It’s Christmas Day. One of my most favorite days of the year. Growing up, my mom worked tirelessly to make sure our Christmas was magic. Truthfully, she still does today. I can remember waking up on Christmas morning, creeping into my parents room, and waking them up to open gifts.
I loved the frenzy of it all. My sweet mama displayed our Santa gifts, they were unwrapped and wonderfully displayed. I couldn’t wait to see what Santa had left me. Those are some of my most precious memories. We would then load up and head to my Meamaw’s house to spend the day with our extended family. Christmas Eve was always spent at my Granny’s house.
Over the years, with the passing of loved ones, our traditions have changed. I, sadly, do not have any of my grandparents anymore. It has changed the dynamic of our extended family. We no longer gather with our cousins for holidays as we did growing up.
We have a tendency to fear change, but truthfully, it is inevitable. It doesn’t have to be the end of all good things. When we think of change as the start of new, good things, it helps us to embrace it more fully. We have to learn to shift and create new traditions. Knowing my cousins are creating sweet traditions with their kids makes my heart happy. One of my favorite ways to honor people, is through their recipes. This year, I made my Meamaw’s sour cream pound cake and white fudge. Most years, I bake sugar cookies and my nephews and I decorate them the night of December 23rd. We wear Christmas pjs all day Christmas Eve and make brunch as a family. Creating new traditions with my nephews is one of my greatest joys.
Today, seek out ways to honor the ones you’ve loved while also creating new traditions. Give yourself something to look forward to each year. You may not love traditions like I do, that is okay. I simply want to encourage you to lean into whatever stage of life you are in and celebrate the season in a way that honors that. There are traditions and good things all around us if we will simply embrace them. Merry Christmas sweet friends, I hope your day is filled with love and lots and lots of sugar.
