Merry Christmas ya filthy animal!

Here's my Christmas card for ya!  I put a lot of work into it so you'd better appreciate it.  The cost of stamps about killed me, not to mention licking all of those envelopes.  Just know I sacrificed a lot for you!  You're welcome.

Really...this is the thought that enters my mind when I open my Christmas cards from some of you.  Thanks for taking the time and spending the money on me, but the least you could have done is enclose a short personalized "Hi Keely, Love you!" message before I throw it away. ;)  I always think, man...they must have a lot of money to be mailing out Christmas cards!  But lets face it, I'm cheap, and sometimes practical, and don't want to spend money on something people are just going to throw away the day after Christmas. 

In case you were wondering CHRISTMAS IS IN THREE DAYS and honestly, it feels like mid January.    

"Charlie Brown...you're the only person I know who could take a wonderful season like Christmas and turn it into a problem.  Maybe Lucy's right....of all the Charlie Browns in the world, you're the Charlie Browniest."

I had to laugh watching this the other night because I've maybe, kinda, sorta turned into Charlie Brown. I have found the older I get, the more I tend to lose the Christmas spirit.  It could be the fact that my family and friends keep dying, or maybe my kid isn't quite old enough yet to bring back the magic.  (No pressure Kyla)  But either way, Christmas just isn't what it used to be.  

It was exciting as a kid.  You would be soooo anxious for Santa to come that you could barely sleep at night.  You started counting down the days with your cool homemade paper chain tracker, that it was all you could do to refrain from pulling an extra day off  just so Christmas would get here sooner.  December felt like YEARS waiting for Christmas.  Now I don't have any countdown to Christmas and I swear the month of December is 6 days total.  

The older I get though, the more I realize the work that my parents put into making the holiday what it is.  For instance, we wouldn't put our tree up until the week before Christmas.  This was one of my favorite days to look forward to through the month.  Why so late you ask?  Well...my dad always loved to keep the spirit of Christmas lingering through January, and you can't do that with a fresh cut tree if you put it up at the beginning of December. 

Christmas eve has always been my favorite.  You would think the Queen of England was invited to the Ward family Christmas eve bash with the sea of amazing food my mom prepares.  Games with the family, and lots of good food is how I will always remember Christmas.  My mom works so hard to make sure it's perfect, and now that I'm older, I recognize the time and effort she puts in to make it special for the family.

I may sound pretty selfish in all of this, talking about the worldly side of Christmas.  I know what Christmas is all about, and nobody says it better than Linus... 

And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this [shall be] a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

That’s what Christmas is all about, Charlie Brown.

My most favorite Christmas song is Judy Garlands version of "Have yourself a merry little Christmas" from Meet me in St. Louis.

Have yourself a merry little Christmas

Let your heart be light
Next year all our troubles will be
out of sight
Have yourself a merry little Christmas
Make the yule-tide gay
Next year all our troubles will be
miles away
Once again as in olden days
Happy golden days of yore
Faithful friends who are dear to us
Will be near to us once more
Someday soon, we all will be together
If the Fates allow
Until then, we'll have to muddle through somehow
So have yourself a merry little Christmas now.

I'm going to have myself a merry little Christmas, even though I'm muddling through somehow.  I feel like it's part of being the adult.  You have to deal with problems that your kid version didn't have to worry about, or didn't quite understand.  Just know you're not alone.  The adults just have to work that much harder to keep the kid in us alive.   So here's hoping next year all our troubles will be miles away.  If Judy Garland says so then it must be true.