First I would like to say that I’m still loving my new template. And the same place I first found it (Smashing Magazine) I also found wallpapers for December. I’m thinking I will change my wallpaper each week since there was more than one that I liked. I also think I have a serious problem picking and living with things for more than a week. No wonder I have such a hard time decorating my house. What I like today I may not like tomorrow. I get bored easily and I like a lot of different things. Yes, now you know why my house is just a jumble of stuff rather than “decorated”. Let’s just call it eclectic. Or ugly. Whatever.

In my previous post I mentioned how I wanted to enjoy the holiday this year and focus on the process. I’m having a bit of trouble with it now. The holiday concerts and shopping (for groceries – holiday shopping is mostly done – FTW!) and basic everyday stuff is not leaving room for holiday stuff. And why? WHY? can’t holiday baking be done AFTER the holiday? We get all this time off after the holiday but when we NEED it – before to prepare – we still have work and school and eight billion papers that need to be signed and meetings etc. Speaking of meetings, can someone please tell me WHY we need to have a planning meeting for my eighth grader’s schedule for next year this week? Seriously? Like no one has enough to do? It can’t wait until January? Seriously? When am I suppose to decorate or bake or even breath?

A friend asked me the other day how and why we celebrate Christmas. Because we are raising the boys Jewish she wanted to know how we handled the why of Christmas. I explained that Christmas in our house is all about Santa and family. She then asked if I, a recovering Catholic, still celebrated the birth of Jesus. What I said, and what holds true, is no. I definitely identify more with the Reformed Jews, and our temple’s beliefs, than I ever identified with the Catholic church. I won’t say I believe in Jesus but I don’t not believe in him either. I’m actually kind of ambivalent about him. I believe he existed I’m just not sure I believe all the hype about him. And if you’re a firm believer you can pick yourself up off the floor now. It’s no reflection on you. It’s just me. And yes, I’ve been told I’m going to hell for this so you can keep that comment to yourself.

I keep wanting to get into more detail about my religious beliefs here but that’s not really what this post is about. It is about Christmas and why we celebrate it.

On my way to work this morning I was thinking about why I do celebrate and what really is it I’m celebrating. I realized I wasn’t really sure. I could say tradition. I could say religion. I could say for the kids. But while tradition and the kids are the reasons why I couldn’t really say the what. What is it we’re celebrating? Consumerism? Is it all about the presents? Food? Is it about the decorating? Family?

I can honestly say it’s not so much the decorating for me. I don’t have many decorations. I kind of hate decorating. In fact, this weekend the littles got the decorations from the basement and then while I was out they decorated the house with their friends. Now it’s not exactly how I would have done it but it’s done. They had fun. And I don’t have to do it. I know this would send most of the women I know over the edge. It’s like doing crafts with small children, you almost can’t help “helping” them or “fixing” it. I suppose that is something having all these kids has taught me. Keep my damn hands off what their doing. They might WANT it to look that way. It’s all about the process for them. As it should be.

I get stressed like every adult this time of year. I want to find the perfect gifts. I don’t want to break the bank. The lack of time. It drives us all crazy. So I asked myself, why do I do it? And I realized I wouldn’t want to NOT do it. I do enjoy finding the perfect gift. I enjoy a well wrapped gift (something I want to spend more time on this year instead of less). I enjoy seeing someone’s face when they opened something they never knew they wanted or the one thing they really, really wanted.

I realized I still believe in the magic of Christmas. And just because it sometimes seems like such a chore the memories of the kids’ faces on Christmas morning, the video the kids made one year of their “cooking show” while we baked cookies, the family given a reason to come from where ever they are to just hang out… that is why I do it. To celebrate my family.

Now to just remember to enjoy it. To remember to take the time experience the little parts instead of rushing through them as if they are just one more thing I have to do.

May your Christmas or Hanukkah or seasonal celebration be filled with magic. May you remember why you are doing all this and enjoy it.

So, you found my new digs. You did didn’t you? PLEASE let me know if you did.

The holiday weekend was nice. Really nice.

Thursday was spent at my MIL’s and fun was had by all. All I had to contribute was a green salad and an apple caramel pie. The husband made his famous mashed potatoes.

Friday was spent cleaning and forcing the children to each clean one room in the downstairs. It amazes me that they can whine so much about being responsible for ONE. ROOM. They even got to pick which they wanted. In the end, at about nine o’clock at night, the downstairs was clean. My kitchen (my room) was – and still is – sparkling.

Saturday was yet another holiday celebration at our house. My FIL, mom, dad, both SIL’s and various spouses, nephews etc all showed up for a yummy dinner. The turkeys were fab and we had more stuffing than we knew what to do with. I had it easy as my SIL brought her death-by-sugary-goodness-sweet-potato dish and a creme de menth chocolate chip cake. My FIL brought the pumpkin pie. My mom brought a turkey, stuffing, salad & hot veggies. I only had to prepare a turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes (husband actually did the work on this one), fresh baked bread, homemade cranberry relish, gravy, apple caramel pie, and drinks!

I know, doesn’t seem fair how easy I had it. We even had it cleaned up before bed.

Sunday was a surprise. Two of the kids had fevers. The two who never get sick. We withheld meds and put one on one couch with the football game on. The other went on the other couch with a TV & DVD player and watched movie after movie. The other 2 kids were allowed to hang with their respective partners in crime. So the children happily spent a day vegging in front of the TV. Meanwhile, the husband and I managed to clean the room that was set to have the house condemed. The room that gets random bits tossed in. The room that hadn’t been cleaned since the plaster removing and replacing in the hall off said room. Yes, INCHES of plaster dust was residing on every surface in the room. All my card/scrapbook/jewelry making supplies reside in this room. My COMPUTER resides in this room. This is also called the office. I will admit to spending greatly reduced amounts of time in this room since going back to work full time. But still, I did have to grace this room occasionally to pay bills and print children’s reports. And now, NOW, it is clean. It is organized. I am happy. And amazed. It is clean.

The cookies arrived today.

I have to ask…

What are they thinking selling cookies around Halloween? I think my scale will be “broken” for the next 2 months.

The party was not FAIL.

YAY! Fun was had by all. Children were kept out of trouble. A few grownups got into trouble or at least drank too much. (Although, I was not one of them. As I was too focused on the children. Although, I did miss when the sheriff stopped to speak to the 12 year old and his best friend for LYING IN THE MIDDLE OF A DARK ROAD AT 9:30 at NIGHT. The husband was on the front porch “watching” the boys play football in the road while I supervised smaller children play ping pong and get hopped up on sugar in the garage. End of extremely long parenthetical side.)

I realized this morning while I read from my feeder that I did not take one single photo of the event. Seriously, WTF? Does it not say photographer on my degree? So I guess I still get a big FAIL on that.

I am proud to announce I only ate 2 pieces of candy on Halloween. And 2 brownies. And 1 slice of pizza. However, the rest of the weekend I ate my body weight in chocolate. It was to save the children. Really. All that chocolate isn’t good for them. No really, that’s what I’m told. To be fair, they ate their body weights in chocolate also. Fortunately their body weights are considerably less then mine.

And now I must get back to work…