Christmas simplified.

Halloween is over and people, it's like it never even exsisted. The shelves at WallyMart are stocked high with Christmas candy. Festive M&M's. Ribbon wrapped Ferraro Rocher. Fancy boxes of assorted chocolates available at every price point. Inflatable Santas and snowmen stand proudly on display. Boxes of Christmas cards. Gift packs of toiletries. Artificial Christmas trees. In the last 5 days I have seen no less that half a dozen Christmas themed commercials. Toy ads are on the rise. Like it or not, the Christmas season has arrived.

Mike and I are on our game this year. Since we are aware that funding is limited this year, we've been taking advantage of the dirt cheap prices at Toys R Us and Wally's ad-matching policy. Throw in Mike's discount and we're rubbing our hands together and cackling with glee. Mike is certain WalMart is going to catch on to our little scheme and shut us down any day now. Yep we're getting such great deals it feels like stealing.

So with the Christmas shopping started it's time to figure out what's going on for Christmas. Now last year Mike and I were in agreement that some changes needed to be made. The way we've been celebrating Christmas since becoming a family has quickly gotten out of hand. The girls have a multitude of Grandparents. Generous Grandparents. In years past we've attempted to cram as much into one or two days as possible. Our thinking was it would be better than if we dragged it out over a few days. Last year we realized that wasn't working at all. By the time we got to our Christmas dinner destination (Papa and Grandma Linda's) I was bribing Abby to open her gifts and that tactic didn't work for long. In the end, I believe, Papa opened most of Abby's presents. So this year it's time to simplify. Time to streamline. Time to put more focus on the family. Our family. The four of us. And that is in no way a slight to our parents. I think focusing on us will lead to a better Christmas experience for everyone. Mike's dad said something very wise to me last Christmas, "Make the kids happy because in my experience if they aren't happy, then you aren't happy. The rest of us will have to fall in line."

So taking that advice Mike and I decided the first thing that had to go was our traditional Christmas Eve dinner with my Aunts and Uncles. We've been having dinner with them my entire life and I've struggled with the thought of letting it go. I know some people will be disappointed (my cousin for one, my Mom for another although she'll lie to me and tell me it's fine). As much as I don't like the idea, skipping this dinner makes the most sense for us in terms of a more enjoyable Christmas. We'll lose the travel time to my cousin's house, which is over an hour round trip and the girls will be in bed at a reasonable time. For Abby, especially, this is very important since messing with her sleep always results in a night terror and, quite frankly, cleaning up vomit and/or listening to my child's blood curdling screams doesn't exactly put me in the festive mood. Mike and I are the only couple at my family dinner who are dealing with a fractured family situation. No one else has three sets of parents who need to be accomadated. Staying home Christmas Eve frees up a night for a set of Grandparents rather than cramming everyone into Christmas Day, which we have done. Also having the girls receive their gifts in smaller doses will be more enjoyable for them (the receivers) and for the Grandparents (the givers). There will be time for playing, exploring and just being together without the clock hanging over us.

Christmas morning I think will also be declared a time just for us. For the girls to experience the wonder of Santa. In previous years we've had Grandma Sandi over for breakfast, but it gets to be a little overwhelming. We found last year there was simply too much going on for Abby to be able to really enjoy any of it. Then of course there was the tick tock of the clock. A deadline. The rush to get ready for the next engagement. This Christmas I'd like to get up with the kids not with an alarm clock. I'd like to be able to laze around in my jammies for a good chunk of the day. I'd like to be able to spend time playing with the girls. To be able to enjoy the moment without worrying where we need to be next. I want to slow it all down. Enjoy traditions. Ones borrowed from my chilhood. From Mike's childhood. New ones we'll make together. This is our family. These are our girls. This is our only shot to make this special.