Four Tickets To Anywhere

A look at my December as a mom, teacher & primary family vacation planner.

Mom Life

It’s December, the “most wonderful time of the year,” which I wholeheartedly agree with, but we can not deny that it is also the busiest time!

For starters, it’s Christmastime with a seven-year-old and a four-year-old, so this means Santa, among many other things! As many moms do, I want this to be the most magical time for my kids, and yes, I know they do not need to do everything or see everything to have a great Christmas season, but I want to give them these experiences.

So let’s think about all the things I want to do with my children:

• See Santa √
• Look at Christmas lights
• Make a gingerbread house
• Visit with family √
• Watch Christmas movies √

It’s a short list; we still have some time so we will finish it. At the same time, we are doing the rest of my life. One week from today, it will be our Christmas. My husband is a first responder and has to work Christmas day this year so Santa will come to our house on December 24. We will also be hosting my husband’s family that day!

A busy week ahead…

Between now and next Saturday (7 days), we have a Christmas pageant at church, a school Christmas show, a birthday party after school, Girl Scouts Christmas party, and a whole week of school for me (4 days for the kids). After gymnastics, Christmas lights will have to come; we’ll pile into the car and drive around looking for beautiful homes. This is a tradition I did as a child, and I love sharing it with my children.

As for gingerbread houses… I am going to be honest; I HATE them! They always fall apart; once you think they are stable, BAM! they fall apart again. The icing drips, and candy falls all over, but the kids love them. My goal this year (although late in the game) is to find the preassembled ones, like this one, and the kids can have at it!

Let’s not forget pajama day at school, holiday spirit day, and holiday parties. However, I can’t be pessimistic about these events because I also do it with my students. I need to stay on top of my laundry and calendar to ensure I don’t mix up or miss any of these days.

Teacher Life

Now the week before Christmas as a teacher… Let’s start with HIGH energy! The kids are excited; they are sugared up and having fun. Which I love, I want my students to be happy and have fun, but it can be tiring! I teach a self-contained kindergarten-2nd grade class for students with autism. Their needs vary, and I want to be able to give my students all the experiences they deserve. So, we will also have a pajama day and holiday spirit wear. The other kindergarten and first-grade classes are making gingerbread houses. As you read, I am not a fan, and this would also be a challenge with 12 students so we will decorate cookies.

Our last day before the break will be a holiday party and watching holiday movies. Hopefully, everyone will be in high spirits and ready for a week at home with their family; I know I will be prepared!

Paris

But wait! It will not be a week home for us! As excited as we are for Christmas, we are SO excited for our vacation of a lifetime, PARIS! Yes, I may be a little crazy to add a break to this crazy time of year, but Paris during the holiday season looks stunning! So I will also be packing this week, reviewing our itinerary, and ensuring we have all our tour passes ready! Planning for Paris was an adventure within itself! Check out our planning experience here.

As much as this will be a busy week, I am incredibly thankful for everything coming up. Christmas is so magical with children; each year is better than the last. I look forward to our early Christmas, seeing the kids smiling faces, then the excitement of landing on a completely different continent and having a different holiday and travel experience.

Update:

Welp, mom fail. I totally did NOT realize our son had pajama day on Monday, so guess who went to school in his uniform?! Yup! Thankfully, he wasn’t the only one, and he took it in stride; he did actually blame it on dad to his teacher 🤣.

Also, remember the Christmas show I mentioned for Monday night? Around 5 pm after school, my daughter informed me that she had hives all over the upper right area of her chest and underarm! So, to urgent care we go! Two hours later, and a missed show later, we were told it was just a reaction, Benadryl, and allergy meds. If it didn’t go away in 24 hours, we were told to go back to steroids. Fortunately, it began to heal, and we do not have to revisit the doctor and no more meds!

Mom life! Always remember to be flexible and roll with the punches!

We want to wish everyone a happy and healthy holiday season! May you be blessed with peace and time with your family! To a happy New Year!

If you’re curious about our Paris trip, you can read about it here.

These are some of our ornaments from past travels! We cannot wait to add more from our 2023 adventures!