Christmas Eve and Mom Store

Christmas.

It started awhile ago, as Christmas often does, with presents being tucked in the closet as I purchased them.

The music. One song per hour on my local radio station, mostly old classics. Occasionally that one that I don't like would play. You know the one,"Last Christmas I give you my heart, but the very next day, you give it away, give it away." That one makes me cringe and sing along every single time. Then, the tree went up. Last year we purchased our first tree that has its own lights attached to the wiry branches. I got it at Hobby Lobby. While I put the tree up in my new home in Nebraska, I missed my Roberts Street house in Albuquerque. I missed my green chili in Albuquerque. I missed the zoo and the Aquarium in Albuquerque. When I say I miss Albuquerque, I don't mean that I don't love it here. I do. I love Nebraska. I also loved Albuquerque, and that stage of my kids life and the lifestyle. Things wouldn't be the same even if I lived there now. I am different, and my family is different. But, I miss it.

Then, the decorations went on the tree, and then down, and then back up as the children undecorated and redecorated the tree. My children are allowed, and encouraged to do this. I don't have fancy ornaments. I had one delicate ornament- it was a snowman- but it is broken now. And the cats love the Christmas tree. They spend the day hunting the lights and ornaments. My kids love hunting the cats. The Christmas tree is its own Middle-earth.

My little guy as a preschool reindeer. He is too young for preschool. His big sister, who is not too young for preschool was upstairs throwing a fit, not participating in the preschool Christmas program. She showed up later.

Oh, here she is! Singing, "Mary, Mary hush see the child."

Some people have their Christmas holidays planned out with traditions, advent calendars, budgets, and lists. I saw a budget add on Christmas Eve and I had a dream that I should budget $112 for Christmas butter. My subconscious loves butter as much as my conscious. I am glad they have each other.  I have a few family Christmas traditions, mostly involving music, but for the most part I prefer to play it fast and loose. There are positives and negatives to this school of thought. The positives are that it is full of surprises, and since the expectations are none, it is difficult to disappoint. The negatives are when I get a borderline migraine on Christmas Eve, well, Santa is on his own.

3rd grader with the North Elementary caroling event in downtown Sidney.

Christmas Eve came. One of the traditions the kids really love is the gift exchange where we purchase gifts for another person in our family and the children all get to shop for eachother.  It was snowing a lot here, and Ian and I had both been working at our employments on Christmas Eve and after dinner, we were not up for shopping.There was much weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth. So, I thought of something.
Mom store.

She LOVES Santa. He is her best friend. Here she is asking for a pink slinky.

I had a few presents for each kiddo that I hadn't wrapped yet, and some other random things I could create into a store. The store was my bed. Each child came into my room and had 4 or 5 things they could choose 2 presents from for their sibling: a bag of chips, small hand sanitizer, a board book, hair bows, a can of mandarin oranges. Then we wrapped the presents together with masking tape since I was out of the clear pretty stuff, and they put the presents under the tree.

Mom store was a huge hit, and shall be how gift exchange is done from here on out.

Nobody cried. At least one of my kids is always crying at the store. They want something, or they don't want something or somebody touched something. Who knows why they cry, but they cry. At Mom Store, each child had one on one attention, and the choices were not overwhelming. My baby boy chose a can of mandarin oranges and a jewelry sack stuffed with loose change in it for his 3 year old sister. The 3 year old choose hot chocolate and a flower coloring book (that she was getting anyway) for her 3rd grade sister, and so on.

After mom store, we did our family candlelight nativity scene while reading the scriptures. I am always blown away how the hope of the world came to a family through a baby. I love how Jesus was adopted by Joseph. I love that the shepherds came, and the star led the way. Reading the story of Jesus's birth with nativity figures by candlelight is magical.

Then we had root-beer floats and went to bed. When I woke up at 9:30 in the morning Santa had come.

Christmas Eve is my favorite. The anticipation of wonderful. The hope for a better world.