The Boxing Day Conundrum

Nicholas has gotten very excited about everything to do with Christmas, as we've noted in several places here: the lights and decorations, the music, Santa Claus, the actual religious parts like lighting Advent candles and setting up Nativity scenes—he has taken to all of it with joy, excitement, and anticipation.

I realized this morning that we've set ourselves up for a potential issue, though, on December 26, when I heard an ad yesterday on the local radio station that plays Christmas music. It was only December 19, but it's already promoting its return to its standard fare the morning after Christmas (ah, American culture, always getting ahead of itself).

Now, we've tried to balance Advent (a time of expectation and waiting that culminates on December 24) and Christmastime (which I'd define here as the December cultural celebration that precedes the religious holiday). On December 26, we'll all start to move on, clean up the wrapping paper, eat the leftover Christmas cookies, and put away the Gene Autry CD for another eleven months (or eight, at Grandma Alice's house).

Nicholas, as you may have guessed if you read the blog regularly, is a child of routine, and once we start doing something, it's difficult to stop without being scolded for forgetting something. So I'm a little worried about how to transition him out of Christmas, and a little worried (much as I enjoy the song and his joy at singing it) that we may get back-seat requests for "Dominick the Donkey" well into January.

In the end we'll be fine, I'm sure, because Nicholas also enjoys logic and reasoning. It may just take a few extra days. And frankly, being in the Christmas spirit for a little bit longer isn't such a bad thing.