At the conclusion of Halloween my mom texted, “What’s on baby’s Christmas wish list?!?” I laughed out loud because all my baby wants is my boobs dripping with milk and to sleep half the day in my arms.
There is no wish list.
I mean, diapers would be nice, a freezer meal maybe, definitely better maternity and paternity leave programs and support, but as far as dreamy Christmas gifts — all the basics were covered at my baby shower.
My little one won’t even be sitting up for their first Christmas so there isn’t even an allure of playing with wrapping paper
I told my mom I’d send a list of consumables — wipes, lotion, baby food pouches I anticipate trying down the road — if she just had to purchase something.
But I held firm that I was serious: Don’t buy my baby anything for Christmas. There isn’t a need and extra stuff overwhelms my current emotional state.
I’m not against the spirit of this holiday, it’s just that I have what we need
Later, after our conversation (which thankfully she totally understood), I drilled down into why I was so against Christmas gifts this year. It came from a place of already feeling so full.
My baby was the greatest gift. My time with them. Stuff just really didn’t compete.
And the things I really wanted, they couldn’t be wrapped
I jotted down some notes to tuck near the Christmas section of my little’s baby book to remember the true wishes of this season …
“Sweetheart, as much as I can’t wait to see your joy unwrapping gifts in Christmases to come, this year I’m holding you tight and embracing what a light you are to our family this year,” I wrote. “YOU ARE THE GIFT! Mimi couldn’t wait to shop for you but more than her presents I told her we want her presence.”
Instead, I want markers of those memories
“Let’s take photos of our three generations together,” I wrote in the book. “How special to be together. Let’s go on winter walks and get our heart rates up — let’s stay healthy so we can be together longer.”
Adding, “Let’s dance in the living room to The Nutcracker Suite and make winter-inspired salads with cranberries and pears and roasted pecans. Let’s record Mimi’s voice reading you a story so we always have that gentle voice available at the push of a button.”
The holiday season is so much more than gifts
“These sentiments go for grandfathers and aunts and uncles and the far-off cousins we are giddy over your arrival,” I added in the baby’s book.
“Tangible gifts will so soon be forgotten, but treasuring our moments together; those memories will surely last a lifetime. You won’t remember this year, but I’ll heavily document, and for years to come so we can recreate our favorite traditions, build new ones, and stand by our pledge that gifts are really a secondary, sometimes unnecessary, part of the Christmas season.”
So, instead of buying gifts for my little one this year, when my baby is far too young to understand, these notes will hold memories and moments we can both love years down the road.
