The Sweetest Mother's Day Gift!

I Hope My Grown Kids Cherish Their Childhood Christmas Memories As Much As I Do

4 Minute Read

By Sandy Brannan

Family by holiday fireplace — MNStudio/Shutterstock.com

Tonight my husband and I started decorating for Christmas.

It’s different now.

We slowly put up the tree these days, using the same decorations we’ve used every year, but as we look through our boxes of ornaments, we see more than tiny figures, we now see memories.

We have 36 Christmases stored in those boxes. A lifetime really, and a lot has happened in that time.

We didn’t even have a tree that first Christmas. We laughed as we talked about that tonight, remembering our tiny apartment that was really just one room, plenty big enough for the two of us even if it wasn’t big enough to hold a tree.

We looked at ornaments that made the years melt away, taking us back to a time when we first held a baby on our laps as we helped her open her first-ever presents, then to a time when we had two little ones running around excitedly helping us put the ornaments on the bottom of the tree where their tiny hands could reach.

RELATED: Christmas As a Kid Was Magical—But Nothing Tops Christmas As a Mom

There were memories of traditions we thought would go on forever—before we understood the changes that would come with growing up.

Our children grew up, but so did we.

And tonight we did a very grown-up thing. We decorated without the sound of children surrounding us, without looking at each other over the heads of little ones whose eyes lit up with excitement. And we didn’t finish—something that would have been unheard of before it was just the two of us.

We left the tree unfinished with ornaments strewn all over the floor. They will wait for us, for when we are ready to add them to the tree.

I know when we finally finish decorating, we’ll step back and look at our tree while we each pull out the separate memories we hold in our hearts, letting them mingle with the happiness of this year.

Even as we enjoyed so many memories tonight, we didn’t remember everything about every Christmas. Trust me, no matter where you’re at in this journey, you won’t remember it all either. It’s nice to think we won’t forget, but we do.

RELATED: Dear Mom, Everything I Do To Make Christmas Magical For My Kids is Because You Made it Magical For Me First

I’m grateful for the memories that chose to come back to me tonight. I’m glad to, even for a moment, relive what life was like for a much-younger me. I’m sure my husband felt the same way as memories washed over him too.

I hope when our children come and visit this year that their eyes will scan the room, the one where they celebrated every Christmas as children, and land on a memory.

I hope for just a minute or two they go back in time, each remembering when they were little. I hope the memories of Christmas help them see us as the parents they used to have, the people we were before they grew up.

Our children have grown up and moved away. I guess we always knew that would happen, but it still takes us by surprise every now and again. Like tonight, tonight when we looked at all those ornaments on the floor, spread out like the 18 quick years of their childhood they represent. We both felt it, the way our past seemed to collide with where we’re at now.

RELATED: 10 Simple Christmas Traditions To Start With Your Family

After we finish decorating this week, I plan to leave a few ornaments on the couch with the hooks already attached. Ornaments I could easily put on the tree myself, but I won’t.

You see, a few years ago our family grew, and with it so did our traditions.

Those ornaments will cause our grandchildren to lift their little voices while their eyes light up as they gently place each one on the tree.

I know my eyes will look around the room and find my husband. I know he’ll be thinking the same thoughts as me. This new tradition will form new memories too. Ones that our grandchildren can one day pull out as they remember the loved ones in their life, remember the fun of Christmas.

I’m glad it’s finally this time of year even though it looks nothing like the ones I remember from years ago.

Christmas has a way of shifting memories around, letting us enjoy the present without leaving the past too far behind.

So God Made a Grandmother book by Leslie Means

If you liked this, you'll love our book, SO GOD MADE A GRANDMA

Order Now!

Sandy Brannan

Sandy Brannan, author of Becoming Invisible, So Much Stays Hidden, Masquerade, and Frozen in Time, is a high school English teacher. Creating memories with her grandchildren is her idea of a perfect day. You can follow Sandy and read more of her writing at https://sandybrannan.com http://facebook.com/sandybrannanauthor http://instagram.com/sandybrannanauthor and amazon.com/author/sandybrannan .

