Reminiscing back on the days of nap time, snacks, story time and Play-Doh dates, those days begin to look like the good life. We start to think of how forgiving Santa was.

No matter how many times Mom yelled at us for not cleaning our rooms, coal was never left in our stockings. We come to the realization of how we never woke up as Mommy delicately slid a couple dollars under our pillow. Or how a massive bunny somehow got inside the house (without ringing the doorbell) just to give some sweet goodies.

Picking pumpkins at the pumpkin patch around fall was a dream. Spending hours in an array of Party Citys in order to find the perfect Halloween costume was the first trial and error we all experienced.

But within a blink of an eye, Christmas isn’t so fluffy, the toothfairy becomes unreal and the Easter bunny is just for laughs and jokes. The sweet essence of childhood is remarkable. No matter how we turn out in adulthood, we all went through the stage of innocence.

We all grow up. With that comes jobs, cars and what seems to feel like an endless amount of responsibilities; but we never forget about the child’s play. The fun doesn’t end at childhood. In fact, it may get even better.

Receiving around the holidays is no longer your main propriety. The art of giving is learned in the teen years.
“Giving has a much sweeter reward then receiving, and keeping up the tradition of Santa for the kids is just a bonus,” said Flowery Branch junior Bailee O’brien.

As adults, we grow, as first-grader Jenna McKay would call them, “big-girl teeth.” But human beings all over the world remember the pain and torture of pulling a tooth before it was ready just to try and sneak a peek at the tooth fairy. Thoughts ran wild. Does she fly? Is she pretty? Why does she only come in the night hour? To think back on those times always gives a good laugh.

Flowery Branch? senior Hailee Miller says, “I love Christmas and all the holidays. I still celebrate as if I was 7 years old. Why not? At the age of 18, I am still the first up Christmas morning ready to open and exchange gifts. Just because we grow older doesn’t take the preciousness away from holidays and special moments inside childhood memories.”