Journey through a Mom’s Heart

Christmas has always been special to me, and I reserve in my heart some of the fondest memories of the joy, the excitement, and the thrill it brought to us as kids every year. It was a yearly tradition to choose a tree and decorate with oh! so beautiful crystal balls, shiny bells, stars, little Santa, cotton dropped like snow and fairy lights around to lit it wonderfully. Amidst all this burst of activities what stayed out was the happiness of savoring the customary Bitter chocolate cake that my Dad brought from the finest bakeries of the The Claridges Hotel. That cake which I buried in the deepest corner of the Refrigerator so that no one except me could lay hands on it. (I can still sense the flavors of that sinful cake) and finally wake up to discover the secret gift under my pillow. Grew up my entire childhood trusting in Santa and unwrapping gifts until now that I pass these sentiments of giving and magic to my daughter. I’ve kept the spirit of Santa Claus alive and will try to make it last in our house for years ahead.

With these memories of mine, I wish to gather special childhood memories from my loving friends, my wonderful readers and all the lovely people out there who believe in the Magic of Christmas.

Bring Back the Charm of Christmas in these little ways and witness the joy of Christmas pervades in everything we do.

Live Up the Tradition

When we’re young, writing letters to Santa Claus was real, and we always believed these letters would reach him by all means. We believed in the carol with all our heart “

You better watch out
You better not cry
Better not pout
I’m telling you why
Santa Claus is coming to town
He’s making a list
And checking it twice;
Gonna find out Who’s naughty and nice
Santa Claus is coming to town
He sees you when you’re sleeping
He knows when you’re awake
He knows if you’ve been bad or good
So be good for goodness sake!
O! You better watch out!
You better not cry
Better not pout
I’m telling you why
Santa Claus is coming to town
Santa Claus is coming to town

We knew our presents will be according to our deeds throughput the year and we are closely being watched by the Santa. Try letting your kids write a letter to Santa and bring home the Christmas magic.

Create a Wishlist

Let your kids create a Wishlist, let them know gifts are not to be only focused around costly gadgets, it could be a wishful list of what they need in upcoming year(could be a wishful holiday destination too), what one thing they absolutely can’t do without, one good reading book(most definitely in the list) or anything they wish to wear. So, the list can be a page long with a criterion that some of the items will be picked for fulfillment. (how else do you think this can this be managed)

Make Homemade Christmas Cards

Personal handmade cards will always take a special place in heart over the digital messages our generation have willingly got driven into, so let your kids make some simple easy and adorable cards for their friends and relatives. Anything from a simple family photo stuck on card to imaginative reindeer to a glittering ‘snow’-laden Christmas trees, to a plump, red-suited Santa on a sleigh with a bulging sack of gifts. Ultimately, it’s the joy of gifting and spending time together that will remain tucked in our memories forever.

Pick and Choose a Tree & Decorate Together

Select a day to pick choose a tree from your Garden (little difficult though as nowadays its mostly balcony gardens) or any store in local markets that are offering variety of Christmas Trees from table top size to 10 ft tall ones as well. The best way to have fun is to bring home a beautiful bushy tree with assortment of hanging ornaments and let your kids immerse into magic. Allow the kids to hang all the ornaments which even if it means the tree will be mostly empty but you’ll not miss to capture their beautiful moments of delight in the fun for decorating and the excitement.

Giving Back to Others

Gratitude in our attitude should be taught to all kids, do involve your kids in simple act of giving back and caring for others like distribution of blankets to homeless and under served people and kids who are braving the winters in the bravest manner. Share the joy and comfort with kindness and charity and earn the brownie points to your list of good deeds.

Immerse Yourself In The Magic

Live it up to the holiday spirit and plunge yourself in the festivities, be drawn in with as much as you can. Try to take your kids to attend Christmas Carnivals and go around the city driving seeing beautiful decorated markets, malls in your vicinity that offer kids programs, themed decorations with some extravagant light displays. Get in the holiday spirit with the right tunes, watch some festive movies (my favorite being Home Alone and Jingle all the way) and be a Secret Santa to your friends.

Finally, the charm unfolds on the X Mas morning when the kids get swept away to the goodness of presents, they have literally earned for the all good behavior and actions they managed to carry out. I still carry this tradition but now its my husband who carries it like my dad. Every Christmas morning, I wake up scavenging my gift under my pillow (have been getting Chocolates without a fail for the last 12 years) and my daughter dashes to the find her rewards under the tree. Those moments of joy are priceless and shall be remembered long, toys may break, gifts may get discarded in the coming years but it is these moments that will hold our hearts together forever. And with this we live our full holiday spirit and shall continue to live our magical sentiments of giving and magic.