I don't like the commercialization, but I'm not sure I actually struggle with it. I tend to ignore it or scoff at it when it's too ridiculous. So the way I approach the holidays is that there's the church or Christian season of Advent and Christmas, and there's the North American cultural celebration of Christmas, and they're very much related but not really the same thing. When I make a bit of distinction between the two, it saves me a lot of frustration as I see the commercialization and frivolous or meaningless fluff everywhere. I consider it almost like Independence Day - it's what we do because we're Americans (or whichever nation we're part of). I don't know if I explained it well! But it frees me from the stress, because I can participate in what I enjoy and don't feel obligated to participate in the things that aren't for me.
The relief of getting my Christmas shopping done? Maybe the satisfaction of getting my desk cleaned up? That's not small though, I think that's actually a big job. I don't know. It's definitely not a small thing, but I want to savor the family time we have planned over Christmas and New Years. Maybe the small thing within that context might be a good game of Scrabble or dominoes with the kids.
3. December 9th is National Christmas Card Day. Do you still send Christmas cards? If so does your include a photo or is it a more traditional card, or maybe homemade? How do you feel about the tradition of exchanging cards at the holidays? If Hanukkah is the holiday you celebrate in December do you send cards to mark the occasion?
I have mostly kept up the tradition of sending Christmas cards, though my list gets shorter every year. I haven't done anything about it yet this year, but I'm sure I will send out some kind of holiday greeting cards and letters next week. I usually do a sort of newsletter that includes at least a couple photos, and enclose that in a traditional card. I had a pretty good run for a few years of doing fun themed newsletters that weren't just a brag list, but I've run out of good ideas. I am still a fan of exchanging cards with loved ones who live far away, but I don't see a lot of point in exchanging cards with people I see every week so I rarely do that.
I do not like shopping for obligatory gifts, such as for a gift exchange at a work party. Thankfully that hasn't been on my holiday to-do list that last few years! Let's see, a favorite task would be wrapping gifts. Not that I do a fancy professional wrapping job, I just enjoy the simple task of wrapping. I do like baking too, but I always feel like I don't have the time to enjoy that and make all the cookies that I want to.
- shopping or wrapping - I prefer wrapping
- baking or decorating - Baking
- eggnog or wassail - I love both, but if I have to pick, I guess eggnog
- real tree or artificial - Again, love both, but we have an artificial tree, mainly because it's tidier and safer for us, considering how long we leave it up
- turkey or ham - oh definitely turkey! I like baked ham, but it's not a holiday dish.
- white lights or colored lights - I strongly prefer white lights on my tree, and I like colors outside. I see a lot of light displays with multi-colored lights that are gorgeous, but my preference for our lights is that we stick to one or two colors.
- ugly sweaters or matching pjs - We really don't do either, but I do have an ugly sweater.
- peppermint or cinnamon - Cinnamon! For scent and for flavor, I generally prefer cinnamon
- presents Christmas Eve or presents Christmas Day - When I was growing up, we most often did presents on Christmas Eve. Once I was married, we switched to Christmas Day, mostly because we used to get together with my in-laws for the holidays and that's how they did it, so that's what my kids got used to. A couple of times in recent years we've done at least some presents on Christmas Eve in order to accommodate the fact that the kids now have in-laws and we need to do a little sharing during the holidays.
I've been posting to briefly recap each month and think about how I've put my WOTY into "Practice" and it took me at least a week into December before I even got the November recap done. Most of the time, my weekdays are predictable and even a bit boring. I go to work each day, and have a weekly chorus rehearsal and church activity, but it's unusual that there are activities on three evenings during the week. And yet, I'm still not consistent about getting things done as I'd planned. Kind of frustrating to feel like week after week goes by and I'm not really getting ahead. Maybe it's just standing out to me more with the busyness of the holiday season.
How many things have to happen to you before something occurs to you? ~Robert Frost
I found the above quote while searching for good quotes to include in this week's Wednesday Quotes post. The theme is Winter Wonderland, so obviously it doesn't relate except his name is Frost, but I thought it was clever and wanted to share it! You can find the current link-up here: WQ - Walking In A Winter Wonderland. Stop by and share a few thoughts and quotes! The Everyday Images photo link-up is also open and awaiting your photo posts.
How are doing in your holiday preparations? Leave a comment and let me know!
I hope to get back to the photo challenges in the new year. I like baking this time of year, but have done zero. I finally have two days with nothing on them Thursday and Friday so plan to dedicate those days to baking. I look forward to time in the kitchen! Have a great day!
ReplyDeleteHi Friend, I am not much of a shopper, so the shopping part is the hardest for me. I do have some gifts purchased. Friday I plan to go Christmas shopping and celebrate my birthday too.
ReplyDeleteHappy Hodgepodge, Carla