We’re Going Halfsies…

Throughout our marriage, Adam and I have been halfsies. While Adam and I are willing to compromise on most anything else, Holidays never made it on the list of give-ins…and honestly, neither one of us has really ever made the request. If you grew up in a family that you even halfway like, Holidays are tough when you wed. In jest, I always stated that I would have to marry a Christmas Eve-r because the Eickman family always opened our gifts on Christmas day. But I neglected to think about the fact that if I married an Eve-r, I would never be around for the candlelight service at my childhood church, I would not be able to wake up and run up the stairs to open stockings at the crack of dawn with our children and that by all of us kiddos being Christmas day-ers, my parents would be left alone for many a Christmas eve and Christmas morn…and likewise, my spouse would never be at his home for Jesus’ big day. Now, this is not to say that this realization presenting itself earlier would have prevented my marriage to the love of life but perhaps the prenup would have looked a little different.

In the same vein is the thought that just as we have each had to make concessions when it comes to Holidays, unless Barrett marries a {future} sibling {not that there’s anything wrong with that}, he will some day make the choice to not be with us for all of our festivities. Ugh. That thought hurts. Yes, I know that Barrett is just a pint-sized peanut this year but as the years come and go, Barrett and any subsequent children we should have will surely find themselves facing the Christmas conundrum and much like our parents have, we will just have to roll with the punches. I try to picture just how I’m going to deal with that but have much hope that many years will make me wiser… or at least more considerate.

For the nearly 5 years of our marriage, we have split holiday celebrations straight down the middle. We do Thanksgiving lunch with the Brehms, dinner with the Eickmans … Christmas Eve with the Brehms, Christmas Day with the Eickmans … we go halfsies on everything down to the 4th of July and Memorial Day … trying to keep track of where we were the year prior and such. It’s a lot of time in the car, but to us, it’s so worth it.

Due to Jesus’ Blizzard Bash of 2009 though, Adam and I had to change our plans for this year and while there were pros and cons, I certainly found myself to be more empathetic towards both of our parents this year than in any other that has come before. On the advice of our parents, we jettisoned our original schedule of traveling on Christmas Eve and Day in favor of getting one place early and safe and as we had plans to have an additional celebration with the Brehm family this week, Wilber it was.

Adam and I hit the road with Barrett on Christmas Eve-eve and headed down to Wilber to hunker down for the storm. And, as you know if you live anywhere within the midwest, storm is did. It iced. Snowed. Blew. And like a child who surely got nuttin’ for Christmas, was just downright nasty. We did get to enjoy a three day festival of gift opening which included many gifts for Baby B. While he was completely spoiled by all parties involved and received copious amounts of books, toys and clothes, the big gifts he received to date included a personalized PBKids Anywhere Chair from Santa and a Laugh and Learn Learning Home Playset from gma and gpa Eickman.

After almost a week in Wilber, we headed home for just long enough to wash clothes and pack them again for a stay at the lake with gma and gpa Brehm and fams. Although this year will be a year to remember as we will never redo Barrett’s first Christmas, I think we’ll go back to halfsies for the future festivities and hope that when Barrett’s in our shoes, he’ll do the same;).