The holidays are the season of giving and family but at times can also cause stress and mourning. Through the years, there were times we mourned the fact of what the holidays should look like in the eyes of everyone else. At times, we forced normalcy in the life that is quite frankly not that. It maybe our normal but it is not what others would call normal. This year was one of the first years our son has connected with the holidays.
I remember in the past that I would envy families that complained about their child’s Santa list. I wasn’t jealous of the abundance of items or the amount they would have to spend, but I was jealous that their child could connect and understand the concept. I don’t want you to think I mean that I wanted my child to have the gimmies. That is not the case, however I did long for that excitement that my child truly wanted something and requested it. I wanted that moment when my child would open a present and be so excited that he couldn’t stand it. I wanted to see that moment of pure joy that the holidays can only bring. I longed for it and would be jealous of families that posted the pictures of their child’s reactions. I was and am so happy for them and I do enjoy watching them. I could even say I love it, but it did spotlight a void I had. It is a void that I started to understand may not happen until this year.
If you follow our Facebook page, you saw this year I posted daily pictures of our Elf on the Shelf. We have two elves, Tinsel and Chippy. This is the first year that Dominic was excited for them. He would rush down the stairs to find them and laugh. He was connecting and enjoying the moment! He didn’t care if they were sitting on a window sill or eating donuts, he connected! This was our first gift of the season. He was giving this moment to us. This milestone that seems so overlooked by others but to us, it made us cry. Yes I had two mornings that I jumped up and had to move the elves quick. I had to quickly remind myself that this is a win, this is what we wanted! He was getting it and he was having fun!
The next gift Dom gave to us was when he asked for a gift. We looked at each other and knew we had to find it. He had seen a train set that he didn’t already have on You Tube and he could explain it and even tell us the entire name of it. He wanted it desperately and said it religiously for the month approaching to Christmas. The only problem was this toy was discontinued. Just our luck! The first thing he asked for was a discontinued toy that you could barely find on Ebay or Amazon! How is this possible?
I ended up finding one and losing in the last minute to a higher bid. I literally cried and felt so disappointed. I felt I let our boy down. I was on a mission and thankfully found another one and purchased it quickly.
On Christmas Eve, Dominic shocked us again. He kept asking when Santa would be coming and would he see him. He wanted to know what time he would be here exactly. I told him around 4:00 in the morning and wouldn’t you know, at 4:00 in the morning we had a sweet nine year old jumping on our bed ready to go see if Santa came. Many families dread this but for us, it was another milestone. He was connecting with the holiday and with us. This was beautiful, not beautiful enough for us to not tell him to go back to bed and come back in a bit but it was yet another gift from our son.
When it was finally time to go downstairs, Dominic was a bundle of excitement. The moment he saw the set when he came down the stairs was priceless. We had that excited snapshot we had waited nine years to see. This was yet another gift Dominic gave to us this holiday season.
This holiday season was not about him wanting, it was about him connecting. We are so blessed and fortunate to have this experience and it made our year. It was wonderful for him to be a part of the season and we are so grateful for the magical experiences he so innocently gave to our family.
