Idon’t know about you, but this year, I feel like my heart has grown a size or two amidst the outpouring of local Christmas cheer.

I’m no Scrooge by any means, but Christmas — especially as a parent — can bring equal amounts of stress and joy.

First and foremost, did we get all the gifts we need? Thanks to my wife Jordan’s fully admitted addiction to the Bin Barn in Monett, we alleviate some stress throughout the year. By October, we typically have at least 75% of the kids’ gifts stowed away waiting for wrapping. All that’s left for us to deal with is whatever Santa decides to nestle under our tree.

However, Jordan and I both come from blended families, and when you start adding in siblings, step-siblings, nieces, nephews, aunts, uncles, and the rest of the extended crew, gift-giving can get complicated and expensive.

Fortunately, most of our extended family recognizes this hurdle and opts for a “Secret Santa” setup, that way we only have to buy a few gifts instead of a few dozen.

At the Troutman house, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day are blocked off just for us. It’s a rule Jordan made a few years ago, and it’s the most joyous stress reliever.

I read a quote recently about shifting family dynamics and how millennials especially struggle with making Christmas their own versus the nostalgia of their childhood Christmases.

The article said, in effect, once you get married — and especially when you have children — your immediate family changes. It’s not your mom and dad, your brothers and sisters; it’s your spouse and your children.

I know empty nesters may balk at this view, but as a young father with young children, there’s not much more joyous than sharing a special night and an even more special morning with just us together.

The prospect of this year’s Christmas celebration has me excited, and I think a big part of that, for me anyway, is the weeks leading up to the occasion and seeing how the Cassville community enjoys the holidays.

The Barry County Christmas season kicks off with parades on the first Saturday of December. There were four on Dec. 7 this year (Purdy, Washburn, Exeter and Cassville), and each one is bound to put a pep in your holiday step.

For the second time this year, the Cassville Community Christmas brought hundreds of locals together at the Family Life Center for food, music and activities. Those efforts and the holiday cheer that follows are not overlooked.

Throughout the month of December, there is a wide array of community- centered gift-giving projects. From the numerous businesses that sponsor Angel Trees for the young and the old to local law enforcement participating in Shop with a Cop, Barry County residents take care of their own.

One of the largest efforts is the Barry County Neighborhood Center’s Share Your Christmas, for which Cassville High School’s eight Miss and Mr. Merry Christmas candidates raised more than $16,000 for this year. That program served 100 families and 315 total children, bringing the joy of Christmas to so many that would have largely gone without otherwise.

At the Democrat, we have continued printing our Santa Letters section as we have every year, with more than 250 Barry County second-graders submitting letters to print in our pages.

This tradition is so engrained that in Jordan’s weekly Through the Years research, she found a couple of letters from 1994 from people we know.

One was by our neighbor, who asked for a Power Rangers video game. We’re working to confirm with his father whether or not the request was met.

The other was by State Auditor Scott Fitzpatrick, who wanted a remote control car, a real football shirt and a real football helmet. I’d wager Scott has the means now to get a remote control car and football gear that would make his 6-year-old self supremely jealous.

Beyond the bigger community projects, Cassville folks find ways to connect with one another personally. From our local banker stopping by the office to chat and bringing us a box of chocolates (which have undeniably played Santa on my waistline), to Jim Craig leading the Cassville Rotary Club in all three verses of “Jingle Bells” at our weekly meeting on Wednesday, the Christmas spirit of spreading love and joy permeates our corner of Missouri.

So, curl up with your kids and some hot chocolate, open some gifts, enjoy the joy and have a totally wonderful, completely Cassville Christmas.

Kyle Troutman has served as editor of the Cassville Democrat since 2014 and owner/publisher since 2023. He was named William E. James/Missouri Outstanding Young Journalist for daily newspapers in 2017, and he is a two-time ISWNE Golden Dozen award winner. He may be reached at 417-847 2610 or ktroutman@cassville- democrat.com.