Our first Christmas with Jane was great, if not a bit stressful. It seems most people forget what it is like to have an infant and have a lot of expectations for what we should be able to do! When your baby's fussy time is in the evening, it's difficult to sit at a holiday gathering. It's also hard for people to understand why she gets crabby when she's passed around from person to person every few minutes. It's no fun for her and not really that fun for us, either.
That said, we did have a good Christmas. My favorite part of the weekend was our little family Christmas with just the three of us on Christmas morning. I wish we had had more time with just our little family, but other obligations mean that isn't possible. It is still so hard for me to share my daughter with others! I just want her all to myself.
Here is the column I wrote this week about Jane's first Christmas.
As you can imagine, my daughter was the center of attention this Christmas. It’s almost as fun as the good old days when yours truly was the center of attention. Or maybe it’s even better.
As expected, Jane’s first Christmas was much more exciting for the rest of us than it was for her. She did get some new toys that she loves, including a sock monkey from her nostalgic parents.
She did not get her first Barbie, even though her Grandma Janet thought she might need one. I told her there was no way a two-and-a-half-month-old would like a Barbie. Imagine my surprise when Jane’s eyes lit up at the sight of her cousin’s new Barbie! She just might take after her aunt, who never did like baby dolls and much preferred Barbie! The story of how she wrote all over her new baby doll’s face because she wanted a Barbie instead is legendary in our family.
Since I can say whatever I want here, I’d like to take this time to brag on my niece and share one of the sweetest gifts Jane received this Christmas. My niece is in third grade, and up until October was the baby of the family. You would think she might be a little bit jealous, but she adores her new cousin.
Morgan used her own money to buy Jane a Christmas gift. She bought her a card, and wrapped the gift herself. It makes me tear up a little bit just thinking about it. What a thoughtful, wonderful thing to do!
We still have two more Christmases to attend this week, even though we have already attended three and had our own little celebration at home on Christmas morning with just the three of us. Normally I’d be all Christmassed-out by this time, but I don’t think I’ll ever tire of celebrating with our little girl. Every moment has been truly priceless.
Even though I know there will be many wonderful holidays to come, I’m not ready for Jane’s first Christmas to be over just yet. There are some moments in live I could live over and over again, and this is one of them.
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Having my own little girl brings the memories of my own childhood Christmases rushing back. Those magical Christmas Eves spent at Grandma Scherbart’s. Our family gift opening on Christmas morning. Heading out to Grandma Widman’s in the afternoon. All of these combined to make for many special holidays.
One of the most memorable Christmas mornings was the year I came downstairs to discover that Santa had not only brought me several Strawberry Shortcake dolls, he had set them up in the living room for me! It was like walking in on toys who had been playing amongst themselves and stopped when I entered the room. I think if I could recreate this today for myself, I would still think it was neat.
Now that I’m a parent, I can start planning such things of my own. I can’t wait to make Jane’s Christmases as special as mine were growing up!
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