What is Your Favorite Time of the Year?
Ah, it’s almost here. My favorite week of the entire year is just days away, and I am really looking forward to it once again.
Since our first child was born nearly five years ago, my wife and I have observed our own family tradition of sorts by taking off the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day. Actually, it’s me who “takes off” since she is a teacher and always has Christmas Winter Break to count on.
What makes this week so special for our family? To start with, Christmas morning is just awesome when you have little kids and are able to share their joy when they wake up with the immediate intensity of a gazelle on crack. This year should be the best yet since they both totally “get it” now at ages almost-five and two-and-a-half years old. Santa is totally real, and the little gifts are still the best.
Christmas Day will center on our family doing whatever the heck we want all day, as our extended family stops by throughout the day to visit. There will be a large brunch, lots of snacks, some holiday spirits and probably pizza for dinner. It’s like the ultimate lounging-around day, plus gifts and the love of a family who truly appreciates the spirit of the season.
The remainder of the week should be similar. Family dinners, family visits and LOTS of family playtime. There will certainly be Nintendo Wii tournaments, tickle fights, lots of time playing Princesses and Thomas the Train, numerous movies watched, consecutive pajama days, and a crazy amount of snuggling on the couch. There will be no work, no stress, no deadlines and no schedules to maintain.
As the week winds down and our minds are clear and youthful, we can turn our focus to celebrating New Year’s Eve (also as a family) and setting goals for the promising New Year. I hope you will be joining me in making 2010 your best year yet by participating in the “Improve Yourself! 2010” challenge!
What is your favorite time of the year? Please share your thoughts in the comments.
From my family to yours, I wish you a very Merry Christmas and a prosperous and healthy New Year! Please remember the reason for this joyous season and keep Christ in your Christmas celebrations.
Photo by alancleaver_2000
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I'm Dustin, the guy behind Engaged Marriage. I'm living and loving the crazy life of a young husband and Dad.
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Hi,
Just came across your site via the frugal theme website. I do understand your description about the little ones like gazelle on crack. I have three of them but now they’ve grown up (16, 14, and 7 years old) but no matter the age they will always be your little children (trust me…they still like to behave like little kids when they are around you). If your little one is a girl may I suggest a book that I came across a few months ago and found it very useful (my first two are girls) entitled “Strong Fathers, Strong Daughters” by Meg Meeker. Merry Christmas to you and your family.
Regards,
Phillip
Welcome to Engaged Marriage, Phillip! The book you suggested is on my “really need to read” list. I’ve heard Dr. Meeker interviewed on Dave Ramsey’s show and really liked her message. And yes, my youngest is a girly girl!
By the way, your time tracker software (via your site link) looks really cool. I love seeing others doing entrepreneurial things for themselves.
Are you thinking of switching to Frugal? I have had it for a few weeks now and absolutely love it. Please let me know if you have any questions about it, and I’d be happy to help you out. You can also read my thoughts about it in the “Products I Love” tab above.
Merry Christmas Phillip, and I look forward to interacting with you more around here!
I’m actually not that crazy about Christmas any more. My husband and I don’t have kids so we just buy a couple of gifts for each other and our parents. It’s nice, but not thrilling or anything. There’s also not a ton of motivation to wake up early on Christmas morning just to go to our parents’ house, open a few presents with our teenaged siblings, and then sit around being bored the rest of the day. Boxing Day is even worse because we get together with extended family, which means dozens upon dozens of young cousins who fight, cry, hog food, stain carpets and break furniture.
Instead, my favourite time of the year is late May. Spring is finally fully upon us and the world is alive. We can be outdoors. That’s when I can truly think of Christ’s birth, as all the world is being reborn. *Sigh.* Christmas is cool too, though.
Kathleen Quiring´s last blog ..ATTENTION, ALL WOMEN EVERYWHERE
Hey Kathleen! I totally understand where you are coming from with the Christmas season. However, I suspect your feelings may change somewhat when you have small children around. They really bring the magic and pure joy back to the season.
I also really enjoy Spring and the feeling of everything coming back to life again. That’s probably the time of year when Jesus was actually born, but a Feast Day is a Feast Day and December 25th has its own historical significance.
And of course, I don’t know a thing about Boxing Day! Crazy Canucks!
My favorite time of the year since I became a mother twelve years ago is Christmas. It really is delightful fun with children. My sons are now 10 1/2 and 12 years old, and the mantra in our family is still, “It is more fun to believe in Santa”. We start the celebration off on Christmas Eve by ice skating with friends, and attending a candlelight service at church. Even a California family like ours can find an ice rink, even if we do not have snow! We wake up early on Christmas morning and open presents leisurely. We always go to a beautiful park overlooking the San Francisco Bay to try out new bikes, scooters or just play with our golden retriever (who was a surprise Christmas gift three years ago!). We return home, and my husband cooks a big turkey dinner for friends or visiting family. We end up singing around the piano and playing a silly game between children and adults. We also take the week off between Christmas and New Year’s for lots of wonderful family time. Merry Christmas to all. Please cherish your beautiful relationships.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Michelle. It sound like we have a lot in common when it comes to celebrating this time of the year…even though you are in sunny California!
Merry Christmas!
I love New Year. The love and promise of Christmas day flows through to the start of New Year… so many things that can happen! Since I am in the “business” of goal setting and achieving goals, I actually check in for “New Year” renewal 3 or 4 times a year. Maybe I should start calling it New Quarter or something.
Carrie´s last blog ..Making Christmas Happen, Simply
I totally agree, Carrie. Even though it seems cheesy sometimes, there is no denying that the New Year brings with it a sense of renewal. The real challenge (for me at least) is always standing by the goals I set at the turn of the calendar. That shouldn’t be a problem this year with the accountability provided by you and all of the others in the Improve Yourself challenge! I’m stoked about it.
I enjoy Christmas once it gets here. However, all the work that leads up to it makes Christmas seem more like a chore than a holiday. Maybe when I have kids those feelings will change.
I’d say my favorite time of year is June. The weather is warm, my job slows down, and baseball, my favorite sport, is in full swing.
Living with Balls´s last blog ..The Sexiest Music Videos of the Decade (2000-2009)
Yeah man, Christmas is certainly a lot of work, but I do think you’ll appreciate it more when you have kids to share it with. It brings back the feelings of anticipation and pure fun that we had when we were little.
June is hot and humid around here (near St. Louis), but I can’t argue with the joy of Cardinals baseball!
Christmas is my favorite time of the year. During this season I remember the time when I was young and everything seems magical during this time. I would eagerly await the strike of midnight to see Santa personally but I always lose to sleep. Now that I’ve grown up, I long for that exciting experience once again.
The problem with growing up is that we stop believing.
Thanks, Walter! You share my thoughts exactly!
Who says you have to “stop believing”? In our family, our sons, my husband and I still follow the mantra, “It is more FUN to believe in Santa”. Yes, we may be encouraging a lifetime of delusional thinking! But, really who and what is Santa anyway? We think he represents the spirit of giving, generosity, thoughtfulness and love. We do believe in all of that!
Michelle Gannon´s last blog ..Why Work on Marriage
My favourite time of year has always been my birthday, although i think that will change now that i’m married and my focus changes from ‘me’ to ‘us’.