Day 43

Today I woke up determined to tackle decorating the house for Christmas.

I swear I will first clean up the frosting that is still on my table.

How is it so incredibly hard for me to just go do it, when I have cleaned almost everything else? It is like that one task is just too much.

Hello world, my name is Nicole, and I am a frosting cleaning procrastinator.

Today my house will smell like cinnamon candles and holiday music will be playing, and my house will eventually be filled with deep evergreens and crimson reds and silver and gold splashes.

It will hopefully evoke the holiday spirit that is severely lacking in my being.

This time of year I usually have already captured a holiday picture and picked out, if not ordered holiday cards. I told Nathan that I am making an appointment for a family picture this week. I feel like I need to jump start myself into the season this year.

I read all these posts from friends who were out black friday shopping, and some who even boasted of being done with holiday shopping already. It overwhelmed me, and quite frankly gave me a massive headache. Maybe part of that is my extreme hatred of the way this holiday season has been over-marketed and shoved down our throats as early as Halloween now. Maybe it is because when I enter a mall (which is rare) during the holiday season, I get hot and dizzy and have urges to run for the nearest exit. Maybe it is because I am a believer that gifts should, for the most part, be from the heart, and thoughtful, and I want my children to be grateful for what they have and what they are given, which is pretty hard when they have so many toys they don't even know what they have.
I have said this before, but it is a tradition that I am grateful my kids accept and willingly participate in, prior to each birthday and to Christmas, my kids go through all of their toys and fill a bag to donate. If they are acquiring new items, I feel like they need to get rid of the ones they no longer use. It has helped my kids understand there are some children that do not have as many toys as them. It has taught my children not to hold on to things they no longer use. It has helped cut down on the clutter that can be overwhelming when you have children.

The kids went through their toy boxes this weekend, and boy did it feel good to go donate things with them.

Off I go to take down the fall decorations and make way for snowmen and santas.