Do it For yourself

For at least 30 years, I have been decorating the house at Christmas.  Now, I know that Christmas is about the birth of Christ and our family celebrates that.  We also realize that it is a season of giving and we try to remember people we care about with gifts.  Shopping is an adventure in and of itself.  But so is decorating.  I have spent a lifetime decorating and believing that I was doing it for the kids.  Finally, this year I realized and admitted to myself that the decorations do not matter as much to the kids as they mean to me.

When it comes time to get the boxes out of the closet, a house full of adult sized children can disappear faster than Houdini ever imagined.  I can usually hunt them down and convince a few of the boys to help by whining about my age.  The boxes make it downstairs and the children disappear again.  In years past, I have yelled, complained and yes, even cried because of the lack of help.
This year, I even mentioned to "Doc" that I would like to have a broken leg next year at decorating time, just to see if anyone would help and pick up the slack.  He assures me that there is an easier way.

For the first time, I decorated the house for me.  I unwrapped each item and remembered where it came from.  I remembered who gave it to us and when.  Some of the items came from people who are no longer here to celebrate, and yet with their gifts we are able to enjoy them each Christmas.  I have collected a massive amount of decorations over the past 32 years. 

I have reached the point where we have theme rooms in the house.  The office is Christmas cartoons and characters, Nutcrackers, and a small tree that holds silver ornaments from a local shop.  The walkway to the office has all of my Clothtique Santas.  The main living room is full of Santas of every shape and size.  The dining room has Angels and Nativities.  The Kitchen and mudroom are reserved for Snowmen and Penguins.

This year, I did it for me. I loved every minute of cleaning, I did not stress, cry or scream.  Christmas is coming and I am enjoying every minute of it.  Life is too short to stress over so many things.  This Christmas, I will smile all the way to the 25th and into the New Year!