By Sharon Wallace
Better known as Design Mum, Sharon has three gorgeous little munchkins and whenever she gets a spare minute likes to write about her parenting journey.
Relaxing into Christmas
This year will be our baby boy’s first Christmas. Which automatically makes it a special one, of course but this is our 3rd ‘First Christmas in the last 5 years – and if I’m being honest with you, I’m just not too bothered about turning it into a big hoo-ha. Maybe it’s because I’m a “just a bit” tired from running around after the 3 babies or simply because I’ve relaxed my standards a bit now that baby number 3 is in our lives, but either way, I just don’t feel that same pressure this year, that I’ve felt in the past to make sure that everything is perfect.
Flashback Time
Christmas 2014, our first daughter was almost 4 months old, and I wanted to make her 1st Christmas a momentous occasion. Celebrate the fact that it was our first Christmas as parents. Our first Christmas as a family. And whilst it pleased me at the time to join the seasonal stampede and rush around to buy her presents, wrapping them to perfection with ribbons and bows, I can look back now and think… that could have been a calmer and possibly more enjoyable experience. For one, she certainly didn’t need half the stuff that I bought her. Why would she? She was just a baby. And having sat on the floor for hours, cutting up rolls of wrapping paper and immaculately fitting it around all manner of shapes whilst perpetually losing the end of that damn Sellotape – you know the drill, only to sit there on Christmas day unwrapping them all again myself. Naturally, she had no concept of what was going on.
Lessons Learned
Of course this realisation didn’t kick in when number 2 came along either and I went to the whole fuss again. So this year things will be a little different. A little more relaxed. I always say it’s all about the kids, and 99% of the time it most definitely is. But we deserve a well-earned break too. Our son will actually be 10 and a half months old at Christmas so he will be able to tear open presents but I know all too well by now that it will likely be the wrapping paper and boxes that he’ll be wanting to play with most.
So this year I’ll be cutting back on buying ‘stuff’ and thinking more mindfully about the gifts that I wrap. I’m thinking… some cute PJ’s, a wooden shape sorter toy and maybe a couple more MAM Bottles – I love the cute grey penguin design. But most of all, I’m just really looking forward to relaxing, being present and in the moment and enjoying my son’s first Christmas with the rest of the kids.
