A tale of Two Christmases
What do you focus on when it comes to Christmas? Do you walk away with rosy glasses on, remembering all the best moments and declaring it the best Christmas ever? Or do you focus on what went wrong, the disappointments and tears? Honestly, I kind of want to remember both. So here you have it, a tale of two Christmases:
The Good:
On Christmas Eve we exchanged sibling gifts, which gave them something to play with, but also caused them to get more excited about the random things they picked for each other (although they both ended up getting each other a paw patrol playset). We’d also had them pick out Christmas cards to give each other and Tom and I, which was a nice easy introduction into gifting presents to other people. It was pretty cute to see what cards they’d picked out thinking we’d like. We also spent a lot of time watching Christmas movies and cuddling on the couch.
The next morning we woke up to a dusting of snow on the ground - not much, but enough to claim a white Christmas. The day itself was actually sunny, which was nice considering how cold it was. We definitely got lucky with the weather - we missed the huge storm that had crippled the rest of the country a few days earlier.
We started the day by opening stockings first, and while the older two were happy for candy and small toys, F was thrilled to find pouches and a container of puffs in hers. Then she was even more thrilled when we let her eat the entire container. She sat there taking handfuls of puffs and shoving them in her mouth until her cheeks were full.
She was also excited after I made cinnamon buns for breakfast, and gave her one of her own. She speared it with her fork and tried to stick the whole thing in her mouth.
When it came time to open presents, we numbered them all and told the kids they had to open presents in order. Also they couldn’t move on to the next number until everyone had opened their number first. It slowed them down just enough, and added an extra game for them to figure out.
Overall I think they were happy with their presents (at least there were no meltdowns like last year!). They especially liked their “big” ones they got at the end - Squishmallows and they each got their own playset. A Mickey Mouse pirate ship for E, a Disney Encanto house for G, and a Little People construction site for F. G’s was the largest in size, which I think made his heart happy. He spends so much time measuring himself against his brother and coming in second (it’s not a fair fight when you’re 18 months younger) so it was meaningful for him to feel like he’d won for the day (especially since they all really won with their new toys).
F spent the day walking around in my new shoes and stealing her brother’s Squishmallows. We’d gotten her a smaller one, but it’s quickly becoming clear that she thinks she deserves a huge one like they got. E got a few art kits, and before I knew it he’d opened them and figured them out by himself. It floored me that he’s getting so big and doesn’t need as much guidance when it comes to things like this.
Mostly we spent the day in our matching PJs, sitting in front of the fire, and eating Chinese food which was delivered and we didn’t have to cook. It was enough to make the day feel cozy and quiet.
The Not So Good:
The non rosy side is that we were heading into Christmas already exhausted. The kids had all been home for a few days and were bouncing off the walls, and our baby that usually sleeps 12 hours through the night suddenly decided she wasn’t sleeping again. I’m not sure why, but a few months ago, she started not sleeping about one week a month. So on Christmas Eve she didn’t sleep, and we didn’t get her to bed until midnight. Which meant that we were not at our best on Christmas morning. Oh and did I mention in the middle of us trying to put her to bed once, she cried so hard she made herself throw up all over her crib? We ended up cleaning up puke and doing emergency laundry that night.
Earlier that night we’d tried to drive around and look at Christmas lights, but it turns out that Tom and I were the only ones that thought that was fun. The rest of them complained or cried the entire time, until the baby fell asleep for a few minutes (which didn’t help the sleep for the rest of the night). Since she hadn’t napped that day (and maybe not the day before either?), when Christmas came around we were so desperate, Tom loaded her in the car and drove her all over the state so she would pass out.
While the kids seemed to like most of their presents, we definitely heard a lot of complaints too. Everyone was jealous over what their siblings received, they wanted more presents and of course candy. Did anyone eat anything but candy that day?
It was also the coldest weather we’d had since last winter. It was so cold there was no opportunity to go outside and run off any energy or go anywhere. Probably as a result of that, we had a few sibling fights, a few hits and G even got bit on his head (an interesting choice I know). And towards the end of the day, G wasn’t really feeling well and mostly sat on the couch looking sad.
The weekend felt long at times, especially when naptime would finally come and we thought we’d get to sit down for a few minutes, but everyone boycotted nap and there was no rest.
Looking back I guess it wasn’t that bad, even if I try to remember only the hard moments. They were definitely there, but I think it really just comes down to the same thing it always is - we’re tired and need a break.