in that there are no more presents to open. It’s a shame, actually, because you really lose sight of what’s important in life, and it’s totally counter to the fact that we, the parents, really feel that life is not about consumption and accumulating stuff (junk!). It’s really about experiences and time spent with friends and family.

That said, you can’t deny kids the chance to be kids, and part of that is receiving and opening presents. They are just so excited, as well they should be. We paced things this year, and spread out the unwrapping throughout the day. It worked out beautifully, a lesson in delayed gratification, and they had something to look forward to throughout the day. It was really nice.

They got some cool stuff, too, which I won’t go into detail, but I think everyone came away from it very happy. For supper that night, we had filet mignon with baked sweet potato, Yorkshire pudding, spinach and green beans. We got our steaks from Cloudland Farms, and I think for once I cooked them in a decent manner. A really nice meal, followed by ice cream and hot fudge sauce (low glycemic).

After supper, we watched the movie A Christmas Story, which I had never seen but has become a bit of a Christmas classic. I have to confess, I thought it was a little boring, even though the kids enjoyed it.

Now we have New Year’s Eve to look forward to, and then we can get on with our lives. For the record, I just wanted to mention that still no word from my mom, but we’re getting used to this peculiar form of behavior... sort of.

Until the next time, thanks for reading.