It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas...

...or is it?!

I'm trying, I really am -- and this will not be one of those whining, complaining blog posts about how hard the Holidays are on Mom; how there's never enough time or money or magic; how everybody's either looking for donations, cash, checks, party contributions or time on your oh-so-limited calendar...

No, let's not go there.



The Holidays can be, and usually are, stressful, but there's also an awful lot of good stuff. I can come up with 10 Things to Be Excited About, I know I can:

1. The Magic kids still believe in: My older kids, now almost-15 and 12, want to force a confession about Santa, in no small part to "educate" their younger 9-year-old brother. I keep the discussion limited: "If you don't believe in the Magic, the Magic won't believe in you...and THE MAGIC can't leave you a really great gift under the tree or a stocking full of goodies!" (It works!)
2. Christmas Lists! If my children do no other creative writing all year, I can count on them for something truly entertaining and wonderful on the "Come-on Santa, Bring It All and Make My Miserable Life Complete Request List." Want to see an example? 9yo Boy's Wish List
3. The Giving: Not so much the shopping, but the thinking, the planning, the scheming to surprise and delight, the giving is wonderful, especially when you find Just The Right Thing, big or small, for someone special.
4. Gingerbread Cookies! An annual tradition in the Rebel Household, we make armies and armies of decorated Gingerbread Men for holiday parties, school friends, teacher gifts and neighbors...
5. Cold Weather & Snuggling
6. Winter Break - sleeping in and NO HOMEWORK!
7. Christmas Cards - love to receive, even the letters.
8. Decorations & Light Displays - another annual tradition, the Christmas Drive-Around to see all the lights and displays. We drive far and wide, to professional displays (around Atlanta: Stone Mountain, Lake Lanier Islands, Calloway Gardens) and to see everything at homes & businesses in-between. With a Thermos of hot chocolate, a to go box of gingerbread men and holiday music on the car stereo (now XM Radio Channel #23 - Holly) and we are set for several evenings of family entertainment.
9. Christmas Music - all of it, from classical to elevator renditions to The Chipmunks!
10. Christmas Classics - TV Shows & Books

That's it. It's nice to keep it simple. Of course, there is Christmas Morning and the children's delight (hopefully) over their holiday haul; visiting friends & family and oh, yes, the holiday eating...

It is beginning to look -- and feel -- a lot like Christmas...
I'm on it!