I love the Holidays.  I love the Christmas season.  I love the tree, the decorations, the hats, the carols, the unwrapping of gifts, the lights… I love it!

To me, Christmastime has always been secular, and  that’s how I continue to celebrate it.  The giving gives me a great feeling, and the receiving ain’t half bad, either!

As my kids are getting older, and their gifts are evolving, I find myself taking more enjoyment in their tearing open the paper, in their need to have the toy/video game/stuffed animal out of the box right now so that they can play with the awesomeness that has been bestowed upon them.

We’ve already had a couple of celebrations amongst family and friends, and with the way that our family is blended, we will be having them off and on through the middle of January.

I have to admit, my wife does the heavy lifting.  She braves Black Friday every year, so that we can afford things that we wouldn’t otherwise be able to purchase and give.  She meticulously wraps every gift, because she cannot abide my fumbling and inexact paper folding.  She juggles the schedules of two distinct blended families, not to mention both her extended family and mine.

It just wouldn’t be Christmas without all of her hard work, and for that, I want to wish her, most of all, Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas, and a Joyous New Year.