Do you enjoy December holidays?

I just thought of this: if it weren’t for the holidays, December would just be a cold, dreary month. December is actually pretty lame if you live up north.

December is cold and dark. I look forward to the holidays in some ways. In other ways I do not.
I will have to deal with some difficult family members. I’ll be spending money that I really would rather save for things we need, and it will be a lot of work and some stress.

On the other hand, I will get to spend time with family that I don’t see very often. I will get to enjoy food that I like and don’t have very often. I will have some fun times with friends. I will be giving gifts to people who I love and I hope that they like them. I will be enjoying decorations that are very beautiful and hold many fond memories for me. I will be enriching my spiritual life and appreciating what I have and hold dear.
I celebrate more than one holiday in December and I think that when I weigh the pros and cons, the positives come out ahead.

I am not Christian. But I love Christmas. Hannukah and Kwanzaa and whatever else there is means nothing to me.

@wilma What a positive response. Love it! I’ll try to think that way. Most times I do, but from the Thanksgiving holiday through December holidays, I find it hard to accentuate the positive.

Part of me kind of dreads this month because we haven’t had much money to spend on the children the past several years and my husband and I haven’t been able to get each other presents. But then I remind myself that the holidays aren’t about material possessions. We enjoy the time we get to spend with each other and eat a bunch of goodies we only eat this time of year. Most of our family is struggling a bit financially, so we decided a few years back that we would only buy presents for our own children and not our nieces and nephews. Only the grandparents get to spoil the kids. It makes it easier and more enjoyable for all of us this way.

Winter is my favorite season. I like the cold weather and enjoy cloudy, dreary days. I love the beauty of the snow and get giddy like a child whenever we get a snowstorm. I like to hike in the snow, snowboard, sled and make snowmen with my daughter. December is pretty sweet when you live in the north. (@Blackberry :P)

@jonsblond “December is pretty sweet when you live in the north” How true! How does that song go, “You’ve got to accentuate the positive, eliminate the negative, latch on to the affirmative, don’t mess with Mr. Inbetween”. I’ve got to talk to myself and focus on that. Thanks for your input!

@jonsblond Scumbag Blackberry: Spends whole day bashing nativity scene, then says he loves christmas. Hahah.

@Blackberry All ya gotta do is smile and all is forgiven =)

It’s great to see my sister, because this is pretty much the only time when she gets leave. I work retail and it’s always the busiest time of the year, so I’m working more and not less. Both me and the BF have most of our relatives in the area, and both sets of parents are divorced, so this usually means four holiday dinners all around the city with different sets of relatives who don’t like each other and all want to see us on Christmas day itself (probably my only off day). And for me, prying questions about what I’m doing with my life and guilt trips over all my decisions.

I don’t know. This time of year is just really exhausting and depressing for me. I’ll be glad when it’s all over, because then spring will be just around the corner.

Of course, without xmas December would be bloody awful.

I love it, but my own family (for the most part) knows that I’m an atheist and our holiday celebrations have always been relatively secular, anyhow. It has always been about family and tradition and love, not religion. I feel lucky in that respect.

@ANef is Enuf Going down to see family and bringing presents for the grandkids next week. They’ll probably open them as they celebrate everything. Kids who are Atheists and Vegans say no presents for their daughter, my grandchild who is 2½. What about celebrating Winter or anything so that she can join in the fun and not be left out or should I whisper to my other grandchildren and hide when I give them their presents reducing their excitement?. Just being sarcastic, sorry. I just find the holidays to be a bummer! How would you react if you had children?

I am not a religious person but, being bred in Brighton Beach Brooklyn some of the old traditions I really miss, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zovz8ZV_B6s&feature=related Maybe that’s also why I feel badly around holiday time.

Christmas IS good for cheering things up in the middle of a cold, depressing winter. The lights and all…I just wish we didn’t all have to stress out over the lack of money we’re supposed to come up with to buy stuff for people that they don’t need.

I’m taking a deep breath, leaving next week to visit family in the DC area. Love to see the grandkids but get uptight with uncompromising attitudes of some. Can make for an unpleasant situation. Hoping the adorable grandkids enjoying family takes them to a better place that includes love, family and yes sometimes tradition, where all are welcome.

That airport in DC is hell on landing, from what I hear!

Leaving soon! Getting together around Chanukah time in the DC area. Ir reminds me of a time in the past, when I married my present husband. My children were 7, 9 and 11. He was great with us, except around Chanukah time. He was and still is an Atheist, and when we’d light the Menorah and sing” I had a little Dreidel”, he would leave the room because he didn’t believe. It made me feel awkward, my kids felt funny and I don’t think it was the right thing to do. He doesn’t think it was the right thing to do now. One doesn’t have to believe but show respect to those who do. My childrens friends were invited over to share in our holiday fun and they were invited to Christmas events. Now 40 some odd years later, when many of us have changed politically and religiously, I have a daughter-in-law and son who behave in the same manner. They don’t believe and they won’t partake. Holidays! Bah Humbug! Excuse me for venting.

@Dutchess_III We’re not going by airplane. Travelling 3 hours then, stopping at a motel, then another 3 hours on Friday the next day. Bringing one of our dogs, a shitzu/poodle who the grandkids love to sleep with. They make it worth the trip. But, there’s still trepidation.

Came down with a cold, fever, the works. Because of being stressed out? Looking for a way out? Or, just coming down with a cold! Any who how, will not be able to make it. Gee! I’m talking too much!

I hate trepidation.