Traditions

I have been working to get the house ready for Christmas. I mean it is December! I would like to say I have been working as hard as an elf, but we really don't have that many decorations yet in our two and a half year marriage so it isn't too hard. The way I see it, the tree is the most important part and our tree is looking beautiful.

As I have been working (or walking by the boxes of decorations thrown about the house), I have been thinking about holiday traditions. My parents gave us the most magical Christmases as we were growing up. My brother and I were lucky to experience these magical Christmases. Writing letters to The North Pole. The anticipation of Santa and waking up Christmas morning. Opening our stockings while we waited for mom to get out of bed! The smell of a big Christmas breakfast cooking while we played with new toys.

The thrill of Christmas day is one of the greatest things on earth for a child, but the weeks leading up to Christmas were more important to me. After Thanksgiving, we would put on Christmas music. We would decorate the tree as a family. Pulling out those old ornaments and talking about the stories behind them. Picking our favorite ones to hang on the tree and fighting over where to put our favorites. Driving around admiring Christmas lights (and secretly wishing my Dad would go Clark Griswold just once).

This is the magic of Christmas traditions. The traditions that light up your memories and fill your heart with happiness. I want to provide that for my daughter. I want to take my family traditions and introduce them to my daughter, but I want to create new traditions with my own family. I just hope I can give my kids such meaningful and heart tugging memories that my parents gave me. One day, I want my daughter to start a family of her own, and I want her to pass on the Christmas traditions that we created for her.

Dobbie and I have already started talking about things we want to do for our daughter. Car rides with Christmas music and hot chocolate to admire the Christmas lights around town. Christmas tree lightings and holiday parades (they have the best in Collingswood)!  Baking and wrapping Christmas cookies for friends and neighbors. I really want to start decorating the tree as a family. We haven't done that yet, but when Kailyn is bigger we can do that. I can't wait for future Christmases with our little girl. Seeing her experience the thrill of Santa and the magic of Christmas is something I am looking forward to.

For now, I will enjoy the only Christmas present I need, my sweet baby girl.