Getting ready for Christmas

I enjoy Christmas,
growing up I enjoyed Christmas because it was a family centered time, with great food, and lots of presents. We never had snow or even cold temperatures in Mexico, in fact, one Christmas I remember having to scavenger hunt a gift and we went outside and I was too warm in my sweatshirt and jeans.
My family lived in the US only one year of my childhood, it was my 7th grade school year. That was the first year that we actually experienced snow with our Christmas season. There is something about the snow that makes Christmas just a little more special, the coldness driving people inside and so more time is spent together. Also, though I complain about it, the shorter days, make Christmas lights a bigger show piece.
Everyone has certain things that make December actually turn into Christmas. Its the traditions that we do that make this time of the year special. For me growing up it was:
- Decorating sugar cookies, ever since we were little its something we have always done, and not just a few, my mom and grandma would bake dozens of them that we would then have to decorate, it would take several hours, and cover more than one table.
- Pie. Thanksgiving and Christmas was the ONLY time we ever had pie, pumpkin pie. This year I have made 4 pies, and I have plans to make one more before Christmas. And then at least one more for Christmas dinner.
- Decorating. When we were little my mom would decorate, once we were bigger, us girls did more of it. We would take down all of our regular wall hangings and put up Christmas themed decor. The Christmas tree would be covered in ornaments and lights. I liked trying something new each year.
- Watching mom and dad "drain" the turkey all day on Christmas to get the juices for the gravy. It was a mixture of english and spanish, some concern about it being hot or missing the receiving container, and always a bit stressful it seemed. They now have it down pat, a twice a year routine that they do flawlessly.
- Opening presents. It was always a nice and orderly affair. Everyone opening presents in turn and everyone else watching. My younger sister used to be the present distributer, and last year it was Ela, my niece, that took over that honor.
- Stocking presents. There were three girls in the family. On Christmas morning, we would wake up, get our stockings, dump all the presents on the bed, then proceed to open them according to what they were. Each year we were pretty much guaranteed to get a new tooth brush, chap stick,or a small perfume. They were all the same, and so we would say "lets open the big square one" or "lets open the tooth brush".

As a grown up there are things that I now do, that I have added to the list.
- Present shopping. I enjoy trying to think of a lovely gift for each person. Something that they need, or that I think they would like. Its a challenge, a fun challenge. Since I work now I actually have a little to spend on people, when we were kids, there was a lot of gift making to compensate for our lack of funds.
- The snow, the last Christmas I had in Mexico was in 2003, ten years ago. Since then we have celebrated this season in the US. So along with Christmas there is cold, ice, and snow.
- Time with family. There have been a few Christmases we have not all been together. One year Erica and family were in Tennessee, and Amanda was in Illinois. It was just my parents, grandmother and I that year. The Christmases since my grandmother has passed have also felt a bit incomplete. After these things, all of the Calderon's being together has been a lot more special.

These are the things that make December into Christmas for me.