With Christmas just around the corner, families have been gearing up for the holiday season, trimming Christmas trees, picking up new ornaments and decorations, or making yet another store run to replace those dead string lights.
One Alabama mom sure knows the struggle and shared her hilarious and very relatable take on Facebook.
Alana Smith, author of "Magic Air: Ten Kid-Sized Steps to Surgery," opened up in a viral Facebook post on Nov. 25, 2022, writing, "Y'all, just like every other mom in America, I've been creating Christmas magic since 8am. I am so damn tired."
Smith, a nurse anesthetist from Birmingham, is a mom of two boys who were 8 and 3 at the time of her viral Facebook post. She told "Good Morning America" she enjoys decorating her home for Christmas, but at the same time, she wanted to poke fun at the chaos behind her annual tradition of decking the halls.
"It's a good time, but it always seems to be the mom's job," she previously told "GMA" of what happens at her house. "You know, Dad helps get the tree up and then it's like they disappear. I don't know where they go."
Smith referenced this in her post, writing in between festive song lyrics: "One thing at a time. Get tree up. Husband helps with this one task. Then decorate entire tree alone. Kids put a few ornaments along bottom of tree, in the worst possible places. Go to a happy place mentally to block that out."
The 39-year-old mom said she was inspired to write the post the day after Thanksgiving two years ago, when she found herself trying to get into the holiday spirit on her day off from work.
"One thing after another, with half of my lights not working and then, you know, my kids trying to kill each other over their trees, and then just mess after mess, so by the time I sat down at night, I just needed to vent -- and for me, that's putting it down on paper," Smith said. "But it was a fun one to write. It just kind of rolled right out."
For Smith, the experience was full of highs and lows. "I had Christmas music on, and then by the end, I was all jolly that morning, and I was like, 'We're gonna get this done. It's gonna be fun' -- and then, by the end of the night, I'm frazzled and like, 'No more Christmas!'" Smith recalled.
It's a teeter-totter scenario working parents are likely to recognize and one Smith pointed out as well.
"I think being a working mom makes it tough. There's just so much to do and so little time, especially around Christmas," she said. "But of course, I want the house to be decorated, I want them to remember the lights and all the fun things. We try to make cookies. We try to go see Christmas lights, see Santa … and I think they remember the fun and excitement. At least I do from my childhood, so I just try to make it special for them."
Ultimately, Smith says she tries to realize what's most important during the holidays -- making magical memories with her kids and family -- without sacrificing too much, and she said it's advice she'd give to her fellow working parents too.
"You can't be perfect at everything, especially moms. We're expected to be 100% at home and 100% in our career, and it's just not always going to happen," she said. "So, I think you just do the best you can. If you can't go out and buy new lights, then whatever it is that makes you guys happy and creates some kind of magic, that's what your kids are going to remember. And then, I think it's just taking the time and trying to take advantage of each moment that you have at home."
Editor's note: This story was originally published Dec. 1, 2022.
