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Daria

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20 comments on Comparasitis is here!

Comparasitis is here!

It’s December and that means that comparasitis is in full force. And that’s without social media!

A friend is doing “Christmas envelopes” that is such an amazing idea but unreachable at the moment. Every day, her kids open a hand sketched (!!!) envelope with a surprise inside, ranging from small to big. A hot chocolate, a project, an outing, or a road trip. To the Berkshires, that has real snow. Meanwhile, we went to the dentist.

No cavities club :))

They do the Christmas envelopes in lieu of traditional gifts. So it’s a month of experiences versus receiving a heap of stuff on December 25th. How awesome is that?..

I am so jealous. I am so inspired. But mostly jealous.

Moving on.

Leslie Odom Jr.’s Christmas album is just so beautiful. He puts a jazzy spin on holiday music.

The gingerbread person was created 😀

Letters to Santa were written and posted. We have a mailbox in the neighborhood that sends letters directly to the North Pole, cool, yes?

I am sure the letters will arrive to the big guy in no time.

❓Are you better at fighting comparasitis than me?

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Daria

Mother, teacher, partner, friend. I love coffee, books, and travel with and without kids. I dislike exercise. Nothing glamorous here but do have moments of insight.

20 responses to “Comparasitis is here!”

  1. Lisa’s Yarns Avatar
    Lisa’s Yarns

    I do not feel that during this time of year. I think we are so sure that our approach to gifts is right (for us) that I don’t know or care what others are doing. The envelop thing is cute but I couldn’t put it off. Especially the hand sketched part unless I did stick people drawings. lol. I think it takes less than we think to make this season amazing for our kids. What stands out the most from my childhood is the traditions and the meals we had on Christmas. I also remember lighting the advent calendar and singing Christmas carols while my mom played piano. I remember very few actual gifts. I remember there were lots of gifts around the tree because there were 5 kids in my family. And the gifts were important when I was a child, but my reflecting self doesn’t think much about that. I hope my boys will remember the super fun Christmas Eve gathering we go to at Phil’s cousins and looking at Christmas lights and things like that.

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    1. Daria Avatar
      Daria

      I am the same- I am not crafty or artistic like, at ALL. My childhood was : happy new year, and here is one gift under the new years tree. In the 90s in Russia you could not buy anything.

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      1. Lisa’s Yarns Avatar
        Lisa’s Yarns

        I mean, the bar is SO LOW to outdo your childhood new year!!! Maybe talk that up a lot. My mon talked a lot about how little they got for Christmas (she was 1 of 8) and how excited she was to get an orange in her stocking.

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  2. Michelle G. Avatar
    Michelle G.

    Ooof, those envelopes sound like A LOT of work! I wonder if the kids appreciate them fully, or if they’d really rather have a more traditional pile of presents on Christmas. You made me laugh with your going to the dentist line! The gingerbread person is adorable!

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    1. Daria Avatar
      Daria

      Ha. A very good point, Michelle. Yep, got that checked off the list LOL

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  3. Elisabeth Avatar
    Elisabeth

    I think a lot about this at Christmas. I make lists each season of Good Things I Don’t Have to Do. There are Good Things I do that no one else is doing; there are Good Things other people do (matched jammies, gingerbread decorating, Polar Express Train rides). There isn’t a “better” way of doing things, just different.

    I will say I am MUCH more satisfied now that we have more flexibility financially. It feels like more of a choice to do things simply instead of it being a necessity. Also, we don’t really do much for gifts anytime OTHER than Christmas, so I actually do end up getting a lot of gifts. But I’m happy with our traditions and our food.

    The envelope thing sounds exhausting to me. I would have ZERO desire to do something like this! My kids get chocolate advent calendars from the store and gifts on Christmas! That’s it!

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    1. Daria Avatar
      Daria

      It does sound like a lot of work… I f I ever do it, I may need to start prepping in August LOL

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  4. Kyria @ Travel Spot Avatar
    Kyria @ Travel Spot

    I honestly love seeing what others do but have no desire to do it myself. I am happy looking at other people’s lights and trees and don’t really get the stress of feeling required to buy stuff. We usually do experiences or if someone wants something, like new camping gear, we put it on an Amazon wishlist and people don’t have to worry about what to get. Of course with kids that’s a little different, but I say you do you.

