by Sarah | Nov 17, 2008 | All About Family, Holidays
For the past ten years we have perpetuated the myth of the man. We have struggled and scrimped and saved to continue the tale of a jolly elf. We have gone without gifts to ensure that Brandon had lots of gifts from us and Santa. Last year our budget for all three kids was $500…I won’t say how overbudget we went…but our tree was overflowing. We had disasterous pictures with the man in red. We had a blowout of Christmases like we’d never had before.Â
For the past two years I’ve doubted that Brandon still believed…but the Christmases got bigger as if to reassure him that it was. I’ve continued to push and perpetuate the myth.Â
I spoke a few weeks ago about our plan to simplify Christmas this year. That we decided that just because we COULD have a big Christmas didn’t mean that we should. I was nervous about confronting this fact with Brandon. How would he react, and what would he say?Â
Over the weekend at our family dinner we discussed the matter. Brandon took it with ease. He admitted that it had been “a while” since he really believed in Santa. He has started thinking of appropriate charities to choose for his donation.
And now as I sit here watching the toddlers race around the room I’ve realized something. This year we will see the the death of Santa…the commercialized version. Our girls won’t learn of Santa in the way Brandon did. When we teach them about Santa – they’ll learn of thim being the essence of the holiday spirit. The spirit of giving, not the spirit of hoarding and gathering. Here, in this house, his image will represent something different than he ever has before.Â
Christmas will be about me fililng the house with the smell of hundreds (yes, I do mean that-last year I made 50+ dozen…and we ate them all) of fresh baked cookies. Of preparing a care package for a soldier (our family charitable effort). Of making homemade gifts for family and each other, and spending very little on ourselves. Of donating to a worthy cause as individuals and a family.*
So this year the man in red will be put to rest as he’s been known. And I’m okay with that. I hope that the commercial santa rests in peace. Around here I think our softer version of Santa is a far sight nicer.
*Not bad for a family with a ‘heathen’ as a heart warmer, eh?
by Sarah | Oct 28, 2008 | All About Family, All About Kennedy, All About Molly
In case you missed the news-flash…I was in Buffalo for six days with my kids – and no hubby. Gro-gram (my grandmother) kindly housed us at her place. She had two spare sleeping places – the couch (with a pull-out bed, but who needs that?), and the spare room fully equipped with a full size bed.
Brandon had the luxury of sleeping on the couch. The two girls and I got the spare room with the full size bed. Two toddlers, one of whom still normally sleeps in a crib…and me.  It ended up sort of like this:
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Riley…she was Stretch McGee…lying flat on her back on one of the pillows, long limbs flailed about the bed like she owned it…snoring away (such a sweet snore).
Angel was Snuggle Bug. She’d curl up her tiny little body next to Riley as they slept…and every morning I’d wake to find her twisted in the bed, snuggled against me.
I was left to cope with the remaining little bit of free space. The girls had taken the pillows, so I absconded with one of the little square pillows from the couch w/o much stuffing. One foot hanging off the end of the bed, sometimes both. I got kicked by Riley a few times…I swear the child is only 40″ long…but you put her in bed and she stretches out to twice that size.Â
Needless to say I didn’t get much sleep…but amazingly the sleep I did get was rather sound…especially in the morning when Angel would curl up against me…her little head tucked under my chin…and for an hour while we slept like that…nothing was uncomfortable about that bed.
by Sarah | Oct 20, 2008 | All About Family
The past few days have been a whirlwind of activity. I leave in two days for Buffalo…so we’ve been a little swamped…
~ I’ve shopped ’til I dropped – TWICE – at the resale shop. Making sure the kids drawers were full…and we’d have enough cute clothes to take w/ us to NY.
~ Along with one of those shopping trips we went out to eat.
~ I’ve been doing laundry – also to be sure we had enough cute clothes to take w/ us
~ I’ve been doing cleaning so Archie has a halfway decent home when we leave.
~ I’ve been doing laundry – wait, did I say that already? Yeah, well, it’s taking over my life, it might as well take over my post.
~ I’ve been pre-writing posts for my absence. I may actually post more when I’m gone than when I’m actually here – scary.
~ Oh, and we’ve done a little of this:
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~ And have I mentioned that I’ve also been doing laundry?! Yeah…THAT much. Family of 5, you know…some of whom really need to start wearing clothes more than once before they end up in the laundry.
~ Getting as much chat and play time in w/ my best bud Jess as I possibly can before I leave to the land of no computer (I can feel my withdrawals starting already)
by Sarah | Oct 17, 2008 | All About Family
For the past two months one of our neighbors has been taking Brandon to Wednesday night church with her kids. We don’t attend church and I have my own beliefs, but I believe my kids should make their own choices with religion, so I don’t mind him going.Â
Two weeks ago I was driving into my neighborhood and I saw this family across the street from their house in the large church yard. It’s a common sight. The family goes over and plays football or baseball, or plays basketball in the street. Any neighborhood child that comes along is welcome to join.
The mother is ill with MS and cannot work or play with them as much, but she is always outside sitting down in a chair, blanket on her lap in the cold, watching and cheering them on.
As I drove past them two weeks ago playing ball in the church yard I remember clearly thinking, ‘What a wonderful family. They are always out doing that.’ They have always been nice to Brandon, and while kids will be kids (and therefore sometimes be not-so-nice) – the kids have been nice to Brandon, too.Â
Like all families they’ve had their struggles and problems, but watching them play ball in the yard you could see that things were good.Â
Last night their father was killed five miles from our homes. He was driving home from work when a guy (with a .21 blood alcohol level) raced through the intersection he was crossing and all but demolished his car. He died in the helicopter on the way to the hospital.Â
The word was passed quietly from neighbor to neighbor last night, and I was faced with telling Brandon. In typical Brandon-style (so like my own) at first he was fine, calm even. I knew it wasn’t sinking in, he wasn’t getting it. But when he came out a short while later, the tears were quick to fall. This man had been nice to him, was the father of his friends.Â
I’m still trying to figure out how to help Brandon deal with it. I’m still trying to figure out how to deal with it, myself. I wasn’t close with these people, but they were our neighbors and they were good to our kid. She still has children to care for, and her own illness to deal with. I’m certain that our friends and neighbors will get together and figure out a way to help out…but right now I’m just stunned…
And left realizing again that every moment is precious and to treasure it.
