'Twas the Night Before Christmas...

As children, we dream of Christmas mornings filled with brightly wrapped presents under the tree, the excitement of ripping the paper, and the surprise of what lies within. As parents, I suppose you could say we see everything from Side B. We're suddenly the ones responsible for creating the magic of that morning. But what happens when money is tight, as most of us have experienced, and you begin to worry about disappointing your children? We know Christmas is more than the presents. But we still want to provide that joyful experience for our kids. Let me tell you my Christmas story.

I remember one particular Christmas when my sister and I were little, probably about 5 and 8 years old. My parents didn't have much money that year for presents, and they began to worry about disappointing us. A few months before December, my mother started making things for us. There were no dollar stores back then, but they bought a lot of our presents from the dime store. And they wrapped every single item individually - even the batteries! Right up to Christmas morning, they were nervous, thinking we'd feel let down. To their surprise, we were astounded by all the gifts spilling out from under the tree. I remember what great fun that was, ripping all that paper. It seemed it took forever to unwrap everything. Afterwards, we proclaimed it the best Christmas ever.

If you're facing a Christmas on a small budget, take a minute to think back. What was Christmas to you as a child? I'll bet if you really put yourself into your memories, you'll realize the focus as a child was not "How much did mommy and daddy spend?" More than likely, you were filled with joy simply because family was all together, sharing the experiences of giving and receiving. Yes, we do think back to the special gifts we've received, but are the most astounding ones the most expensive? Not usually. The ones that really stand out tend to be the ones given with heart. So no matter what your financial situation this Christmas, enjoy it. Enjoy it with everything you've got. If you're filled with the joy of the season, your children will surely sense it. That is the secret ingredient that creates the memories they'll hold dear for the rest of their lives.

To all my readers, I wish you a wonderful and blessed Christmas. May the little ones let you sleep until 6 a.m., may the batteries be all the right size, and may you hug your kids to your heart's content!

Making a List and Checking it Twice

Ah, the rush of Christmas! It can really get the old ticker going if you're not careful. In these last few days before Christmas, here is a little help for making the most of your time.

I love to give the advice of making lists. That's because as soon as you write something down, it's out of your head. A few nights ago, I woke up at 3:30. My son has been waking up about this time lately, but not that night. My biological clock took that time to keep me awake thinking about the baked goods I hadn't finished yet, and "I'd better not forget - I need to find some celery root. And I'm out of ribbon!" If I would have had a pen and paper next to the bed, I could have written it down and emptied my busy head enough to go back to sleep. I did get the lists done next day, however. There's the Christmas grocery list, the menu plan, the things-to-clean list.

When you're traveling with kids, there's so much to pack that something invariably gets left behind. We went to an indoor botanical garden last weekend for their amazing Christmas display. Unfortunately, I forgot the spare outfit. My son proceeded to load his diaper. And his pants. And his shirt. And his snowsuit... This was just a short trip; no big-time preparations were made. But when you're going out of town or visiting, you're probably planning on being gone for a little longer than an hour or two. Again, lists are the way to go. Make a list of what needs to go in the diaper bag and put the list next to the diaper bag. Then when you pack, there's no searching for a missing list. Write down how many of what - how many diapers, how many bottles... you won't be taken by surprise when it's time to pack.

Oh, and here's a nice tip for the grocery lists: Keep a paper handy to write down whatever you think of, and do it right away so you don't forget. When it's time to shop, rewrite the list. Sound obsessive? Well, it will save you heaps of time at the store; when you rewrite it, organize the items in the order they occur at the store. So if you usually tackle produce first, start the list with produce, etc. Whenever I neglect to do this because I'm in too much of a hurry, I end up running back and forth in the store looking for things, and I always miss at least one item. Take a pen with you to the store so you can mark things off as you go. Then you won't accidentally miss anything and have to go back later.

My wish to all of you, mommies around the globe, is a peaceful Christmas! May you have enough wrapping paper, never run out of eggs at the crucial baking moment, and have plenty of time left over to read the Christmas story to your little ones!