In two days, it will be November 1st. The fast approach of that day is reminding me that Christmas shopping season will soon be in full swing. And this year is a year unlike any other.
Because we have a son.
(The sentence fragment is for emphasis only.)
I've started to take a peek at the toy departments. Yikes. There's a lot of stuff, and I'm totally overwhelmed.
Brian and I have four nieces and and three nephews from ages 13 to 2, so I've done my share of picking out toys. However, it is entirely another matter of deciding what toys your own child will have, and how many.
We are adamant about not buying too much, yet it is our son, and it is Christmas, so we'd rather do more than hand him a lump of coal. We know that at this age, he'll quickly outgrow toys, but at the same time, some fun, learning toys will help stimulate his mind. We are also firm believers that less is more. We'd rather not overwhelm him with too much, thus creating an ADD-like complex that is never happy with any same thing for more than five minutes.
So I'm taking small steps into this. I bought him a first words book, and a monkey that he smiled at in the store when he was terribly fussy one day. I'm also preparing to buy him a puppy that sings and talks and tells you about body parts, colors, etc. (My sister's kids had this and loved it.) After that, I simply don't know.
All I do know is this: I'll be very selective when making purchases. Perhaps one day Brian and I can go pick a few things out together so I'm not making the decisions alone. The bonus is that at this age, we can do all of our shopping right in front of Caleb, and he won't be the wiser. That's a very good thing, considering we have no choice but to bring him with us.
In all seriousness, I am so excited about Caleb's first Christmas. I realize that all he'll care about is the paper and a cardboard box or two. But for his mommy and daddy, this is probably one of the most exciting Christmases that we will ever have, because it is our first child's first Christmas- our first Christmas as parents. We plan to enjoy every minute, because we can never get that back again. I can't wait!
