Christmas time is near!
We are beginning to decorate our homes and preparing for Jesus’ birthday! In my house, I have a 12 year old son and 6 year old daughter so their Christmas experiences are a little different. For us, a few of years ago is when the magic of Christmas faded for our son. We began to try and think of ways to keep Christmas fun and magical for him.
We are part of the crazy fad of Elf of the Shelf.
I get it. It is a lot; there are times people go overboard, and let’s be honest, it is one more thing for us moms to remember to do before we go to bed. There are lots of reasons for it NOT to work for your family. However, this Elf of the Shelf dude named Bernie has made Christmas fun for us as a family! Our son Micah is responsible for Bernie every night. He gets pretty creative and LOVES to see his sister’s face light up in the morning as they race to see who will find Bernie first.
Micah enjoys being part of the process of keeping the spirit alive for his sister. I would like to think that we are aiding in his creative side.
In the scheme of time, it is only one month out of the year, and I figure I have until my youngest turns about 8, and then it will be old news. For now, we will keep playing and finding fun places for Bernie to hide. Although this year we have doorknobs (can I get an AMEN?!), so Micah might have to find another place for Bernie to hang out!
In our house, anything that I can do during this season to see BOTH my kids’ faces light up, it is worth it!
There is a lot of pressure to make each and every Christmas magical. I will tell you the things that I remember and cherish over the past 12 Christmases have nothing to do with gifts and everything to do with memories. Pajama movie night on Christmas Eve after church, hot chocolate as often as possible while we snuggle in our pjs, and Christmas light tour around Baton Rouge. There is nothing we can give our children that will mean more to them than quality time with all of us.
If you have older children who are maybe over the whole Christmas season, I challenge you to find something fun for them to do.
