And for the first time ever, I felt it too. I couldn’t believe it was happening to me, but there it was. Somehow, I felt the sudden urge to decorate the house for Christmas and it was only—I don’t want to say it out-loud—mid-October. The funny thing is that only a short decade ago my younger self was violently against any sort of premature holidays set-up. I campaigned hard to make sure friends, colleagues, and family members understood how precious the last days of summer were. Department stores turned me into the Grinch each September, and I made sure store managers knew how I felt about it. Early decorators, how dare they?
So, why was I now playing for the Early-Decorator’s team? What changed me? Was it because I have 3 little ones now, or because the pandemic taught us to celebrate what we can as hard as we can, or is it simply because I’m in my forties now and early-Christmas decoration is one of the many early indicators of a mid-life crisis? Although all good possible options, they still didn’t add up to such a radical change.
This question lingered until I started reading about “Revenge Bedtime Procrastination”–the decision to sacrifice sleep for leisure time that is driven by a daily schedule lacking in free time. That’s it, I thought! We moms want to decorate early so we can enjoy the holidays before we “make” the holidays enjoyable for everyone else.
Yes, of course we know that we should not be scrolling Instagram until midnight or decorating the house until Thanksgiving is over, but, if we do, then we never get to sit and enjoy our hard work for more than 5 minutes. How would you feel if you were asked to run a marathon, and just as you are finally crossing the finish line, suddenly, the people, the lights, the cheers and cameras disappear? Of course, you can argue that leaving the decorations up a little longer makes more sense than opening the door for trick-or-treaters wearing your Santa hat and Christmas music on, but let’s be honest here, after Christmas we are already contemplating a dry January, a low-carb diet, and a slimmed-down budget.
Moms, we need to end this insanity. Early Christmas Decorating and Revenge Christmas Procrastination cannot be the answer! It’s time to simplify the holidays so moms can be present, rested, and joyful too—”Elf on the Shelf,” I’m looking at you straight in your felt eyes.
Allow me to share with you what my Christmases were like growing up in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Hopefully, that will lead us to a path of simplification. In the Southern Hemisphere, Santa arrives in the middle of the summer. With 100-degree weather, spending any amount of time inside a department store or at home baking cookies is highly unpopular. Pool time or gathering at the beach is what we do. And, we have significantly smaller homes so we can’t store more than a couple of boxes of Christmas décor—please note 1 of the 2 boxes has the tree in it. As for disposable income, that too is much smaller. So, gift piles large enough to lose the family dog in are out of the question and so is the desire to engage in Pinterest-worthy gift wrapping.
When it comes to the actual Christmas meal, we’ve simplified that too. We gather on the 24th around 7 p.m., drink Malbec until dinner time, usually 10 p.m., and wait until midnight to open presents. Yes, we keep kids awake until midnight and they love it! Some fall asleep but quickly wake-up as every single household shoot fireworks exactly at midnight. The city sky explodes in color and sound, dogs hide under the table and adults hug each other with tears of joy. Since we don’t bake, we usually pour Champagne in a wide rim cup, add a scoop of limoncello ice cream, a Christmas straw and voilà! dessert is served. My mother put very little effort and consideration into making Christmas perfect, and, yet, I have the best childhood memories of it. Maybe it is because she was having fun with us and didn’t have a long to-do list cloud hanging over her head.
If you are like me and were pressured into the early decorators’ club by the busyness of your own life and societal expectation, do less this/next year… waaay less. Call a family meeting and tell them you are feeling exotic. This year, you’re celebrating Christmas Argentina-style! I promise your kids won’t know the difference and the grown-ups will lower their expectations automatically setting you up for success for the following year.
So dear reader, I hope you join me in this effort to simplify Christmas. Not only because mamas are doing too much but because we know, deep in our hearts, when Christ arrives on the 25th, the last thing He should find is a perfect tree surrounded by distracted kids and exhausted parents.
Wishing all, especially the mamas running the December marathon, a peaceful, meaningful, and joyful Christmas season.
Hall, the wife of the Herald’s Associate Publisher Ben Hall, writes from Court House.
