5 more sleeps.

So at this point in the year, things are wrapping up (no pun intended) quickly, and the excitement and anticipation of Christmas has taken full-on hold of the house.  Morning calendar movements and chocolate calendars, Charlie the Elf hiding spots, Christmas movies and even board games have pretty well taken over daily life at this point.

In addition to the usual fun, we had the chance to visit Dutch Wonderland, a kids theme park designed for the very small and the small at heart crowd, complete with festive lights and a very cold afternoon and evening. Those two elements helped to reinforce the season nicely, as the so-far mild December weather has been a bit of a damper on the usual chill Christmas air.

Can you believe it is only 5 sleeps until Christmas morning?  Each night, as the kids fall asleep, I try to think back to my childhood, and reminisce about that feeling, that special childhood excitement that comes at this time of year.  Is it just about the prospect of gifts?  Is the the cookies?  The songs?  Candy canes?  Outings?  Clearly, the season of Christmas is all of these things and more, wrapped up in a shiny, twinkling package that can be just as exciting for adults as for those precious children currently snuggled in their beds.

Earlier in the season, we made a short-list of “must see” movies this year, and it had the usual suspects, like The Santa Claus, Home Alone, Elf, A Christmas Carol, Charlie Brown, The Grinch, and the Polar Express, but has also expanded now to the likes of “Christmas Chronicles” and “all Hallmark movies” (which is a big number). While Cameron and Autumn will sit some, the movie watching is definitely more geared towards the older girls, who loves to stay up after the little ones go to bed and hang with mommy & daddy to watch a show or movie.  

We have gotten through most of the movies on our list, but Charlie Brown, The Star, Home Alone 2, and maybe even Miracle on 34th Street still beg of our time.  What Christmas classics does your family have on their must see list, and to that end, which ones have you saved for the final run-up to Christmas?

In spite of all the bad news in the world at this juncture, our goal with this blog is to stay positive, light, informative, and hopeful.  We are hopeful that this post finds you well, not too stressed, and exciting for the final few days of this joyous season.  

Wishing you and yours a joyous Christmas season.

jess.