Yes, life has recently gotten in the way of my blog. 2 school field trips and my Mom was here visiting for 2 weeks while my step Dad was in Hawaii on an all guys golf extravaganza. It was so great to have my Mom here and so touched my heart watching her with my children. I think sometimes in our quest to become parents we tend to forget that in the process we are also making grandparents and how that is also a wondrous thing to behold. I feel so lucky that my children have 4 grandparents and that they are close to all of them. My parents and my husband's parents were so supportive, encouraging and excited about each of our adoptions and that certainly has overflowed into their relationship with them. From the first day we brought our children home, I never underestimated the value, meaning and importance of their bonding with our families. Part of my "It takes a village" philosophy.
In the past 7 years that I have been a mother, I could not have made it through without these people in my life lending a helping hand, an extra set of arms and advice, both taken and ignored. My niece, Maegan, who is now 19 and away at college was one person who has always been at the top of the heap in love, attention and encouragement for my children and myself. She was only 11 when we started our first adoption. I could not have imagined back then that such a young girl would become key in our parenting journey. She is probably (aside from ourselves) the best role model and positive influence my children have had, and I hope that I have often and profusely told her this.
All this brings me to my feelings about this time of year.
FAMILY
THE HOLIDAY SEASON
Before my children arrived at my hearth, I always loved the holidays. Maybe that is because my parents also loved the holidays and made a big production of them. We celebrated the same when I was 23 as when I was 3. Since we never lived near any of our relatives, we would faithfully make the 6 or 8 hour journey south to our grandparents house and celebrate the holiday with a houseful of cousins, Aunts and Uncles and a roomful of sleeping pallets on the living room floor at night. Bedtime was always preceeded by a contentious discussion about who would have to sleep on the end, the middle being the coveted spot. The two days of cooking for Thanksgiving and the traditions of Christmas Eve and waking to Santa Claus' bounty. For the 17 years I was married but not yet a parent, I thought I was still getting the most out of the season. I decorated for Halloween, Turkey Day and to the 9th degree for Christmas. Coordinating and handmade wrapping paper and delicate ornaments on our freshly cut tree. Orchestral and acoustical Christmas carols playing the background,mistletoe and Poinsetta's hanging and arranged on every surface. Nightly drives to look at Christmas lights after a festive and romantic dinner out.
We celebrate the same now.
Well sorta.
Halloween decor still abounds the month of October.
We still cook for two days for Thanksgiving.
I still have a wrapping paper theme, but it tends to be Snowmen, or Santa or Disney.
No tree ornaments will break no matter how many times it gets dropped or thrown, or bitten.
Our Christmas music is now "Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer" and 300 playings of Wayne Newton's "Rocking Around the Christmas Tree" by our dancing Snowman.
I won't mention the carol singing Bass or the clock that plays a Christmas tune on the hour.
My mistletoe is silk and my poinsetta's are out of reach and(gasp) pink, since now my two little elves get a say so in the decorating choices.
We still have our annual night of driving around looking at Christmas nights. But now the meal is at Mickey D's or if I'm lucky TGIFridays. And usually about 30 minutes into the drive, an announcement is proclaimed from the back seat that "This is SOOOO Boringgggg!"
My closet under the stairs is already bursting with Santa's booty and I am itching to get my beautiful Martha Stewart artificial tree out of the attic. It will be glowing , not with the all white or all red lighting theme of back in the day. It is now merrily a celebration of every color and type of light that Target sells, because well, the old way was deemed boring.
As we move into this holiday season, I am once again feeling the blessings of my children. Once again Thanking God that I dreamed and held fast not once, but twice through the long and crooked road of Russian adoption. My children just make everything sweeter and give me reason to indulge my inner child. To relive my wonderful childhood memories. To carry on traditions and make new ones of our own.
I heard this morning on the news that "Christmas" was back.
The word, not the Holiday.
Funny, I missed the memo that it had ever left.
In the past 7 years that I have been a mother, I could not have made it through without these people in my life lending a helping hand, an extra set of arms and advice, both taken and ignored. My niece, Maegan, who is now 19 and away at college was one person who has always been at the top of the heap in love, attention and encouragement for my children and myself. She was only 11 when we started our first adoption. I could not have imagined back then that such a young girl would become key in our parenting journey. She is probably (aside from ourselves) the best role model and positive influence my children have had, and I hope that I have often and profusely told her this.
All this brings me to my feelings about this time of year.
FAMILY
THE HOLIDAY SEASON
Before my children arrived at my hearth, I always loved the holidays. Maybe that is because my parents also loved the holidays and made a big production of them. We celebrated the same when I was 23 as when I was 3. Since we never lived near any of our relatives, we would faithfully make the 6 or 8 hour journey south to our grandparents house and celebrate the holiday with a houseful of cousins, Aunts and Uncles and a roomful of sleeping pallets on the living room floor at night. Bedtime was always preceeded by a contentious discussion about who would have to sleep on the end, the middle being the coveted spot. The two days of cooking for Thanksgiving and the traditions of Christmas Eve and waking to Santa Claus' bounty. For the 17 years I was married but not yet a parent, I thought I was still getting the most out of the season. I decorated for Halloween, Turkey Day and to the 9th degree for Christmas. Coordinating and handmade wrapping paper and delicate ornaments on our freshly cut tree. Orchestral and acoustical Christmas carols playing the background,mistletoe and Poinsetta's hanging and arranged on every surface. Nightly drives to look at Christmas lights after a festive and romantic dinner out.
We celebrate the same now.
Well sorta.
Halloween decor still abounds the month of October.
We still cook for two days for Thanksgiving.
I still have a wrapping paper theme, but it tends to be Snowmen, or Santa or Disney.
No tree ornaments will break no matter how many times it gets dropped or thrown, or bitten.
Our Christmas music is now "Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer" and 300 playings of Wayne Newton's "Rocking Around the Christmas Tree" by our dancing Snowman.
I won't mention the carol singing Bass or the clock that plays a Christmas tune on the hour.
My mistletoe is silk and my poinsetta's are out of reach and(gasp) pink, since now my two little elves get a say so in the decorating choices.
We still have our annual night of driving around looking at Christmas nights. But now the meal is at Mickey D's or if I'm lucky TGIFridays. And usually about 30 minutes into the drive, an announcement is proclaimed from the back seat that "This is SOOOO Boringgggg!"
My closet under the stairs is already bursting with Santa's booty and I am itching to get my beautiful Martha Stewart artificial tree out of the attic. It will be glowing , not with the all white or all red lighting theme of back in the day. It is now merrily a celebration of every color and type of light that Target sells, because well, the old way was deemed boring.
As we move into this holiday season, I am once again feeling the blessings of my children. Once again Thanking God that I dreamed and held fast not once, but twice through the long and crooked road of Russian adoption. My children just make everything sweeter and give me reason to indulge my inner child. To relive my wonderful childhood memories. To carry on traditions and make new ones of our own.
I heard this morning on the news that "Christmas" was back.
The word, not the Holiday.
Funny, I missed the memo that it had ever left.
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