My Post Christmas Post

It’s too late to go into a bunch of sappy detail about all of it, but we had a great Christmas. I was not great, but Christmas is what it is. It’s GREAT. I am realizing I can’t make or break Christmas, I can only make or break me. I got a little uptight about things. I do that sometimes. I want so bad to enjoy it that I get a little crazy deep in the recesses of my mind and sooner or later all that crazy blows up in my back. I’ve been so sore. I haven’t had any major spasms, just a constant cranky catch that won’t let up. I see the chiropractor again on Thursday. Hopefully that will help. I can do almost everything I normally do, I just don’t do it as fast or as happy, cause pain ain’t happy. It zaps my energy too and I hate that. I feel like I should WANT to go play in the snow with the boys and I most certainly don’t. I wouldn’t mind taking pictures of them in the snow…but I don’t want to get in it. Does that make me old?

So far my Post Christmas post is sort of Scroogy. It gets better.

I decorated:

I actually went shopping for Christmas decorations this year. Usually I try to scrap something together with my hand me downs and such. I still did a little scrappin’ but I made a trip to Old Time Pottery and got some things of my own choosing this year. It was kinda nice to have that. Kris’ mom let me borrow a few things too. I had mentioned that we were having a Christmas party as soon as we got back from our Thanksgiving trip to Florida so she sent a table cloth and a table runner to help me out, knowing she could bring them back with her when they came up for Christmas.

Oh, and did you see all that garland? I had that last Christmas too but forgot. It was up in a box in the garage and this year…for some reason…I saw it. It belonged to Kris’ aunt and when she passed away it was cleaned out of her things and no one wanted it, so Kris and I took it home. I had no idea how much there was until I dragged it all out. It was plenty. It went up the long stair rail in the foyer, across the big doorway of the dining room and up the small stair rail in the living room. I had to do some work to it, but I guarantee it was worth it. I was very glad for it.

We waited until after our Christmas party, but we DID brave the COLD and get a tree:

We had a Christmas service at church. Santa Claus was there and kids were able to line up to take a picture with the old man. My boys, who do not believe in Santa Claus, were first in line. It really was cute. We get to church super early on Sundays because of teaching so the boys and I usually hang out in the coffee house for an hour or so while Kris is in prayer meeting with the other teachers. Santa got there about 20 minutes after we did and walked into the coffee house for a pick-me-up. Aron jumped out of his chair and ran across the shop with his arms spread out and yelled, “Santa!” Santa was sweet to oblige my little man with a big hug and a little conversation in his arms. I know he probably wasn’t quite expecting that, but you gotta be prepared if you are going to wear a big red and white suit out in public. They each got their picture taken before Sunday school and then after church got a picture with the Toy Story gang that were part of the service.

Owen had a Christmas party at school. I rarely get good pictures of these events because I’m not usually willing to bring along the good camera.

Soon it was Christmas Eve. We made some snacks and the Bowen’s came over for some cousin time. The kids watched “The Polar Express” and then we all (well most of us…Kris and I took Aron, but Owen and Ivan stayed at home with Grandma and Granddaddy.) went to church for the Christmas Eve communion service. It let out early because of the snow that was already falling and we got home to open one gift on the night before the big day.

We gave the boys each a new pair of pajamas and this will be one of my favorite memories of 2010. Ivan and his corn dogs. I wrapped the pajamas in various boxes that I had saved over the year for wrapping gifts. This corn dog box is a perfect size and it’s sturdy and opens easily. The food that was in it was all sealed in cellophane so there was no grease or moisture to deal with. It’s just a great box. Ivan unwrapped it and was more excited about the idea of getting corn dogs for Christmas than the pajamas that were actually in there. He was jumping around the room yelling about his corn dogs. Too funny! Next year…I’m buying him corn dogs for sure.

We may have gone a little overboard:

We definitely made a mess:

As it turns out…we probably could have just given them these…and the corn dogs…and they would have been really happy. You can’t tell by their faces, but they LOVED these and wore them every day for at least three days.

I would have been happy with just this:

And some of this:

And a lot of this:

But we don’t do that. We embellish with stuff. And that’s okay once a year…and then we pack it all up:

We put it away for next year and look forward to getting it all out again and making things shiny and even getting strategic about where we’ll put stuff next year.

I had that empty tree in my living room for about 4 days before Kris had a chance to take it outside for me. I would have done it myself (like Amy) but I figured with a sore back already, that might be dumb. So I waited and didn’t even ask. I figured an empty tree pretty much speaks for itself and I already knew he didn’t have a lot of time. So I looked at that thing and it reminded me of a poor little tree that got lost and ended up in my living room. It just looked so much more like a tree when it wasn’t all dressed up. So strange. In my mind I waxed on and on over symbolism, unnecessary things, the big show of Christmas, the lights and reflections that keep us from seeing the real things. I decided something while that tree was standing naked in my living room. I decided I like all of it. I like the shiny stuff, and I like the plain. I like the guests and I like being alone. I like lots of gifts and I like simple reminders in a card, I like white Christmases and I like warm Christmases, I like Christmas no matter how you wrap it or don’t wrap it. It’s not about me and it’s not a test of my faithfulness, my taste, my greed and selfishness or my ability to worship. It’s just the day we celebrate Jesus’ birth. He came naked, laid in a feed trough and had smelly shepherds as his first visitors, but He also made a new star shine in the sky, attracted kings, was announced by angels and was given very expensive gifts. He was all things to all people and He still is. His poverty in the beginning was not a standard He requires of us, nor were his riches from the wise men.

Christmas is what it is. We can only make or break us.