Soon There Will Be No More Breakfasts To Make

In: Grown Children, Motherhood, Teen

Ten boy eating breakfast at kitchen counter

T-minus 44 days until a new beginning- Math has never been my strong suit or my favorite subject, but it will be about 19 years spent rising and trying to shine in our house. Nineteen years of prepping one, two, or all three of our sons to get up and ready for school. Nineteen years of making breakfast. Nineteen years of making lunches. For those of you in the thick of it right now, you know exactly what I mean. I think my husband Steve and I have it down to a science now. If we had to do it...

Keep Reading

I’m Learning To Let Go of What Was To Embrace What Is

In: Faith, Grown Children, Motherhood

Family of four standing out side in fall

I’ve been waking up in the middle of the night a lot lately. Heart pounding. Mind racing. Ever been there? The house is still, but my thoughts are loud. One night, I finally whispered in the dark, “Lord, what’s this really about?” In His grace, He showed me: I’ve been bracing for a season that’s quickly approaching. One I haven’t exactly welcomed with open arms. They call it the empty nest. I’m a mom of three boys. For over two decades, my life has revolved around carpools, ball games, grocery runs, and Mount-Everest-sized laundry piles. It’s been loud and messy...

Keep Reading

Dear New College Parents: It Gets Easier

In: Grown Children, Motherhood

Dorm supplies are center stage at Target, ready for college students and their parents to find with ease as they try to make a dorm room feel like a haven. For the first time in eight years, I do not have a child returning to a “home away from home” on a college campus. In many ways, I find peace with this knowledge; I mean, it is stressful to get a college student and all of their campus possessions moved into a new place during the hottest part of the summer. But in some ways, I find myself a bit...

Keep Reading

I Want His College Experience to Be His Own

In: Grown Children, Motherhood

College boy looking at large building on campus

Back in the day, when I applied for college, my options were limited. By geography. By my GPA. By my ACT score. I didn’t have the accolades that my college-bound son does to make the decision process as difficult as his was. A recruited athlete. A national merit scholar. A rock-solid ACT score. Not bound by us to any geographic region. All the things. I share this not to brag, but rather to paint the picture of the incredible options he had to choose from. And let me say, the decision-making was brutal. It started with ruling out most of...

Keep Reading

I’m Watching Him Become the Man I Prayed He’d Be

In: Grown Children, Motherhood

Mom with arm around grown son, view from back

It’s been a hard day. One of those days where everything feels loud. We are renovating our house—it’s time. Actually, it’s way past time. The amount of time that makes you wonder how you lived like this for so long. Twenty years ago, I bought a refrigerator I found on Craigslist for $200. The icemaker didn’t work. The water dispenser was purely decorative. But I babied that thing through two decades of family dinners and midnight snacks. Same with the stove. When my son was three, he climbed upon the stove to retrieve a ball I had confiscated earlier that...

Keep Reading

This Bridge to Empty Nesting is So Bittersweet

In: Grown Children, Motherhood

Long walking bridge leading toward ocean

Motherhood. A tremendous, all-encompassing role. One that takes a great deal of energy, time, heart, and soul to do it justice. When you’re raising a child, you become so immersed in their world: babyhood and the exciting firsts; toddlerhood and tantrums; preschool and playdates. Elementary and middle school years are packed with homework, after-school activities, and carpooling. And finally, high school, with its greater autonomy and nerve-wracking firsts, such as driving and staying out late. The years pass simultaneously quickly and slowly. Next thing you know, you’re helping your young adult prepare to fly from the nest. We teach our...

Keep Reading

I’m Falling Into the Goodbye Hole

In: Grown Children, Motherhood

Mother and grown son standing outside smiling for photo

When I first became a mother, I never wanted to leave our firstborn, ever. True story: the first time my husband and I went for a dinner out, we ate as fast as we could, only talked about the baby, and wondered why we had left him with a sitter. We rushed back in 45 minutes, much to the sitter’s surprise. She looked stunned and thought to herself, “These people have to get a life!” That was the first goodbye, and now that our boys are in their 20s, the number of goodbyes keeps piling up. Saying goodbye is one...

