Hello, one and all, and Happy Holidays to you and yours. Christmas is one of my favorite times of the year, the others being my birthday and summer. I love the majestic feeling that comes in the days leading up to Christmas day and the overwhelming joy and contentment. Now that I have a daughter, it is even more special.
Hailey is a gem on any given day, but she is even more impressive on Christmas. She is at the beautiful age of magic and light. Being the incredible four-year-old she is, I expect big enthusiasm from her this Christmas. I hope for happy squeals and little girl giggles, but let’s be honest, I also expect big emotions of all types.
Christmas joy doesn’t come without Christmas tears, and I expect there will be overwhelming emotions that lead us to a meltdown. Try as we might to avoid it by being the magical parents that we are, big feelings are welcome in our house, even if they mean tears.
That’s right, we encourage our daughter to express her emotions, even if they are sad or angry. That certainly doesn’t mean that we encourage her to be angry or throw tantrums, but we acknowledge her big emotions and label them as what they are. Then we help her work through them. Rather than telling her to stop crying or don’t be mad, we tell her that it’s okay to feel that way, as long as she has healthy ways to work through them.
The other day, she told me that one of her friends at daycare made her mad. When I asked her what she did about it, she replied, “I went and sat down for a bit until I wasn’t mad anymore.” I honestly don’t know if I have ever been prouder.
This Christmas, our house will be welcoming to all emotions from all our members, even our old blind and deaf dog who likes to bark at absolutely nothing. Even he will find tolerance and acceptance, even if he does scare us half to death with his doggy freakouts.
I hope you find joy and acceptance this holiday season. Merry Christmas to you all!
Please drop us a comment and share your favorite Christmas story.