A Very Merry Homemade Christmas

The first Christmas that I was a mother I found myself quite concerned with what Christmas would be like for our family. I knew, above all, I was determined not to be excessive and to raise grateful children whose sense of appreciation for the holidays came more from the events than the gifts. That being said, I think there is something ingrained in us that makes us want to pile up the presents under the tree. There is an appeal to seeing little faces light up when they awake to a mountain of gifts that magically appeared overnight. Maybe it's because it makes me reminiscent of my childhood.

My husband and I have talked about this (and things like birthdays as well) and I think we have a good grasp on a healthy balance. We try to base our gift giving off of needs, what will have longevity in our house, and quality over quantity. The biggest thing I've had to do is STAY OUT OF THE STORES! It is so easy to get caught up in all the hype and advertisements (and finding great bargains seems to be my knack, but if we don't need it or won't use it for long how great of a deal is it really?) And we also are setting traditions like tree decorating, cookie baking, family movies nights, and other things to make sure the holiday season is more than the gifts on Christmas morning.

This year we have made a good effort for the majority of the things going under our tree to be homemade or something we have had our hands on in some way. I'm excited to see the girls rip open packages and find things to love that we have already poured so much love into. Amelia has helped with the making/baking of gifts for family and friends this year so hopefully she will feel that same excitement as we share them.

So far we have decorated our tree, hung our stockings, torn our rings off our paper chain, watched Christmas movies, baked breads and cookies, and sipped hot chocolate. Here's to a very merry homemade Christmas 2012!