I remember when I was still a little kid and Christmas was SO EXCITING because I knew Santa was coming to see me and I was going to get some really cool toys. Then I got a bit older, too old for Santa to bring me toys, and Christmas lost much of its magic. Of course, by then I was on the edge of being a sullen teen.A few years later, I started to realize that Christmas was really about the birth of Christ and that the holiday was more about kindness and being with people you love than it was about Santa and gifts.In search of a new way to make Christmas magical and special, I began to make some of my own traditions. Back then, my metabolism was much more functional than it is now, so one of my new traditions was to make mountains of homemade candy and cookies for my family and for giving away to friends. I still think Christmas needs divinity, pralines, spritz cookies, date pinwheels, and some iced and decorated sugar cookies, but since the aforementioned slow metabolism coupled with a husband who does not eat sweets, that would leave all of those sweets to be eaten by my children and that does not sound like responsible parenting to me.Another of my traditions is, of course, needlework. I make decorations for my house, gifts, and a variety of Christmas ornaments. Back in the early seventies, my mom got a Vogue pattern for Christmas ornaments. She made at least one of each type of ornament and still uses them. Now I have the pattern and have carefully preserved each of the pattern pieces. My children and I have made a few of them—they are sewn and stuffed and embellished, and have them hanging on our tree every year alongside of a few of my mom’s “vintage” ornaments. In addition, since I have become more of a knitter, I make knitted ornaments such as tiny sweaters, socks, and mittens, strings of Christmas lights, a pickle ornament, and Fair Isle ball ornaments, all out of wool yarn. A couple of years ago I also started making felted wool ornaments with some embroidery embellishment. This year I have yet to make a single ornament because I have been too busy with knitting gifts.If this all sounds pretty homey and old-fashioned, then I am hitting my target. What I started as a teenager and still continue is an effort to bring Christmas back to what I consider to be the roots of what it is supposed to be. I continue to try to “decommercialize” and to cultivate an atmosphere of quiet, reverence for the Birthday Boy, and family togetherness. But, is it ever a struggle, especially now that consumers are being pushed to buy, buy, buy in order to salvage our country’s economy. But that’s another soapbox that I do not need to mount today!I hope for all of you, however you choose to celebrate, that you have a blessed and happy Christmas. And I pray for that I see you safely on the other side of the new year! SpringCreekArtsGuild@gmail.com