Gifts were less about cost and more about the person who gave them to you. I remember the year that Santa actually made a special appearance in my Papaw s living room. That was the year I got a Barbie with an orange outfit similar to the ones we wore as baton twirlers. She even had on orange nylons. Even though that was decades ago, I still have that doll. But the one tradition my family had every year was sitting around Papaw and Mamaw s tree as soon as it got dark to open presents.
Again, it was less about the present I got, than about being there with cousins, aunts, and uncles we only saw once a year. It was mostly about Papaw pulling the packages from under the tree one by one and calling out our names. My husband Shawn and I have strarted special traditions for our children now. I think one of the most fun is making a gingerbread house every year.
The kids love it, especially when after much anticipation, I finally tell them it’s okay to sneak a bite of candy or a piece of cookie with icing, and then give them a big mug of hot cocoa with marshmallows to wash it down. With all that sugar in them, it’s amazing when they finally fall asleep. We follow with our next tradition, all of us piling up on the couch to watch Christmas movies and cartoons. My favorite one from my childhood was always “Year Without a Santa Claus” with the Heat Miser.
I spent several harrowing months a few years back trying to find that movie on DVD before I realized the name of it. Now it has a special place by the TV at Christmas. Something new we did this year, which I would highly reccommend for families with young children is a ride on a Christmas train. We went to New Haven, not far from Lexington, for our first train ride ever. Our three young children wore their pajamas, just like they do on the Polar Express movie.