I’m not sure when I realized that our family was (ahem) different when it came to Christmas celebrations, but I think it was fairly early on in the homeschooling game. My adorable 6 year-old daughter, who had been right on schedule when it came to developing interests in “normal,” mainstream stuff suddenly veered ferociously towards… the Titanic.
Click photo above for our family’s annual Christmas recap video
It wasn’t a bad obsession, per se, but it was one that didn’t really lend itself to curating a gift list for the relatives. Mattel has yet to make a Titanic-themed Barbie, that I know of, and there were no kid-themed play sets or dress up clothes that might have fit the bill. No, my daughter had chosen an obscure fascination, and I wasn’t quite sure what to do with it when people started asking, “Well, what does she want for Christmas?” Was it really o.k. to say, “She heard that you can buy lumps of coal salvaged from the wreckage of the Titanic. They also sell boarding pass copies printed as postcards at some museum in Ireland. Either of those would thrill her to bits.”
In sharing my dilemma with friends, I learned that we were not alone. Homeschooled kids have a record of very eccentric gift lists, often reflecting their very self-driven, non peer-influenced interests. It can be hard to convey to family and friends, but sometimes, what your school-age kid really wants for Christmas is actually:
- His own Mohs hardness scale pick set for identifying minerals.*
- A paperback collection of Alexander Hamilton’s letters.*
- Tiny duplicates of Van Gogh’s self-portraits.
- A spinning wheel.
- A Civil-War era mess kit.*
- A fetal pig for dissection.*
- A 1950s Davy Crockett tie tack.
- Farmer Boy overalls.
*not my kids, but could have been.
Good luck finding those on the shelves at Target, Grandma.
After absorbing the weirdness of my kid’s gift requests, there was the realization that my kids wouldn’t really be taking a break from learning during the Christmas holidays. Let’s be honest—most homeschooled kids never lose their hunger for “why.” The calendar may say school is out for two weeks, but should my kids stumble on a random fact, chances are excellent they are going to follow that rabbit trail until it no longer hunts. A casual mention that Christmas trees were once hung upside down from ceilings is enough to start a flurry of research that no simple explanation will satisfy. Before long, plans are being made to invert your own tree, and well… homeschoolers know where this is going.
I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention Christmas Adam. I honestly don’t know anyone who celebrates this not-really-a-holiday-but-also-totally-a-holiday that doesn’t homeschool. For the uninitiated, it’s just… the day before Christmas Eve. (Adam came before Eve, get it?) For our family, it’s just a super relaxed day where we bake and play games and put the finishing touches on our handmade gifts for one another. Other families sleep under their Christmas tree, or have an ornament-decorating party, or have a specific read-aloud they do each year. My kids look forward to this day every year, and will tell you that there’s the celebration of Advent, then Christmas Adam, then Christmas Eve, then Christmas Day. It’s one more day of traditional festivities, as far as they’re concerned.
This year, whether you have t.v. character toys or hunks of driftwood under your tree, whether you’ve been binge-watching Hallmark movies or researching Victorian-era holiday feasts, whether you’ve ever even heard of Christmas Adam… Merry Christmas! May the spirit of the Lord rest upon your home as you remember Jesus’ birth and the reason for His coming— from our family, to yours.