December means a lot of things.
Shopping. Crazy drivers on Grape Road. Gift wrapping. Carol singing. Elves swinging from ceiling fans. Enormous amounts of calorie intakes. Snow falling. Hot cocoa drinking nights. Candy cane licking.
December has always meant a lot of things. Just all sorts of fun things.
When I was growing up, Christmas in our house looked like most others in the neighborhood. We had the ol' (and when I say ol', I mean ANTIQUE-FADED-LOSING IT'S PAINT) Frosty that lit up outside, along with the ol' (see above for the same definition) Santa face that hung on our fence. We spent most of December patiently (OK, maybe not so patiently) waiting for Dad to climb up to the attic and get down the tree so he could do his part in hanging the lights, and then we could decorate the tree. Looking back, I think something I appreciate now that I never did back then was the fact that we didn't use traditional ornaments on our tree. Ever. Only ornaments that the three of us girls made or ones that were specially purchased for us.
Christmas Eve was kind of a tradition...the three of us girls had to sleep in the basement on the couches together, so we would be sure to hear Santa upstairs when he delivered our gifts. It never failed...sometime Christmas Eve night or early Christmas morning, one of us would have to go to the bathroom. It didn't happen the other 364 days of the year, but it sure did happen that night. And of course, if one of us had to go upstairs to the bathroom, we had to take a least one buddy with us. Although the tree wasn't on the way to the bathroom, I remember creeping around for the first peek of the presents under the tree.
There are Christmas Mornings that I know I will never forget. Like the year we made our potty trip upstairs and our living room had been turned into a Cabbage Patch Dreamland. Everything Cabbage Patch. D.R.E.AM.Y.
There were so many great gifts that I received growing up. Although our family never had a ton of money, we always had a really great Christmas morning because most of our "wants" were fulfilled.
Looking back, I realize now that the greatest gift I was ever given was on the day I was born. I was lucky enough to be born into a family where two other girls came before me. I was born a sister to two of the most amazing girls I'll ever know.
I'm not gonna lie and say I've always felt this way. Kim, Keely and I fought. Man did we fight. Like, ALL THE TIME. We spent many an hour in our bedrooms because we couldn't not fight. We just fought. About everything.
We're all older now. There are not two greater influences in my life than my sisters. They are my role models. My heroes. My people I call when I'm having a bad day. My people I call when I'm having a good day. My best friends. My examples of how I should act. My examples of the person I want to be. My listening ears when I need to talk. My "Get it together--you're acting like a fool" reality check. They are my everything. I honestly don't know what I would do without them. They are the best sisters I could have ever hoped for. The best Aunts my son could have. The best sister-in-laws my husband could have dreamed of. They truly are both the best people I know.
I love my sisters a lot. But on the 19th of December every year, I love them just a little bit more.
December 19th of 1996 is the day God called my mom to Heaven. My two sisters are the reason I made it through the second half of my senior year of high school. They, with the help of my dad, are the reason I had a graduation party. They got me through college. They get me through each day.
I see my Mom in each one of my sisters. If I had to give up a parent at such an early age, I'm so very thankful that God left me with these two to look up to. My Mom left really, really big shoes to fill...Keely and Kim are doing a fantastic job and there is not a day that goes by that I know my Mom is looking down on us and proud of who we are and the boys we're raising.
After Reilly's surgery at the beginning of the month...we couldn't leave until he had drank his juice. Guess who made that happen? MY SISTERS!
Aunt Keely may have had some "leftovers that he forgot to swallow" running down her back.
1 comment:
I know how you feel about the month of December. I have always loved the Christmas season, from Santa's entrance at the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade to every holiday concert, movie, and tradition throughout the rest of the month. We lost Dad on December 6, 2009, so it is always a bittersweet beginning to the month. Your post was beautifully written. Your sisters are lucky to have you :)
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