Why it's okay to be looking forward to Christmas all year round

They have so many nice Christmas ornaments these days, I suddenly thought to myself. I started googling and spontaneously felt like setting up a mini Christmas tree already.

I'm not doing it, you know, this early in November, but the temptation is there. I think that at Christmas you always have two teams: you either love it all the jingle way or you don’t. I'm clearly in the first team. I find the quaintness of it all so delightful. Those same five hits that get played over and over every year. That tacky and eye-catching decoration that you can just suddenly hang in your house. Glitter, pink, gold, silver – it’s allowed. The togetherness, the delicious food, and especially talking about the food all day long… Celebration.

If you've been looking forward to Christmas all year, you definitely shouldn't be ashamed of it. It might even be good for you, because researchers say that people who take their Christmas decorations out of the shed long before the end of December are actually happier. They are often social people, those who are already looking forward to the holidays long before it’s actually time for those holidays. So, go ahead and place that Rudolph on your nightstand with a clear conscience. Turn on that Sky Radio Christmas Station and well, put on that snowman sweater.

But what I might love most about Christmas, and also about New Year's, is reflecting on the year. I always do that a bit at the end of December. It happens automatically. Another year gone by. And what has happened? Every year it's good to take a moment to think about it. This year I have a lot to reflect on, I think, with a wedding and a twin on the way. Maybe it’s not so inconvenient that I’m already fully in the Christmas spirit and scoring outfits for Christmas Eve dinners. This way I have all the time and can leisurely reflect on 2018 – and already look forward with a positive pink lens to everything that will come in 2019. The year in which I hope to become a mother. If that isn’t worth an extra Christmas ornament…