Christmas: The most wonderful, stressful time of year

Photo By Staff Sgt. Erik Warren | Staff Sgt. Tomora Clark holds her scantly decorated Christmas tree at the 3rd Cavalry Regiment headquarters building Dec.15 at Fort Hood, Texas. Will she find time to accomplish all of her holiday chores last minute? (Photo by Spc. Erik Warren, 3rd Cavalry Regiment Public Affairs)  

FORT HOOD, TX, UNITED STATES

12.15.2015

Story by Staff Sgt. Tomora Nance 

3d Cavalry Regiment Public Affairs Office

FORT HOOD, Texas – As I sit in my office staring at the scantly decorated tree on my desk and listening to a barrage of classic Christmas music, I contemplate the fast-approaching holiday and all of the things I have to accomplish.

Immediately I feel overwhelmed, almost as if Santa himself is riding on my back.

So I’ve procrastinated a bit by waiting until the week before Christmas to think of what needs to be accomplished. Don’t I deserve a break?

I work full time, then go home to my second full-time job — my 2-year-old son, Aiden.

Gosh, I’ve got to get that darn Santa off my back!
So what is it that I need to accomplish in order to have a so-called “successful” Christmas?

First on my list, I have to decorate my house and that’s no easy feat with my husband currently deployed to Kuwait.

The multicolored lights from last year are all tangled up because I ripped them off the house and threw them in a box labeled “Christmas decorations.” I’m definitely no expert in untangling knots.

Yep, that’s not going to happen. I can check that off my list.

Side note moment: so I live next to these self-proclaimed best Christmas decorators. And, if I were a spectator versus a neighbor, I might feel this house was one of the best I’ve seen in a while and probably go by it often.

But I live right next door. Aren’t I lucky?

It just ticks me off when they leave their Christmas lights on all night, and the lights are blaring into my bedroom. What ever happened to courteous neighbors? You know, the kind of people who turn their lights off at a decent time like 9 p.m.

I honestly feel like snatching down all of their decorations like the Grinch and throwing them away in the city dump, or should I get a spotlight and shine it into their bedroom at 2 a.m.?

Maybe then they’ll get the picture. But I won’t do either, so no worries.

Moving on to my next task to accomplish, which is decorating my fiber optic Christmas tree. Ok, so who really cares if it’s fake, and I’ve had it for four years? It’s practically brand new. Personally, I think it’s better than the real thing.

Ok, not really, I’m just being lazy.

But it’s super cute, and I don’t have to worry about burning down the house with a real one — right? It only takes about 10 minutes to put together the three sections. I can do that. My son will still be excited to see it by the fireplace.

I guess I’ll decorate the fireplace too. I only have three stockings to put up. Decorating inside the house should be a breeze.

Next, I have family coming to visit so I have to prepare a shopping list for groceries. Can I just pass off some food from Boston Market and call it my own? Ok, I’m so over this concept of having a large family gathering.

I just can’t seem to say no when 10 of my family members want to come to my house, but no one ever wants to chip in and help cook.

My hat is definitely off to those people with large families who do this every year. I’m already over the “It’s the most wonderful time of the year” concept. I’m seriously contemplating T.V. dinners for everyone.

But I won’t. Instead, I will be slaving all day over a hot stove to prepare the perfect meal, complete with all of the dressings; I’m using paper plates and plastic utensils though to save time.

Finally, the gift exchange. Why can’t this holiday be more like Thanksgiving when we just say what we are thankful for and call it quits?

No! This is Christmas and on Christmas we give gifts. What to get everyone? That’s the lingering question in my mind.

This year I decided to make everyone’s gifts. What the heck was I thinking? I mean, who would want a gift made by me? It would look like an art project from a second-grader that you are seriously trying to figure out what it actually is.

I know my creations are going to end up on Pinterest Fails. Hey, it’s the thought that counts! When did Christmas become so stressful?

Now that I’ve made my list and checked it twice, I just have to stick to all of my things to do. Well, wish me luck because I’m practically drowning in all things Christmas.

Anyways, Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night.

• Date Taken: 12.15.2015
• Date Posted: 12.15.2015 16:56
• Story ID: 184614
• Location: FORT HOOD, TX, US
• Hometown: RANDALLSTOWN, MD, US