Okay, you’re probably thinking, “damn what a stupid thing to write about I already know how it changes.” Oh, but how wrong you are, sweet reader. I am here to entertain and enlighten you with some Christmas ~magic~ and bitter realities of the impending doom that accompanies aging.

1. Getting up early with young siblings seems like the worst thing in the world. Ideally, Santa would come around 1 so you could sleep in, brunch it out, and then open gifts with coffee.
2. The need for Santa’s cookies diminishes; you know damn well it’s your Mommy and Daddy (no not that kind of Daddy) putting gifts under the tree.
3. Looking at the tree and gifts creates the visual of burning money, you realize that money could have paid for books, or been back in your wallet, but it’s the giving that counts?
4. Giving gets way more expensive; the macaroni necklaces aren’t OK anymore unfortunately, even though they’re very wallet friendly.
5. You don’t really care where you are anymore, it’s also OK you aren’t with your entire extended family, the rents may have moved, but as long as you’re around loved ones, Christmas will still happen.
6. Work might be a part of your life, waking up early might be of Christmas morning, a reality you probably never dreamed of as a tender, tender child.
7. Nothing has to be perfect anymore; the perfectly wrapped boxes, and the Mickey Mouse pancakes do not become essential parts of Christmas morning.
8. Mom or Dad not feeling good? No lights on the house? Well, you just hop in the car and go look at the bougey neighborhoods where the residents hire people to put them up; they are not as important as it was when you were a kid.
9. Your S.O. might be involved, so you might not be at home on Christmas or they might be jammie-clad next to you on Christmas morning.
10. You might not even be in a house, you might be with your S.O. at their cabin, or is a hostel traveling with your sorority sisters; Christmas does not have a location.
11. Parents can start getting real, if gifts or a big celebration weren’t in the budget this year, they can admit that and Christmas can be reevaluated. A Christmas with a budget celebration is still a very special occasion; it just might not the glamour it used to have.
12. The Christmas card photo is probably less tacky and more polished, or you might not even have one and that’s the way the cookie crumbles.
13. It’s much more accepted to eat out on the Holidays, for example, if your sister is shipping off to basic training the day after, the family may have to celebrate a few days before, and Christmas may involve McDonalds instead of ham.
14. That said, Christmas does not have an exact date either, obviously it’s December 25, you know what I mean. You celebrate when you celebrate.
15. One thing pretty much always remains the same, the magic and excitement of Christmas is still very real and alive.

Regardless of situations, the beauty of Christmas and the love of a family will always be present, even though it might not fit the mold it did during childhood.