There is a local family that goes all out with their Christmas decorations every year. Santa frequently stops by to pose for DIY photos, and they even have a snow making machine installed on the side of their house. They also collect for the NW Harvest food drive every year.
Every where you look is decorated, every square foot of the lawn. Aaron and I marveled at how much was involved. Not just the electricity, but the hours of work that must have been involved. I can’t even wrap my head around the planning, organization, and storage considerations for this annual project.
Gem marveled at the whole thing, too. “Mommy, Mommy, look, look!” Over and over again. Everything was so amazing.
It is a bit gaudy, and definitely over the top, but that’s part of the appeal. I love a little exuberance every once in a while; it can be so freeing and refreshing.
When Gem grew out of her first baby shoes, I couldn’t bear to get rid of them. I wanted to keep them, but I didn’t want them just tucked away in a box for decades either.
I didn’t know what to do with them until we started putting up our Christmas tree.
Now, they are included among our most cherished Christmas ornaments. Yes, they spend most of the year tucked away in a box, but they bring a smile each holiday season.
How did I do this? Simple, just threat a little string through the loop in the back. For one pair, I poked a small hole in the back and threaded string through with a needle, but most of the baby shoes had a place to attach the string already.
The spirit of Christmas is strong with my child. She was so concerned that there was no present for Grandma under the tree, that she set about to rectify the situation. It’s worth noting that Grandma lives in Alaska, and there were no plans for her to visit us for Christmas, my little girl just wanted to make sure Grandma was represented in our Christmas.
First she needed a present, so she got one of my shoes.
ONE shoe.
She spent a great deal of time wrapping that shoe. Maybe even half an hour.
Daddy had to intervene to keep her from using up an entire roll of tape. But she did get to use a few pieces.
Then she made a label, so everyone would know who the present was to, and who it was from.
She got some help with spelling, but wrote the entire label herself.
And then proudly placed the label on the package, and put the package under the tree.
Her approach to Christmas was not exclusively altruistic, she also wrote a letter to Santa with a list of items that she wanted.
Transcription:
Dear Santa I like you Please bring me train bicycle mermaid doll train tracks rock bow (for her hair) toy grouch
I hope your day was also full of love, joy, and magic.
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