Editor’s note: This column originally published Dec. 17, 2015
I’m having trouble coming up with excuses and it’s been on my calendar for about a year, yet it still seems to have sneaked up on me. Christmas.
Here I am, scrambling just a few short days before Christmas to do my shopping. I haven’t done Christmas cards. I haven’t done any baking. In fact, the only cookies in my house are a few soggy Oreos left over from camping season.
What’s gotten into me?
I used to get a jump on my Christmas cards in late November. Along with the cards, I would pen a self-deprecating letter including some of the more notable antics that had occurred within my family throughout the year.
Ummm … not this year.
I would bake Christmas cookies and set up “creation stations” for the kids. We generally ended up with some of the ugliest cookies this side of the North Pole, but the kids loved decorating them.
Yeah. Not this year.
I really dislike shopping. I really, really dislike crowds. Multiply these by, let’s say 11, and you may come close to my feelings about venturing out to purchase Christmas gifts.
I guess I didn’t give it as much thought when I was “assisting” Santa and going elbow to elbow at the toy store with other parents doing the same thing. It was always worth it when you would see the sparkle in their eyes as they bound down the staircase in their adorable little pajamas, to get the first look under the tree Christmas morning.
But when they’re in their 20s? There’s nothing all that cute or adorable about an unshaven 20-year-old or a groggy 24-year-old requesting coffee as they meander sluggishly down the stairs in sweats and T-shirts.
In the past, I would choose a theme for wrapping everyone’s gifts. One year, I purchased rolls of plain, brown Kraft paper and yards of red satin ribbon. I’m telling you, I hated to let anyone open gifts that year because my tree, with all those packages, was adorable!
This year? Well, once I actually purchase the gifts, I’ll most likely just use the hodgepodge of wrapping paper in the basement that’s been left-over from years past.
But I’m not the only one.
Have you noticed being the recipient of less cards than in past years? My theory is so many of us use social media to keep in touch with family and friends now. I’ll use that as an excuse.
I’ve said it before, and I’m sure many empty-nesters would agree — once you no longer have young children in your home, it becomes much easier to let certain traditions slide. Excuse No. 2.
Remember how fun it use to be to put out the cookies and milk for Santa on Christmas Eve? Or how you’d watch the 10 p.m. news with your kids to see where Santa was flying? Heck, we’re usually sound asleep by 8:30 p.m.
On the plus side, I do have my house decorated for the holiday.
Oh well, I guess I should actually be looking at all this from another perspective. Instead of excuses, these will now be known as my new “traditions.”
Contact Dana King at
dking@shawmedia.com