Christmas decorations

I have loads of warm and fun memories around Christmas. I love most of the music, the decorations, the lights and the way the whole atmosphere just changes for a couple weeks. Watching my daughter this past week getting all excited about the Christmas music and decorations made me smile and realize another aspect I love about this time of year. It just brings out the kid in me. I think that is part of the appeal.

No one can really claim to the have the perfect family and I am no different, but there was something about the time from Thanksgiving to January 6, that just seemed to always bring out the best in the family. Thanksgiving dinner was a big deal that included way too much food as it had to cover both the traditional American cuisine and some of the elements the Filipino cuisine. So dinner would include a turkey, lumpia, punsit, stuffing, ambrosia, cranberry sauce, etc. Same thing would happen on New Year's Day. Both days would involve a game or two of street football or just some time running passes or playing catch.


In the days leading up to Christmas there was the tree hunt where we would go out to some local farm to cut our own tree. We would decorate it while listening to Mom's music collection such as the Osmond Family Christmas or Johnny Mathis. We'd have egg nog in our special cups. There would be the the critiques from Mom that we were hanging too many ornaments in place or clumping the tinsel.

Christmas Eve, my sibllings would camp out in my room because it was downstairs and closer to the Santa action. We'd tell stories and and try to stay up to hear when Santa came. We did this until I left the house for college.

So, now is the time to start some similiar traditions in our house.

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving was warm, cozy and simple. No stress. No muss. Friends and family gathered at my sister in law's home. The weather was perfect and we were able to take the girls to the park while dinner finished cooking. We played. We talked and relaxed.


There was a fun element to the dinner. The secret ingredient was corn. Yep, each person was assigned to bring a dish that used some element of corn in it . . . corn flour, corn meal, corn, corn nuts, corn syrup, etc. We brought turkey tamales as an appetizer. Others brought ChexMix with corn nuts in it, corn relish, corn bread stuffing, corn ice cream (apparently very popular in the Philippines) and pies made with corn meal crust. Yes, I tried the corn ice cream which was ok, but the texture kind of made it not something I would try again. There was also shredded carrot in it.


But, for the sentimental softy side of me, the best part of the day came the next day. My sister in law who hosted the dinner, bought a Promise Basket in all of the guests names from Heifer International. It was a wonderful reminder of all the things we have to be thankful for this year and that we have the ability to share our bounty with others.

There are lots of ways to give back to society. I have donated money and time to various charities over the years. I have purchased from places that have a cause they support such as Greatergood.com or the Breast Cancer site.

However, I was thinking that is even a simpler, cheaper way to give a little and that is to be polite and share a little kindness on a regular basis everyday. Be a courteous driver and maybe let someone merge in front of you once in awhile. Hold a door for someone. Smile more often. Get outside and meet your neighbors. Talk to your checker at the check-out line instead of gazing off into space as you are hypnotized by the drone of the scanner beeping your items. I am just thinking of some ways I have tried to be more polite and I usually feel better about it.

I think it is just a matter of taking a breath and a moment to realize we have so much to be grateful for and to be negative, closed in and impatient is just a waste of time and energy. I see examples everyday that there are far worse things in life than to be cut-off in traffic.