We hung, they giggled, we hollered, and little by little they hung the ornaments in a two-foot square section of the tree, leaving the rest empty.

Up till that point, I did my darndest to take all the fun out of decorating the family tree. Fortunately, kids are resilient.

Next, as all Wilsons have done since the beginning of time, we watched a Christmas TV special. I was prepared, so before Thanksgiving I picked up the animated version of The Grinch Who Stole Christmas from our town library.

In the glow of the Christmas tree, we ate Christmas cookies, sipped sparkling grape juice, and watched the Grinch steal all the wazzbanglers and grimdinglers from those hard-sleeping Whos.

And somehow, in the midst of the soft-colored lights and fizzing grape juice, the fuss and tension vanished, and Christmas crept into our house.

To top it off, my son Sam looked up at me with green icing smeared around his mouth and said, "This is a good Christmas night, Dad." He was right. It wasn't the one I had planned, but it was a good one nonetheless.

My kids won't remember my hollering and barking. They may not even remember every detail of my thrilling Bible stories, but they'll always remember that cozy feeling of family, the truth that their parents love them, and even more importantly that God loves them.

There are websites, books, and magazine articles that promise a step-by-step guide to instill memories galore in your children. They get us pumped up and leave us frustrated.

Just remember...  memories happen.

Having a memorable Christmas is that easy. Honest.

You still have to take the lead and make sacrifices of yourself and your time, but if you do … they'll happen.

Your children depend on those memories, and each one you hand them is tucked away and brought back out when it's needed. They'll remind them of what's important and eternal.

So relax. Go ahead and check out the magazines and websites, but don't worry about the results. Memories happen, and the funniest things will remind them of the best ones: a special ornament, the smell of pine needles, the taste of an iced Christmas cookie, or a 10-ounce bottle of Sprite.

------------------

Along with being a regular writer for The Old Schoolhouse's The Homeschool Minute, Todd Wilson is the author of Lies Homeschooling Moms Believe, Help! I'm Married to a Homeschooling Mom, The Official Book of Homeschooling Cartoons, and several other books. Todd is also a dad, conference speaker, and former pastor. Todd's humor and gut-honest realness have made him a favorite speaker at homeschool conventions across the country and a guest on Focus on the Family. You can visit him on the web at www.familymanweb.com where you can sign up for his weekly e-letter to dads and check out all of their unique homeschool encouragement products.

Copyright 2007.
Originally appeared in The Old Schoolhouse Magazine, Fall 2007. Used with permission. www.TheHomeschoolMagazine.com