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    1. Daria Avatar
      Daria

      I love seeing what other s do and I almost always feel inadequate.

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  5. NGS Avatar
    NGS

    Yeah, I guess I don’t care what other people do. We do what works for us! Sure, I wish I had *time* to do an experience every day in December, but I’m working and cooking and dealing with life and I’m happy to have two or three magical experiences in the entire month. *shrug* Take the inspiration and leave the guilt/jealousy! You’re doing fine.

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    1. Daria Avatar
      Daria

      I wanna be you when I grow up! 🙂

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  6. Noemi Avatar
    Noemi

    Meanwhile we went to the dentist. 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 OMG I could not stop laughing. This is part of why I’m not on social media. I just don’t see as much to compare myself to. I still manage to do it, but the symptoms are lessened by the reduction in contact with the irritant.
    You’re kids may not be opening hand sketched envelopes every day this month, but they are spending most of their summer in France! You just put your efforts elsewhere, but you still create something beautiful.

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    1. Daria Avatar
      Daria

      True story. Thanks friend!

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  7. Sophie Avatar
    Sophie

    I think I used to compare at Christmas more- now I’m pretty happy with what we do. I think my kids would rather the pile of presents under the tree to be honest- I do remember vividly the excitement of that for me as a child. The one day of the year for that many presents, and magically delivered no less! I think you provide AMAZING experiences for your kids all year round (travel etc). No need to put it all in December.

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  8. rachelinwales Avatar
    rachelinwales

    LOL at “meanwhile we went to the dentist!” So funny and SO TRUE!

    You do such amazing things year round, I don’t think you have to be amazing at Christmas as well. I am always so amazed by your travel and adventures.

    I did not think we had enough presents for the kids, and so we picked up more presents, and now I feel we have too much and are encouraging consumerism. Ugh.

    Also, I love other people’s christmas decorations but have no real desire to decorate myself. So it’s great that I can see other people’s lovely stuff without feeling I need to be a part of it. maybe other people’s envelopes are like that – a cool thing someone else does?

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  9. J Avatar
    J

    I love the idea of giving experiences rather than gifts, but one a day? Isn’t that setting the bar pretty high? If one wants to do experiences rather than gifts, I’m all for it, and generally would prefer it in my own day to day life, but one a day is a LOT. However, good for them that they have this tradition, and no, I would not want to put myself under that kind of pressure for SURE. And I would still want at least one wrapped gift under the tree, if I were a kid. I hope the feeling of being inadequate has passed by now. I feel like you give your kids more experiences than we did with our daughter, and we gave our daughter more experiences than we got as children. And it doesn’t always have to be more. For one of my sisters, she runs herself ragged with the experiences. They are always very busy and doing a lot of things, all year long. This gives them joy, but it would exhaust me. I celebrate the differences between us as well as our shared values.

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  10. Maya Avatar
    Maya

    The envelope idea sounds really sweet…

    Every day sounds like a lot–may be one thing every day ( a picture/ a treat/ an outing) or perhaps a package every week?

    The holidays are holidays for moms too, and they deserve to have relaxation along with cute traditions and memories, no?

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  11. Stephany Avatar
    Stephany

    I don’t have comparitis, BUT I also do not have children. I think I might have more anxiety if I was trying to make sure I was giving my children the best holiday memories. I’m sorry you’re feeling all of this stress. Just remember that sometimes it’s the little things that make the biggest impact and what your kids want most is YOU. (And probably presents, haha, but mostly you!)

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    1. Daria Avatar
      Daria

      Seriously!!!! haha thanks for saying that. You put a smile on my face!

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  12. Tobia | craftaliciousme Avatar
    Tobia | craftaliciousme

    Comparison is always a mean thing but especially during Christmas when one (we) have so high standards and exceptions to ourselves.

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