I've always loved getting ready for Christmas, but this year was absolutely fantastic. It was so much fun to introduce Benji to the many traditions of Advent and to see his excitement and understanding of these traditions (admittedly only the secular traditions because the real religious importance is far too abstract for a 2-year-old). I'm not quite sure how we're going to wean Benji off of Christmas now that it's over, but for now I'll just reflect on and treasure some of Benji's favorite parts of Christmas.
Christmas carols: Many nights at bedtime I sing various children's songs to Benji as a lullaby. But sometime in November I got tired of singing the same songs and realized I know tons of Christmas songs. By the time Advent rolled around, Benji was familiar with Christmas songs and even had his favorites. The first one we heard him singing on his own was Jingle Bells but he got pretty angry if you asked him to sing it on command. By the end of Christmas I would also hear him singing Frosty the Snowman and Rudolph when he didn't think we were listening. And he certainly had favorites to ask Mommy to sing — "the snowman song" (Frosty), "the reindeer song" (Rudolph), "the drum song" (Little Drummer Boy), "the house song" (a Trans-Siberian Orchestra song that goes with one of the animated light shows on YouTube), and "the tree song" (12 Days of Christmas, think about the partridge in the pear tree).
Christmas lights: I have been completely into Christmas lights for as long as I can remember. The tackier and more outlandish, the better. So it's no wonder that Benji loved the Christmas lights. When Matthew put up the lights outside our house (which isn't a huge display) Benji was so excited. He loved going up to the fake deer and petting them. Imagine his excitement when we went on our annual car tours of the area for light looking! His favorites by far were any of the animated displays where the lights flash and dance in coordination with music. And when we couldn't get out to see lights, YouTube was good for a quick fix!
Christmas presents: On December 6, St. Nicholas visited our house and put a variety of presents in Benji's shoes. He had started figuring out what presents were about at his birthday, so he was really excited by the pile of presents at the front door. For several days after St. Nicholas Day he would periodically declare "Benji present" and troop off to bring us one to open. It was great practice for the big day! One day after all the presents were already opened he declared "Benji present" so Daddy wrapped a piece of paper around the DVD remote and told Benji to put it under the tree. We later found out Benji was putting these "presents" in the lower branches of the tree, not under the tree. So funny!
Christmas TV specials: This is probably the Christmas tradition Benji was least excited about, but he still enjoyed snuggling on the sofa with Mommy to watch "Frosty the Snowman" or cutting cookies while watching "Rudolph." He was not impressed at all by "A Charlie Brown Christmas."
Christmas tree: It took us three days to put up our Christmas tree, but it was worth it to take our time and involve Benji as much as possible. Our artificial tree requires you to find the letters on the branches to get them in the right order and of course Benji was capable and happy to help with that task. When we were finished he declared "Benji make a tree" which is actually a pretty accurate description of the artificial tree process. The next day we let him follow after Mommy holding the lights and garland when I draped those on the tree. And the third day Benji hung most of the ornaments on the tree (and the remaining ones Daddy hung at Benji's direction when he wanted one higher up). And he certainly had his opinions about where the ornaments would go. For example, all of the teddy bear ornaments are on the same branch. I guess he thought they belonged together. This year most of the ornaments are on the bottom three feet of our tree so it's a bit unbalanced, but I wouldn't have it any other way.
Christmas cookies: This year I was both excited and nervous about making Christmas cookies with Benji. I knew he'd love Christmas cookies, but I was nervous he'd either try to eat the dough or track a mess all over the house. So I was thrilled when my mom agreed to help with this adventure. It was so much more fun to share this holiday tradition and easier to get the task accomplished.
We plopped Benji in his high chair to control the mess and give him a good surface to work on. We started with the family crescent cookie recipe and Benji enjoyed playing with the balls of dough and then giving them to Grandma to put on the cookie sheet. He didn't try to eat it at all. Later that day we brought him back for the rolled sugar cookies and cookie cutters. We let him pick which "shape" each time; I think he was partial to the tree and the snowman. He also liked the sprinkles, which didn't surprise me at all given his fondness for Parmesan cheese. Throughout the rest of the Christmas season Benji loved eating the fruits of his labors, asking Daddy for "snowman cookies" on a regular basis. (I'm happy to report that he hasn't asked for one at all since we got back from Iowa, which is good since we don't have any more Christmas cookies.)
Nativity scene: This year I set up my grandmother's nativity set under our Christmas tree for the first time in a while. I figured Benji was well beyond trying to eat the nativity and maybe we could learn a bit about Christmas. The first time Benji saw the stable, he immediately declared "church". I hadn't told him at all what it was so I was thrilled and amazed that he immediately made that association. Then we talked a bit about the baby and his mommy and daddy. And of course we counted the sheep and called the donkey a horse. He treated the whole thing very respectfully and seemed to like the baby Jesus.
i sincerely do not know what you are doing here. are you lost? were you
looking for your delicate calico cat, and did you follow her up two flights of stairs
to this room? she is not here. she was here, yes. we gave her a warm bowl of milk, we talked with her about campaign finance reform for a time, and then she bid us good day. i believe she was
going to the post office two blocks down, but i don't quite recall.
for surely you did
not find your way from prinsiana, the least traveled site on
the internet. if you did, though, perhaps you are looking for humor. perhaps you are looking for profundity. perhaps you are looking for answers.
i'm sorry, but you shall go naught-for-three.
