I'm Proud Of Our Bodacious Dog Mom Life Christmas

Lisa and the kids are all tucked in. They went to bed around 10. I made a cup of my favorite Tazo tea. I got all cozy on the sofa with my Chromebook. I wasn't tired. Before working on a few blog posts, I scrolled through my Facebook news feed. I love seeing photos of people's Christmas celebrations and all the adorable photos of pups and kitties dressed in their Christmas attire. After about 15 minutes, I had to stop scrolling.

There was photo after photo after photo of Christmas trees with an obnoxious amount of gifts underneath. It wasn't the photos that necessarily bothered me. It was what people had written to accompany these photos.

"The photo doesn't do justice. There's a ton of gifts around the tree too. I didn't skimp."

"My kids are spoiled rotten."

"My kids must have been good because look at all the gifts they're going to get."

"I hope everyone is happy. I'll be in debt for the next 6 months because of this."

"If people only knew how much I spent to provide this amount of gifts."

"It's obvious that Santa loves this family."

"I just finished wrapping. Almost 75 gifts this year. Best year ever."

"I think I should get the Most-Presents-Under-The-Tree award."

Blah. Blah. Blah.

I sat back on the sofa and stared at our Christmas tree. I still had it plugged in. There wasn't a single gift underneath the tree.

Lisa and I don't exchange Christmas gifts. Instead, we surprise each other throughout the year with thoughtful "just because" gifts.

Maybe it's an age thing. Maybe it's just because of who we are. Maybe it's because our circle is small and we don't associate with a lot of family members.

As I sat there, I thought, "This has been one of the best Christmases ever." And, it had nothing to do with the amount of gifts under the tree.

Or taking photos of the amount of gifts under the tree and bragging about it.

We provided much needed items for a man and his pup who had just recently found shelter for the winter after being homeless. The woman who delivered the goods traveled an hour and half one way to collect the items.

We had a little collection fundraiser for a family that had fallen on hard times and we managed to collect and purchase quite a bit of groceries, a Christmas dinner, clothes, and a few toys.

We made a scrumptious traditional Christmas dinner yesterday for 2 very special people that we adore. To be able to share a meal with them and have their company for a few hours was a blessing.

We provided holiday biscuit love for lots of sweet pups and for some pet parents who had fallen on hard times.

We made gorgeous gift baskets for our dearest friends. We filled the baskets with homemade treats, trinkets, and treasures. They were all thrilled with their baskets.

We provided a cookie basket for those in our local fire department who did the Santa Run this year and we donated some food.

Our dear friends surprised us with some sweet and thoughtful gifts. A step ladder. Wine. Chocolates. Gift cards. And, my favorite, some homemade relish, handmade ceramic coasters, and some Christmas Crack made with pretzels instead of Saltines.

Char made her famous Christmas cake. I look forward to it every year.

We surprised one of our neighbors with a Christmas platter of goodies and a stocking for her pup because this year was a difficult one for them. The thank you message from the recipient got me all teary eyed.

Lisa and I enjoyed a quiet Christmas Eve that included a Skip-Bo marathon, lots of play and snuggle time with the kids, and movie night. We even made a cheesecake together.

Tomorrow, I'm making lasagna for dinner. We have no plans except to relax, unwind, and enjoy being together as a family. No work stuff. No schedule.

That's our Christmas. 

For the life of me, I can't understand why the amount of Christmas presents under the Christmas is the center of all things Christmas.

When did Christmas become so competitive?

When did Christmas become the season of bragging rights?

When did Christmas come with such a gigantic price tag?

Why are so many people willing to begin the new year in debt because of the Christmas season?

It makes me sad.

I'm slightly disgusted.

Times have changed.

How many times have I heard, "You've got to keep up with the changing times."

And I have because of work stuff.

But, for Christmas, I don't want to.

I'm proud of our Bodacious Dog Mom Life Christmas.

And, I wouldn't change a thing.