"Bringing it Down a Notch"

Poking around FB today...when I stumbled across an article called "Can We Bring The Holidays Down a Notch?"    It's all about how these minor holidays have turned into an all-out HUGE CELEBRATION for kids.  The author uses St. Patrick's Day as a prime example, where kids wearing green isn't enough anymore, they must build leprechaun traps, hunt for gold coins and dye all foods green.  WHAT??  

Yeah, I'm totally blogging about someone else's blog post.  Why?  Because I think the message is pretty important.  We live in a Pinterest world, where handmade Valentines with prizes (because in our school, candy isn't allowed) are expected, the Tooth Fairy pays $5 per tooth, the Elf on the Shelf tortures parents (and now there's a birthday one as well!)  Easter Eggs must be dyed in organic dye and then decorated with non-acid stickers and Halloween costumes are homemade and obscure.  We now celebrate the Hundredth Day of School like it's a major holiday and don't even get me started on Spirit Week.  

I don't live in this world.  Neither do my kids, and I don't think they're suffering.  Not once have they asked me when our Gold Coin hunt is going to start, or requested green milk.  (Say it with me:  Ew.)  We got a big box of store-bought Valentines and no one was worse for the wear.  My kids have never dyed an Easter egg.  In fact, when I mentioned that maybe we could this year, Will countered that he liked the plastic eggs just fine.  There is no Elf on the Shelf in our home at Christmastime, and I have zero interest in bringing one home.  Because that just creates stress around an already-stressful holiday season, most of which is stress that I/we created.  Adding on "remembering to move around an Elf nightly" to my list of things to do, and finding "naughty" things that I have to set up/clean up just might be my breaking point.  And forget an "Advent calendar" with a daily small gift at Christmas.  Whoever thought that idea up....ugh.  

Don't get me wrong:  I like Pinterest, I am looking for new things on there all the time.  And I love whimsy.  I like creating things with my kids, and celebrating holidays.  But when did it become such a competition, not to mention expensive??  And forget the whole Mommy Battle thing, between stay-home/working/work from home Moms....from where I sit it's all types of Moms agreeing over this.

I'm not looking to be a grinch, or to short-change my boys when it comes to fun and celebration.  Let's just agree to celebrate things joyfully without overburdening.  I'm on board!