There is a lot of guilt in our culture about Christmas excess, both from the secular side and the religious side. I understand that our thoughts should not be focused on personal pleasure, we need to be mindfull of the Reason for the Season, and take care of those in need.
But my wife and I always celebrate Christmas to the full extent of our ability and our kids will be spoiled. Now most celebration is not about money. You can put out a real nice spread fairly cheap for a Christmas Dinner. It is the attitude you bring to it. My kids can hardly wait for Christmas dinner and we will have some nice food this year. But what really makes the meal special is the effort we take in seating the dinning room table, the gathering of the family and friends joining us, the reading of Scripture and finally a big old fashioned family dinner.
We do not spoil our kids with a lot of toys over the year, but tomorrow there will be a lot of toys. Many we find on sale or buy at a discount on ebay. In the past I have given my kids used toys buried in the garge. The kids just like to see a big pile of presents under the tree. Unwrapping them is a great surprise. This year we have tried to move away from toys with small parts (You can never do this completely). The exception to this is Lego's which we already have lots of; but can just join the Lego pile without creating a new mess. We have tried to add to things the kids already have rather than start on new things. My kids have many board games and toys we have bought ad ons for. We have also bought a lot of small nick naks and toys that are cheap but they need. School supplies, play do, markers, crayons, etc. . . These are all cheap, but really make the holiday look bigger (we would have to buy many of these things any way.)
My wife and I love our family and both of us did not think we would be so blessed. We love Christmas and doing all the holiday things with the kids.
Without getting too preachy even the Bible allows excess at times, but you need to be focused on the Reason for the Season. In wealth or poverty I will celebrate it as best I can.
Comments(6)