Christmas Eve

It is almost midnight on Christmas Eve and I am sitting here rocking Devyn in the dark. I am half dreaming of Cade and Dev's joy tomorrow, thinking of all the pictures I want to make sure to take and praying that Cade experiences the magic of Santa and that we blew him away. I am also half reflecting on the season, already sad that it's almost over and thinking of how I wish I did this or that differently. Thank goodness my children are very young and I can streamline the gift shopping, cards, wrapping, and events better next year.

Things I have learned:

- Keep a separate tub of the little gifties tucked away with a list so I can check off what I need. Don't wait until the 24th to buy, buy as you go all season!

- Request a wish list from all family members due to you before Thanksgiving. Shop early as possible and stick to the budget for once. Jeeez.

- label each Christmas decor box by room, so you can easily decorate and remember where you like to traditionally put stuff.

- keep old Christmas photos in the frames you use all year. I like to rotate seasonally with my fave family pics all season.

- Start a scrapbook of Christmas photo cards friends send out along with fave recipes you tried that year and maybe a few family pics or memories from that holiday season.

- Have a checklist of family holiday activities planned on Dec. 1, schedule in a couple of outings each weekend in December.

- Host a gingerbread house decorating day for the kids and their fun moms!

- Do one family community outreach activity, like making cards for the elderly in nursing homes or volunteering at SPCA or buying gifts for a family in need.

- Have a crafting day with girlfriends the last weekend in November to make Christmas decorations or wreaths.

- plant more bushes and crepe myrtles in the spring/summer so we have more places to hang our Christmas lights!

- Buy a big, pre lit artificial tree and put it out the first week in December! No more stringing lights artfully on a real tree (the Martha Stewart method I use takes me 2-3 days to achieve the desired glow).

- Buy more tissue paper dammit!

- lesson learned: at white elephant gift exchanges your gag gift should include a gift card so the gift is 50% gag and 50% useful! Soooo embarrassed to get it wrong this year!

- shop for tacky Christmas sweaters all year round.

- Make sure to pay attention to children's holiday movies, they explain a lot of Santa magic.