In our Listen to Your Mother (or Father) series, we ask moms and dads working at Highmark to share the wisdom that can only come through the experience known as parenthood. Children (of any age) have a great deal to teach the rest of us; this month’s lesson offers a new mother’s tips as she prepares to celebrate her daughter’s first Christmas.
Bailey’s daughter, Kenah, is enjoying her very first Christmas.
Oh Christmas, you make me feel all of my favorite feelings! You are the jingle to my bells, the frosty on my snowman and the star on the top of my tree. Christmas, you are special to me, and I love that those feelings never change.
This Christmas is extra-special because I’m a new mother, and I’m excited to share all of my coveted Christmas traditions with my beautiful baby girl, Kenah. I hope my favorite holiday traditions inspire you to create (or continue) some for your own family.
Scent
Every year I spend way too much money filling my home with candles that smell like apple spice, Christmas tree farms, and my husband’s personal favorite, gingerbread men. When the candles aren’t enough, I like to boil my special “Christmas Concoction” on the stove. I usually just use whatever we have lying around, but you’ll find one of my favorite combinations in the sidebar (right).
Clothes
Anything with the color red, sequins, plaid … Christmas is a time for me to bust out all of my flashiest clothes and blame it on the holiday season! I also buy a new pair of Christmas jammies every December 1to enjoy the whole month long, and this year Kenah will receive her first pair of Christmas jammies.
Kenah enjoys her Christmas jammies… and a cookie.
Sound
CHRISTMAS MUSIC!! Everyone knows the best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear. Not many holidays have their very own set of songs, and no holiday has such a great selection as Christmas. In the past, I have restrained myself from listening to any Christmas music until AFTER Thanksgiving, but I might have slipped a time or two this year… Kenah gets pretty excited when “Santa Claus is Coming to Town” plays on the radio. It might have something to do with my amazing (a.k.a. ridiculous) dance moves.
Sight
Twinkling lights EVERYWHERE! At least one night out of the month of December I make hot chocolate, pack some baked goods, load up in the car and drive around to find the house with the best and most beautiful lights! Then we drive through our local park to admire the displays while listening to Christmas carols and singing along.
I cannot wait to see the look on my baby girl’s face when she experiences the twinkling lights for the first time. If your family wants to have just one (low-effort, low-stress) holiday tradition, then I urge you to incorporate this free, fun-filled night into your Christmas calendar.
Memory
Who doesn’t love a good stroll down memory lane at Christmas time?
My favorite Christmas memory is probably when I was 11 … my mom had just passed away and my dad and older sister had already -warned me that, among other losses, Christmas gifts would not be very generous this year (we had funeral costs).
On Christmas morning I woke up and EVERY.SINGLE.THING I asked for was under the tree, and they were all wrapped and addressed “To: Bailey – Love: Mom.”
What should have been the saddest Christmas turned out to be one of my favorites, and although I don’t have any of those toys anymore, I saved every gift tag because I truly believed they were from my mom.
It is hard as a parent not to buy everything in sight for your child’s first Christmas, but I have a practical side that knows she won’t remember much and will have just as much fun with wrapping paper and boxes as the toys and gifts inside. I kept it small this year and just got a few light-up musical toys, a little red wagon and a beautiful stocking with her name monogrammed on it that I hope she keeps for years and years to come.
Food
Gumbo, chicken pie, ham with a brown sugar glaze, Oreo truffles, fudge, pralines, hot chocolate (who am I kidding? I drink hot chocolate year round!) – I saved the best and my personal favorite for last.
Being from the South and raised in a state known for its cuisine, I have to admit I am a little proud when it comes to my cooking. Recently, we had a team-building exercise in the office where we were asked to come up with a main course for a restaurant and then “pitch” that main course to others in the room. I used my crowd-pleaser Chicken Pie, and I am going to share my coveted recipe with you.
Bailey’s Chicken Pie
1/2 onion minced
1/4 cup chopped green onion
1 bell pepper minced
1 cup celery minced
2 cloves of minced garlic
1/3 cup butter
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can diced tomatoes & green chiles
1.5-2 lbs. boneless chicken tenders/breasts (or you can use crawfish tails if you want to be extra “Cajun”)
2 cups shredded cheese
1 package of yellow rice
2 deep dish frozen pie crusts
2 regular size frozen pie crusts
*note: I put my vegetables through a food chopper so they are extra minced.
Boil chicken, dice or shred however you desire. Cook yellow rice as directed. While rice is cooking, sauté onions, bell pepper, celery and garlic together in butter. Once this is done, add in can of diced tomatoes and the cream of mushroom soup. Season with parsley, salt, pepper and Cajun seasoning to taste. Mix with rice, cheese and chicken, spoon mixture into deep-dish pie crust (you should have enough for two pies) and cover with the regular-size pie crust. Bake as directed. If you don’t need both pies, cover with foil and freeze until ready for use. (This recipe does not have to be followed exactly as instructed; feel free to make your own adjustments).
What are some of your favorite holiday traditions? Do you have crazy and unusual traditions that the rest of us should try? Whatever they are, I am sure they are special and meaningful to your family, and I hope you continue to pass those traditions on for generations to come.