This is the first Christmas season where I haven't been with Mom and Dad for at least part of the season. So I guess that is making me a little sentimental. This post is mainly for them, so the rest of you can stop reading now...unless of course you want to be sentimental with me!
Today as I was reflecting on my list of to do's for the Christmas season, I was struck with how different this Christmas is from any other I have experienced before. I began thinking about what gifts I needed to buy for Stefan and Brian, what goodies I needed to make and the many other things that come up during this season. Then it hit me. If there are no gifts under the tree on Christmas morning, I'm responsible. If there are no yummy goodies to snack on throughout this season, I'm responsible. If there aren't festive decorations around the house, I'm responsible. What about those special traditions done only at Christmas time? If they aren't happening in my home, I'm responsible. Why? Because I'm Mommy.
All those wonderful gifts, beautifully wrapped didn't just appear. My Mom had to plan and make it happen. Sure I helped bake some of those goodies, but if Mom hadn't been there it wouldn't have happened. And those wonderful Christmas memories? Someone made it all happen so that Christmas was always one of my favorite times of the year.
Even last year. I was nine months pregnant with Stefan. And guess who came in just before Christmas, almost like a Santa. Mom. She made sure there were gifts a plenty under the tree. Our stockings were stuffed full to bursting, and there were tons of yummy treats. We were in my home, but it was Mom that made it all happen.
This year, for the very first time, Mom isn't here. It's completely up to me. I'm glad I can at least talk on the phone and get "help" in that way! Mom, I miss you dreadfully, but I'm thrilled to this year be THE MOM. I hope to pass on as many wonderful memories and traditions to my family as you did to me.
12 comments:
Thank you, Sweetie. That is all I can say for now as I am bawling my head off! This is a first for us, too--only I don't think it is as exciting on this end. We miss you so much but know you will make it a special Christmas for your little family.
That was so sweet - and so true.
You didn't make me cry, no, absolutely not.
Thanks for a well written post. I love you Mom.
Jo, are you going to make any Molasses cookies? They may not be worth eating, but they're bound to have a lot of sentimental value.
Excellent. How much we realize - when we're responsible - all the things our mothers did/do. Praying for you, MOMMY - enjoy your Christmas and enjoying making it very special for your men. :-)
Yup, the torch has been passed and you are it!:) I am sure you will do a great job coming up with your own Hanson family traditions! It is amazing what an influence a mother can have, isn't it? I STILL marvel at my mother!
Now THAT was precious...thanks for letting me be part of it! You are one sweet Mommy who will make Christmas special for her dear family.
Well, I do have to say that Mom set a standard for Christmas that will take years to duplicate -- at least in our home. I remember in Africa waking up one morning and finding new shoes stuffed with candy ten days before Christmas. Just to get us in the spirit of Christmas, I think. Christmas time was a spectacular season for me growing up and I know that it was due to Mom who valiantly spared us from Dad's occasional bouts of conviction that trees and such were over the top. Mom stood strong for over-the-top Christmases. That's why I think we kids remember them with such nostalgia.
I still love Christmas, but I have to admit that it's lost some charm now that I'm paying the bill. I've even experienced tremors of anti-over-the-topness that must have been Dad's affliction long before he finally yielded to Mom's Christmas zeal and became a Santa hat-toting, Luke 2-reading zealot of yuletide cheer himself.
Johanna, it seems like you're picking up the mantel. Good for you!
MERRY CHRISTMAS!
Right Bob. I always had problems with Dear Old Santa, but became a firm believer in mere noel.
Thank you for writing so beautifully about this rite of passage. I was married and 23 the first Christmas that I spent away from my parents. I remember those feelings well. Now you will be able to make your own traditions, while keeping some from your mother. One that my mother had was making pasties (pie crust filled with hamburger, pototes, and carrots) for Christmas eve. I adapted that tradition and now Sarah has carried it on in her family as well.
Have a wonderful holiday season!!
That was sweet, Jo.
It is fun to carry on some traditions and create others.
Love you... and thank you, Mom, as well. Love you, too.
So, Johanna, are you going to make Molasses cookies?
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