Christmas-ing

I really enjoy all of the Christmas events for kids.  I really do.  There is a list of things I avoid, and doing so makes me less stressed than many of my friends.  I'm a bit stressed going into the final week (mostly because Lewis is gone the entire week and I have a few things left still to do) but over all, I think we're doing pretty good.

There's a lot of Christmas movie watching - my very, very favorite - and lots of cookie making.  If my children remember only the baking from their childhood I'll be okay with that.  I was at an event last night and we were talking about raising kids and the internet and I said but you know parents need a break too.  And I'm kind of not going to worry incessantly about the rules this Christmas break.  Too much TV?  We're on break.  Too much sugar?  We're on break.  I have cut them off from the iPads.  Because increasingly I loathe those things and their encouragement of isolationism but video games?  Sure lets go play Minecraft together while sister naps.  You built a castle?  Lets see it.  You want to feed pigs carrots?  Lets do that.

Am I pushing the Xbox over the iPad?  You betcha.  Did I ever think I'd do that?  Not even a little bit.  Did I ever think the xbox or the wii would be more social than the next thing?  Nope.  New to me.  But I am.

Anyway.  Back to Christmas-ing.

My first Christmas-ing was just me.  Megan and I decided on a whim - we wanted to see Disneyworld at Christmas.  That's what we wanted to do.  So we did it.

And it was so much fun.  Snow much fun even.  We went for one of the Mickey's Very Merry Christmas parties (which I really, really wanted to do) and it was just amazing.  They had snow falling all down Main Street and the rides had no lines and they had free (HA! Included with admission) milk and cookies and sweets and special characters and treats and did I mention no lines.  It was lovely.  We bought ears and giant Mickey shaped cinnamon rolls and peppermint coffee.  We stayed up late both nights and we're not well rested when we got home.  But I will always remember that trip fondly.

The next weekend was A Charlie Brown Christmas put on by the Dallas Children's Theater.  Which may just be my new favorite thing.  Forty-five minute long performances, many of them interactive.  In Charlie Brown they ice skated all around the audience singing.  We were in the second row.  It cost less than $100 for us all to go.

Which when I had been looking at taking them to see Broadways Grinch at Winspear ... was a huge bargain.

The kids laughed out loud.  Julia only made it thirty minutes but I'm pretty sure her arm got pulled out of socket.  Can't be certain.  But in the car I did the motion the ER doc told me to and her mood improved.  So it could have been.

Lewis threw his back out so he was no fun.  So my first family event Merry Christmas-ing wasn't as Merry as I wanted.  But I had huge expectations.

Aint that always the way.

The next event Merry Christmasing ended up being the very next day.  We went with friends at the last minute to Zoo lights.  Which you just walk around looking at the zoo all decorated in lights.  For the price of winter admission it's a fun way to spend the evening.  We drove down had dinner (packed) there and then saw some lights.

This past weekend, I decided at the last minute to have a christmas party at our house too.  Just a few friends (3 families) on Sunday.  So we made it to church (yeah!) and then lunch, nap for Julia and I spent the rest of the afternoon in the kitchen.  Making said cookies and putting together a lasagna and then chatting as I poured warm apple cider in my cute and not good for anything other than cider ceramic cups that were part of our wedding set.

Then today we went to this prek play place The Coop (so named because they are locked in more or less) to have cookies and milk with Santa.

More than this there has been winter parties at school, teachers gifts, crafts, gingerbread houses, Christmas performances (David), and Cubscouts meetings with more cookie making, pack meetings with wreath sales, fire place fires, smores, Christmas movies, Jesus coloring pages because sister has a low grade fever and church isn't possible, reading bible verses while we set up the nativity (grand plans of doing that over the course of days but I decided that it didn't matter in the slightest so long as we did it and talked about why it was important).  I can't do everything.

We have a pickle that I hide in the tree and the kids search for, the winner gets a piece of (halloween) candy.  Also don't tell them but most of the "Christmas" candy has been pilfered from the halloween buckets.

When asked at school what traditions G has ... he said we make cookies, hang stockings, go to church  with cousins and watch movies.

This weekend will mark most of that.  And my hope for all of you is that you enjoy the final weeks of the year, and you don't have too much left to do.