This year I am definitely in the Christmas spirit. It seemed that the day after (or maybe even a few days before) Thanksgiving, I was ready to go out and get a tree and begin decking the halls immediately. Maybe it’s the promise of opening a new door each day on our Lego Advent calendar (really, it’s embarrassing that I am just as excited as Thomas to see what’s next) or perhaps the thought of experiencing the holiday with two little boys who are now old enough to truly enjoy it. I

Last year I scheduled a few activities in the hope of building traditions. We went for a ride on the Polar Express (fun, but the boys were a little young, especially Samuel) and took in two tree lighting ceremonies, including the one in downtown Portland (at one point Kei was carry both kids). This year, I realized that our traditions can be the simple things like sharing some spiced cider or hot chocolate (and perhaps a little mulled wine for Mummy), trying two separate Trader Joes stores before finding my Eucalyptus wreath for the front door, reading the christmas stories that come out only once a year and finding some time to do random things together as a family, whether that be decorating the tree or spotting Happy the Elf in the morning.

All pictures taken on the iphone with hipstamatic.

And then yesterday the spirit overtook me and I baked cookies. I. Baked. Ok, it was from a cookie mix but I still added the egg and butter and rolled the dough. The kids had SO much fun and were still taking about it today. Of course now we have about 20 cookies to eat over the next couple of weeks (I knew I should have added that gym membership to my wishlist), but it’s a small price to pay for a little bonding time over baked goods. I thought about taking the cookies to work to share with my colleagues until I caught Thomas, more than once, licking the knife that he then used to spread a little more icing. I apologized for the lack of cookies today but said they would thank me when they avoided the plague that has been infiltrating our house.

I still have a few things on my list this year – Zoolights, watching holiday movies, visiting Santa. Thankfully, though, Christmas shopping is not one of them. When you have to send gifts to a variety of different countries, you are not afforded the luxury of last-minute shopping. I like to think of it as a cure for procrastination. Most of the gifts are in my hot little hands and now I just need to package them up and send them. That DOES mean, however, that I need to brave the Post Office during the busiest time of the year. Not looking forward to that little adventure.

Oh, and there’s a birthday to celebrate on Saturday. CAN’T forget that!

Overall, though, I’m looking forward to a relaxed and peaceful Christmas. I would even welcome a little snow should it wish to appear at a time that is convenient to me and then disappear again when I need to run errands… Told you I was in the spirit.