Keep Reading

To My Grown Kids, These Are My Promises to You

In: Grown Children, Motherhood

If I could have known what was to come when you were little, I would have written this then. But here we are. You are 22,19, and 16. They say the terrible twos are a hard age? Ha! That’s nothing compared with the adults (or near adult) who are looking at me now! Here’s what I would have said then, and what I still vow to you now, more than ever: First, what I can’t promise. I can’t promise it will be easy or that I won’t make mistakes. It won’t, and I will. I can’t promise you everything you...

Keep Reading

I Waited My Whole Childhood for a Dad

In: Grown Children, Living

Like so many kids are, I was raised by a single mom—the kind of woman who always put her kids first and did her absolute best to provide everything she possibly could for us. She worked 12-hour days to keep a roof over our heads and spent her last pennies ensuring our birthdays and Christmas were times to remember. Sometimes she chose not to eat so she knew we would have enough food for several days in a row. She was a superwoman! But she was lonely, and as I grew up, I noticed it more and more. Then one...

Keep Reading

Dear Senior Mamas, That Smile Is Worth It All

In: Grown Children, Motherhood

“One, two, three! Say, ‘Cheese!’” About two months ago, senioritis was so ripe in our home you could smell it. The pressure was thick; everything felt like a countdown. One more AP test, one more meeting, one more honors ceremony, and then he’s finally done. In all of that brilliance, this mom realized she hadn’t scheduled senior pictures for her precious firstborn. Thankfully, he entertained me amidst his exhaustion. During the session, my son was so tired, and I was so desperate to get THAT smile. You mamas know the one. The one they gave you when they first rode...

Keep Reading

I Miss My Family So Much This Christmas

Living

I Miss My Family So Much This Christmas

We Don't Have Anything Extra For Christmas This Year

Faith

I Hope My Grown Kids Cherish Their Childhood Christmas Memories As Much As I Do

It’s different now.

RELATED: Christmas As a Kid Was Magical—But Nothing Tops Christmas As a Mom

Our children grew up, but so did we.

RELATED: Dear Mom, Everything I Do To Make Christmas Magical For My Kids is Because You Made it Magical For Me First

I hope when our children come and visit this year that their eyes will scan the room, the one where they celebrated every Christmas as children, and land on a memory.

RELATED: 10 Simple Christmas Traditions To Start With Your Family

Those ornaments will cause our grandchildren to lift their little voices while their eyes light up as they gently place each one on the tree.

If you liked this, you'll love our book, SO GOD MADE A GRANDMA

Sandy Brannan

Soon There Will Be No More Breakfasts To Make

I’m Learning To Let Go of What Was To Embrace What Is

Dear New College Parents: It Gets Easier

I Want His College Experience to Be His Own

I’m Watching Him Become the Man I Prayed He’d Be

This Bridge to Empty Nesting is So Bittersweet

I’m Falling Into the Goodbye Hole

To My Grown Kids, These Are My Promises to You

I Waited My Whole Childhood for a Dad

Dear Senior Mamas, That Smile Is Worth It All

Get It Now

So God Made a Mother

I Hope My Grown Kids Cherish Their Childhood Christmas Memories As Much As I Do

It’s different now.

Our children grew up, but so did we.

I hope when our children come and visit this year that their eyes will scan the room, the one where they celebrated every Christmas as children, and land on a memory.

Those ornaments will cause our grandchildren to lift their little voices while their eyes light up as they gently place each one on the tree.

If you liked this, you'll love our book, SO GOD MADE A GRANDMA

Soon There Will Be No More Breakfasts To Make

I’m Learning To Let Go of What Was To Embrace What Is

Dear New College Parents: It Gets Easier

I Want His College Experience to Be His Own

I’m Watching Him Become the Man I Prayed He’d Be

This Bridge to Empty Nesting is So Bittersweet

I’m Falling Into the Goodbye Hole

To My Grown Kids, These Are My Promises to You

I Waited My Whole Childhood for a Dad

Dear Senior Mamas, That Smile Is Worth It All

Previous Post

Next Post

You May Also Like