For those you who celebrate Christmas, we just want to wish you a very Merry Christmas, filled with happiness, lots of food, family and health. For those who don't celebrate, hope you have a happy filled Holiday with food, family and health! - I know essentially the same.
Weather you celebrate Christmas or not, I think this time of the year is a magical one bringing family and friends together. Crackling fires, warm drinks and comforting food always welcome and envelope friends and family into a home.
I am really looking forward to this Christmas as it's the Peanut's First Christmas! It's so much fun to see her in awe of the tree, Santa and all the cheer surrounding the house. I can't wait to see her face when she is presented with gifts and the excitement our family has to spend time with her.
So far she isn't fazed by anything, but loves to look out the window and watch the snow falling and the Christmas lights flicker. It's amazing to experience all of this anew and to see it all through her eyes. Right now she doesn't understand the whole gifts thing and the 'bad' things that sometimes come with the season, but she does understand that we celebrate as a family and that this is a time when we eat and have fun and spend time together.
The hubby and I don't want her to think that Christmas is about what she will be receiving and what gifts she gets, so I don't think we'll be telling her about the whole Santa thing, etc. I'm hoping to teach her that Christmas is about giving of one's time and love, that it's about making time to spend time with family, sharing food and conversation.
How do you all help your little ones, understand what Christmas is really about?
Sometimes it's a struggle to split days and everything, but we try to equally slip the time with my parents and my in-laws. Today we'll have dinner (it's an important and big deal for us tonight in terms of Christmas) with my parents and then we'll go to my in-laws after for dessert and some time there. Tomorrow we'll go to mass in the morning and then have lunch at my parents with my aunts, uncles and cousins and then go to my in-laws again for dinner with the Hubby's cousins, aunts, uncles and all our nephews, etc. Luckily we don't live too far away from each other. A lot of restraint on my part is going to be needed, as there will be so much food at both places!
I`ll update you all as to how the holidays unfold and the Peanut`s reaction to everything.
HAPPY HOLIDAYS!
