I’ve been reading a lot of blogs that reminisce on their childhood and Christmas.  Some are filled with sugar and spice.  While others are of struggling and poverty.  This got me thinking and made me realize I had it pretty good as a kid.  Even though I had young, teenage, parents I say they did the best they could. 

 Of course I don’t remember my first Christmas’ but I do remember carrying around a doll I called My Big Eyes Doll forever!  She was a big, cold, plastic thing that didn’t bend but she had these big eyes that reminded my mom of mine so she bought her for me.  I might have even had an old dish cloth “blanket” for her, too.

As years went on and my parents hit their twenties and were able to do more for us I remember getting my first Cabbage Patch Doll.  Remember that craze in the 80’s?  Yeah, my parents were among the freaks who were buying CPK’s out of some guys trunk in the parking lot of Zody’s.   They hunted high and low.  Day and night just so I can have the BEST Christmas ever by getting me the only thing I asked for, a fricken CPK.  I loved that ugly doll. 

Then when they did really well, one year I got an Atari game system!  Oh man!  I couldn’t wait to go back to school and brag that one up.  Yeah man!  I was da shiznit at 10 years old! 

Over the years, my parents bought us tons of shit for Christmas.  Lots of clothes and stuff we didn’t need.   I have to say I never once thought back to that until now, today.  I was a lucky kid.  I don’t know if I was grateful, then, but I now know I was lucky.    I’m sure I was grateful because my dad raised us well.

As Christmas 2007 is only six days away I’ve been looking at the list of gifts we bought our girls and man, we spent a lot of money on them.  We don’t buy things like game systems and that sort.  Our girls got a lot of drawing stuff, clothes and gift cards for book stores.  Of course they got a handful of toys because what kid only wants clothes and books for Christmas? 

But I hope that after the last gift has been unwrapped, the last ooh and ahhh has been whispered and the last battery inserted that my girls realize how lucky they really are.  Not just for all the gifts they’re getting, but for for having a family like ours.  Having a roof, food and warmth while many don’t. 

I want to hope that with the couple of small Charity participation’s we’ve got them involved with this season that its helped them to see just how lucky they are.   I hope they learn early what I learned as an adult, that the best gifts aren’t under the tree but surrounding us daily.