We all remember the joy of waking up Christmas morning to find a new toy under the tree from Santa. When I was growing up, the extra special Santa gift was by the fireplace. The excitement of getting the toy out of the package was just about more than a kid could take. I remember being able to get my own toys out of the packaging, maybe some assistance from mom and dad with batteries or the occasional twist tie, but nothing too complicated. Then the hours of playing commenced.
A couple of years ago, I had staged this very same special Santa gift moment by the tree when the kids woke up for our Christmas. This is the story of how my magical Santa gift moment, or should I say WOMENT, went awry.
We were going to be taking a flight on Christmas day to visit family, so we strategically noted that Santa makes various stops and Christmas deliveries. I was frantically packing to fly with two 4 year-olds and a 2 year-old by myself. My husband had to catch another flight due to his work schedule. I’m a seasoned traveler, my kids had done it before, I wasn’t worried at all.
Now, amongst trying to “do it all”, I tend to be in a hurry. I was scrambling to pull off wrapping gifts, capturing Santa stop #1, and prepare every trick in my bag to keep myself sane while traveling with three kids. Oh, and did I mention they were all three on the end of a stomach flu…while my washing machine quit working. It only gets better.
Finally, time to sit down by the tree and watch the excitement on their faces as they open new toys, a great WOMENT. I was exhausted, but it was go-time! The kid excitement kicked in and a thousand “Mommy, open this, open this, I want to play with this!” started. I’ve got this, no problem. Hmm, this isn’t a twist tie anymore to get a dinosaur off of a cardboard sheet, nope…it’s a zip tie, with a bolt, and a screw…Where do the toy people think the damn dinosaur is going to go?! This is ridiculous!
My husband had already been sweating bullets opening packages as quick as he could, until he had to step away. How do I get this zip tie off???!!! Hmm, there’s his utility blade by the tree, previously used to open some boxes..super sanitary clean blade. I’ll just pop the zip tie off with that. Why would I want to take a minute to go grab some scissors? I’m in a hurry. Well, I got the zip tie off all right, along with shooting blood at the Christmas tree…literally, you can’t make this up, it was spraying out of my hand.
The kids went silent, it was like a horror movie in front of the tree. I topped the cut off with my other hand and tried to act like nothing happened. Well this is just great. Took a look and this wasn’t a band-aid and done situation. Quick, what to do next? Kids are coming off a stomach flu..can’t have a babysitter come over, husband needs to stay here, can’t drive myself, but God bless wonderful neighbors.
My neighbor and I took a trip to urgent care to get a few stitches and she sat with me the whole time. She said, “Next time, promise me you’ll get the scissors.” We had a good laugh, but the pain was kicking in. How am I going to fly with one good hand and three kids by myself? I’ll tell you how, take a WOMENT and ask for help. You’ll be pleasantly surprised when you surrender to experiencing an act of kindness from a stranger.
For a good laugh to relate to “doing it all” on Christmas, I recommend checking out the movie A Bad Mom’s Christmas. Just remember, nothing has to be perfect…if you hurry, you could get hurt.
