Capitol Letters: The Changes at Christmas

I ENJOY TRACKING the physical and mental growth in our children, their changing engagement in activities. I know other parents that follow these changes too because it is often the topic of our conversations.

Christmas is a good time of the year to gauge changes that have occurred in the previous year by watching how they embrace the special activities of the holiday.

Memorable events of last year’s holiday for our 2 ½ year old son:

• Any live music held his attention until we could convince him to move-on.
• He wanted to watch Santa from a safe distance but had no interest in interacting with him – yes, even in exchange for candy.
• No interest in crafting a letter to Santa.
• There was some interest in the Christmas tree but no interest in helping hang the ornaments.
• Christmas lights and decorations are something that would attract and hold his attention frequently.
• He talked about the holiday train set in a business window almost daily and we visited whenever we could.
• Most memorable holiday moment: About 1/3 of the way through opening his presents on Christmas day he walked around the living room shouting: “No more presents!”  It was 17 days after Christmas when we finally coaxed him into opening his last present that he received for Christmas.

Memorable happenings of this holiday (so far) at 3 ½ years-old:

• He is noticing how quickly the days get dark!
• Music and dancing are still a favorite activity to watch. He is also singing constantly in preparation for his class caroling.
• Santa is still revered from a distance.
• He expressed interest and participated in crafting a letter to Santa.
• He was excited about picking out a Christmas tree and he willingly participated in decorating the tree.
• He notices and acknowledges holiday lights but only when we are actively looking for them.
• We have only visited the holiday train set a few times with little mention of it.
• He has participated with zest in crafting gifts for family, teachers, and friends.
• We visited a live nativity experience and he enjoyed it so much we visited again!
• His mother’s birthday was just celebrated and he participated in the gift opening and was looking for more. We are hoping that this leads to more gifts opened on Christmas day

There is no replacement to seeing the holiday through a child’s changing eyes!  I hope you all enjoy these final moments of the year by enjoying and appreciating time with family, friends, and community.