As a parent of four children, I remember dedicating an inordinate amount of time making sure my children had a magical Christmas morning.

I wrapped all the gifts from Santa in special “Santa paper” and made sure they had cute matching Christmas pajamas.

We had a special plate for the jolly old elf’s milk and cookies, and sometimes when I remembered to get a bunch of carrots from the grocery, we would put one out for the reindeer.

No doubt, there are a lot of parents who, like me when my children were younger, aim to do the same.

But were these materialistic endeavors what really made Christmas special for them?

A couple of weeks ago, I visited a few elementary schools for an assignment, which entailed asking the students what Christmas meant to them. Truthfully, I was expecting them to give the classic answers all of which revolved around Santa Claus, presents and the baby Jesus.

A few of the children responded as I had expected, but most of them surprised me with their responses.

When I asked what Christmas meant to them, they said family. Wow!

In this modern world, when children are surrounded by technology, instant gratification and all the other pursuits vying for their time, at the end of the day, what really matters is family.

Christmas is a busy time of year for moms and dads of young children, and for me, it seemed like there was always something to be done. From cooking all the family favorites to wrapping the parcel of presents, I would just go, go, go, go, go.

Thinking back, I hope I left enough room in the day that if asked what Christmas meant to them, my children, too, would have said family.

Christmas is the celebration of the birth of the Christ Child, and what better way is there to rejoice than being surrounded by family.

And to quote six-year-old Paisley Hott, Christmas means, “… Being with your family, eating treats and watching the Grinch and Christmas movies and love… That’s all I know about Christmas – and it is amazing.”