AND it was healthy.
Score!
I made salmon with a Dijon glaze, honey-glazed carrots, and brown rice. It was absolutely delicious and super easy to make. It only took about 45 minutes to get it all on the plate, and that's including putting two things in the oven at separate times. I was stoked!
It's not exactly a Martha Stewart Magazine-worthy photo, but I'm telling you, the recipes are worth being on the cover. It's that delicious.
Here's the recipes for Salmon with Dijon Glaze and the Honey-Glazed Carrots. I just used a Success Boil-in-the-Bag brown rice and didn't add absolutely anything to it.
So good.
Anyways, on to the next topic.
I've seen a few posts on Facebook about a blog entry entitled, 'Why the Haefs don't "Do" Santa.'
I have to be honest and tell you that it took me a little while to realize that 'Haefs' was actually a last name, not a group of people. I felt pretty dumb once I came to my senses. I guess changing your hair color doesn't help with the little moments of blonde-ness.
I decided to give it a look, just kind of curious as to what their reasoning's were behind not including Santa in their Christmas morning.
If you would like to check out the article before you read my thoughts on it, you can find it here.
If you don't really care to read it, here's a small summary of it:
They Haefs have chosen not to include Santa into their Christmas traditions because they feel it takes away from the real reason Christians celebrate Christmas. They see that Santa is like a 'distraction' from the love and grace of God that is to be celebrated, and they want their children to understand what December 25th is really about. They conclude that Christmas isn't about making a 'Naughty or Nice' list, but is about understand God's love and grace that was shown when He sent His Son. They don't shelter their children from Santa or any other Christmas traditions (Christmas tree, Frosty the Snowman, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, etc.), they just don't allow their children to believe Santa rides a sleigh and travels down the chimney to leave presents on Christmas Day.
I really encourage you to read the article if you haven't, though. It brings some really interesting thoughts that I wasn't able to include in my summary, and really explains why they chose this.
Being the usually-silent-but-opinionated-person that I am, I'm going to share what I think!
Growing up, we believed in Santa. We sat out the cookies, wrote the letter, lost sleep while trying to hear the hoofs of reindeer walking across the roof, and finally walked into the living room to see what Santa left behind. We also knew the real reason we celebrated Christmas, which was the birth of Jesus. I don't feel that we put too much emphasis on Santa, and we didn't feel like it was a lie that our parents told us that led to us questioning anything else my parents told us. It was just a part of Christmas. Even up until this Christmas, my parents sat out gifts from Santa, and we all have long stopped believing. We didn't think it was a super-big deal when we realized our parents were the ones buying our gifts, at least I can't remember either one of my three sisters being upset over it.
I always figured I would carry on the same traditions with my family, but probably include the cute little 'Elf on the Shelf' as well, just so I can be the creatively-cool mom and figure out cute little set-ups our elf could get into.
After reading this article, though, several points the author made has brought quite a few things about Christmas to my attention.
Of course, Chris and I's main intention of every Christmas will be to celebrate the birth of Christ and what that brought to out lost world. Because of our faith, we believe there is no point in celebrating Christmas without Christ. We want our kids to understand that it's not about the presents, the tree, the lights nor the traditions, but about the greatest Gift of all, who came to die on a tree to bring Light into this dark world.
But what's the hurt in throwing the tradition of Santa in there, too?
This article really has me torn, and I don't even have kids yet! There's so much fun in the excitement of writing letters to Santa with all of our wishes, in the magic of believing there is a man named Santa who makes toys in the North Pole, that reindeer can fly, and that this guy eats all of the cookies and drinks all of the milk left in every home, yet can still go up and down the chimney without getting stuck. But it's so easy to get caught up in the magic of Santa and forget about the realness of the Messiah.
I don't want our Christmas to become about being 'naughty or nice' so Santa can bring presents instead of coal. I want our kids to understand that we give gifts because we were given the Greatest Gift of all. I want them to fully grasp exactly why December 25th is a special day for us to celebrate, and if Santa comes in between that understanding, then we may take the same approach as the Haefs.
But I also don't want to ruin Santa for other kids. I feel that if you teach your child that Santa is just another character like Mickey Mouse, they will then feel obligated to teach other children that Santa isn't real. That's not mine, nor my child's place to tell others that Santa doesn't exist if their parents choose to let their child believe. I remember trying to convince other kids Santa wasn't real when I found out he didn't exist, and I don't want my kids to do the same.
Being a parent during Christmastime is tough!
Of course, I will definitely talk to the hubby and get the OK from him before anything is set in stone. Good thing we have a while to figure this one out :)
I'm really glad I read this blog entry, even though it's given Chris and I one more thing to figure out when we talk about raising our little Johns babies. It brings up some seriously valid points, but doesn't show any judgment towards those who chose to 'do' Santa. It's so very well written, stuffed full of a lot of things to ponder on this Christmas (and every other Christmas) season.
It also makes me see just how serious and daunting of a task it is to raise kids in the world we live in today. Even if the world wasn't as scary as it is, raising kids is still some serious business! Even down to something such as Santa Claus, every little thing has to be address, understood, then taught to a child, who will then build the foundation for their own life from it.
It's quite frightening, yet so amazing.
I am very thankful that Chris and I have at least another three years before we have to worry about whether or not Santa will be 'believed' in or not in our house. And, more than likely, we will let our kids believe there is a Santa. But this article has definitely brought up many excellent points that I haven't always thought about. I will now, though!
It's exactly two weeks until Christmas, and I have a little more finished on my list of gifts to buy. Still a ways to go, though.
Christmas, would you please slow down? Just a little?
.......
Yeah, I figured you wouldn't. Oh well :)
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