Last year I was a bad Christmas mom.
This year I’m better. Not GOOD, but better.
Let’s start by talking about some of the ways I’ve dropped the ball this Christmas season and failed to provide my kids with the most magical of holidays:
- For the third year in a row, I did not take my kids for Santa pictures. My go-to excuses: My son keeps saying he’s “scared of Santa” and I didn’t want to be that mom forcing her son onto Santa’s lap while he screams, and my daughter is going through a crying-around-strangers phase. But those are just as I said they were: Excuses. The truth? Finding a nearby Santa location and reserving a time that worked for us was daunting. Some Santa photo places don’t require reservations, but the thought of standing in a long line with a 3 year old and a 1.5 year old? Even more daunting. So I didn’t do it.
- I bought my kids socks, toothpaste and long-sleeved shirts for Christmas. Because you know what my kids don’t need? Toys. You know what they’ll get from their grandparents? Toys. (Too many toys, some would say.) You know what they really do need? Paw Patrol toothpaste that will make brushing fun. A dozen pairs of new socks each because 12 pairs of socks quickly turns into 6 quickly turns into 3. You know what they WON’T get from grandparents because grandma says it’s “boring” to buy them clothes? Long-sleeved shirts, practical for January in Seattle.
- I took my three year old shopping for Christmas gifts for his aunt and one of his cousins. In the store, I asked him what he thought they would like. For his aunt, he pointed at a cheap-looking candle with a cutesy saying that she would hate. I bought her some artisan jams instead. For his cousin, he pointed at onesie pajamas; I know she already has about a dozen pairs. I grabbed a cute toddler flannel shirt instead and said, “don’t you think she’d love this shirt?” He said “no” and I bought it anyway.
- My husband and I took the kids to an outdoor holiday farmers’ market in an attempt to be festive. But I failed to check the weather before leaving the house. As soon as we got there and walked the three blocks from our car to the market, the sky opened up and it started pouring freezing rain/semi-snow. I made them walk through a few booths and pick up a few gifts we needed anyway. I had also failed to bring gloves for the kids, so their hands froze and both of them cried as we ran/walked back to the car.
But I did accomplish some festive-ish holiday things that were simply outside my mental capacity a year ago, when I had a 5-month-old baby and a 2-year-old maniac. They’re all quite run-of-the-mill and unimpressive. But hey, I did them.
- We made sugar cookies, rolled them out, then baked and decorated them. I couldn’t find cookie cutters so I used a knife to make ugly, unrecognizable Christmas tree shapes, but at least they were cookies. My daughter ate a bunch of raw cookie dough and I didn’t notice quickly enough to get it out of her mouth, but she didn’t get sick. When it came time to decorate the cookies, my son said he was too tired and sat on the couch insisting on watching “Frozen” instead, but I tried.
- I ordered holiday cards! With sort-of-cute photos of my children! I didn’t get around to it quickly enough to make them Christmas cards, but Happy New Year cards are more inclusive, anyway.
- I hung an advent calendar, something I failed to do last year even though an aunt delivered one to our house. My son opened every door on December 1 and ignored it for the rest of the month, but it’s there!
- We made gingerbread houses! To be completely accurate, my kids made gingerbread houses with my mom over at their grandparents’ house. But it counts.
- We went to see Christmas lights–twice! (Highly recommend this activity. It involves … sitting in the car.)
- I tried to take my son to pick out gifts for his family members.
- I resisted my natural tendency to give in to my son and I didn’t allow him to open Christmas presents early. Every morning he saw presents under the tree and asked, “Can I open a present?” and every morning I listened to him throw a mini-tantrum and didn’t give in. Honestly pretty proud of that one.
Of course, none of these things are out of the ordinary. This is what’s expected of mothers at Christmas time, fairly or unfairly (unfairly. It’s unfair). But that doesn’t mean it didn’t take a whole lot of effort for me. So moms – let’s be proud of what we did this holiday season and let go of all the things we didn’t do.