Santa kind of gives me the creeps. I mean think about it. We tell our kids to stay away from strangers, but one time a year we take them and not only have them talk to a stranger, but actually put them on his lap. His lap! *Shiver* Is that not a little odd to you? It's a little odd to me. And actually when I think about how many Santa's laps I sat on as a kid it weirds me out. Ewwww.
That was my rant about the oddities of Christmas,..at least for the time being. So I'll grace you with the real subject of this blog now, if you're still reading- and I so hope you are. Come on, you know you wanna!
I've always loved Christmas. Well I mean who doesn't love it as a kid, right? But even as an adult I looked forward to the holiday season. Not because of the gifts or the tree, or Santa whom kind of gives me the creeps, but because it meant Christmas baking and cooking, and gift making.
The idea of making gifts - either edible or not- gives me a happy happy joy joy feeling from my toes all the way to the roots of my hair. You know the feeling,....you get shivers and it feels like your hair is about to come unrooted, in a good way ofcourse.
I come from a long line of bakers and makers. My mom's family has always been creative and crafty. We used to get home made gifts every year. Whether this was because it was cheaper, and there were years where my Mom just couldn't afford to pass out store bought gifts to our huge family, or whether it was just something she enjoyed I have no idea. However, I used to love the gifts, and the rest of my family used to oooh and aaaah about them.
One of my favorite Christmas memories is going over to my aunts while my mom and aunt baked and created gifts for family. I was in awe with all the baking ingredients spread out on the table. My little brain couldn't wrap around the idea that theere were so many melting chocolates, sugars, flowers, chips, candies, candy molds etc in one place. I was in candy wonderland.
I can still smell the chocolates melting, and the cookies baking. And almost taste the beaters and the spoons that my mom let me nibble and lick.
My sister and I watched for hours as my Aunt and Mother made creation after creation. Cookies of all shapes, sizes, and flavors; chocolate covered cherries, choc covered pretzels, red crunch bars, peppermint candies, peanut brittle, chocolate suckers, green and chocolate striped mints, the list could go on and on.
They worked on their creations until the wee hours of the morning. My sister and I being just slightly ADD went back and forth from watching the Christmas tv shows to the kitchen. At some point my sister and I settled underneath the table, and fell asleep to the decadent smells. When we awoke the sun was peeking over the horizon leaving a shine across the crunchy day old snow fall. My aunt and mother were packaging their creations in decorated boxes for various family members. Though my stomach was a little achy from all the sneak test tastes I'd taken, I loved seeing all the beautiful boxes and all the pretty creations.
As an adult I've tried to continue the tradition. I'll be the first to admit that over the past few years I totally dropped the ball. But hey, it's hard to get in the Christmas spirit of things when you are recovering from divorce one year, expecting a baby at the end of the month the next year, and trying to finish up your second semester of going back to college the next year.
However this year I have made an effort to put the fun back into the creating and making and all the memories have wafted back. Now it's my children licking, nibbling, and getting that look of pure bliss on their faces. Not only do I get to make gifts for people that mean something to me, but I get to give the gift of continuing the tradition to my children.
One day they will have warm memories to hang onto as they stand in their own kitchens with their own children. Ahhh that makes me feel all warm and fuzzy,...either that or a little nauseated at the thought of them being that grown up. YIKES!
So I challenge you all. Make some memories. More than presents, or money, or all the "things" that Christmas can sometimes be about, it's about the memories. People won't always remember what gift they received for Christmas. Children won't remember the toy that broke two days later, but the memories,....yes the memories, they last forever.
