The holidays have always been my most favorite time of year. Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years… for me they’re all bundled into one fabulous package of holiday bliss and I love them all equally in different ways. There’s something about the season that has always felt magical and special; it’s unlike any other time of the year. I truly feel like a kid at Christmas. It doesn’t seem to matter how much older I get, I still get just as excited as the year before. Watching Christmas specials, cutting down and decorating our tree, the music. For me, Christmas is never about the presents; it hasn’t been for a long time. I would take having a house full of Christmas decorations, a tree (or two or three), music and the holiday parties with my husband, family and friends over any gift. It’s the feeling of the holiday season that I truly love. For me, no other time of year provides the same magical feeling. It always makes me sad when I hear people complain about the holidays. I try not to judge as to why some folks just don’t like this time of year, because perhaps it’s due to the loss of a loved one or a tragic memory that haunts them, but either way it makes my heart sad that many people don’t share the same love of the season as I do.
This year, my husband and I were honored to host Thanksgiving in our new home for both our families. While it was undoubtedly a lot of work and preparation; it was awesome to sit down at Thanksgiving dinner and look down the table seeing both our families smiling and eating knowing that we did this together in our house. My husband made a toast before we all started eating and said he thought this was going to be easy, but when everyone started showing up he started wondering how we were going to pull it off. Side note, my husband NEVER worries about anything, but I could tell he looked a bit overwhelmed when our family members started arriving. He pointed out that our moms and other family members jumped right in to help us in the kitchen and that their help was greatly appreciated, and needed! He went on to say that we had a new appreciation for our moms and grandmothers who have hosted Thanksgiving and big holidays in the past because it’s a lot of work. I don’t think you truly realize just how much goes into hosting a big holiday until your knuckle deep in baking pumpkin pie, cooking turkey and setting a table for 17 people!
Two years ago we hosted Thanksgiving for just his family and my mom, but that year my mother in law cooked the turkey. It was much smaller and a lot easier with less people. This year was so much different. Not only because we had so many more people, but because we did so much of it ourselves and it was in our new house. It was an honor to kick off the holiday season for our families and it felt like an accomplishment to have hosted such a wonderful and successful holiday.
Of course, the day after Thanksgiving I was in full Christmas mode. Which meant taking down every pumpkin and fall and Thanksgiving decoration and turning our house into what looks like Santa’s village. I once dated a guy who told me he thought elves were going to jump out at him when he came to my house. I took it as a compliment. So, while elves haven’t popped out of any of our nooks and cranny’s yet, we do have a full and freshly cut down Christmas tree upstairs, a fake Christmas tree downstairs, a mini one in our bedroom and decorations and lights throughout our entire house.
I enjoy the season and all its decorations, music and bliss every day while it’s here. But, every year, after New Years when the Christmas music stops, the holiday specials are no longer being played on TV and all the decorations come down; I always get bummed out. Without fail, I come down with a serious case of the post holiday blues, and I try hard to hold onto any piece of Christmas and the season that I can. Like leaving my tree up until mid-January or keeping snowflakes and white Christmas lights hung up all winter, or all year for that matter! I think this year will be a little different. Because this year my husband and I have the long awaited arrival of our baby girl to look forward to in February. It’s crazy to me that I’m two days away from the 30 week mark in my pregnancy and that realistically, I could safely deliver this little miracle in seven weeks. So while I may be bummed like all previous years to take down my Christmas tree; I have so much to look forward to in the post holiday season. Like holding our baby girl for the first time and looking into her eyes. Finally getting to see who she looks like and who she takes after. Above all the Christmas and holiday bliss, I’m so very thankful for this little miracle I’m growing. A small piece of me and my husband bundled into one little person who will undoubtedly be the joy of our lives.
Christmas is not about the presents people. Tis’ the season to be thankful for all that we have in our lives. Not just the material things like cars and houses and money, but the people who add sugar, spice, love and excitement with every passing year. I truly think the holidays are the time of year to slow down and appreciate all the many things you have, and less on the things that you want wrapped in a box with shiny paper and a bow. It’s the time to really focus on life’s little blessings that are irreplaceable and can’t be bought online or in a store. So, whether you love the holidays, hate them or are perhaps indifferent, I urge all of my blog readers to find at least one thing they are truly thankful for all year long. Perhaps it will help make your season a little merrier and brighter because, tis the season to be merry and bright blog lovahs!
Sparke