I lay there, thinking about all the possible things that could be under the tree when I woke up. Finally, after everyone in the house had fallen asleep, I did as well.

I woke up at 6:30 a.m. and had more energy and excitement than a kitten. I lay in bed thinking about the day ahead of me. At 7:30 on the dot, I jumped out of bed and tiptoed into my parents' bedroom. I woke my mom up, who then woke my dad up and we all walked to my sister's room to wake her up, too.

"Merry Christmas, Sophia," we all said to her.

Of course, she knew it was Christmas, so she hopped right out of her bed and got her robe on. All four of us slowly walked out to the living room. Our eyes widened. A smile magically appeared on my face.

Mom and Dad quickly made some coffee while Sophia and I stared at the tree, mainly at what was below it. We checked the milk and cookies. The plate that at one time was full of cookies now held nothing more than a few crumbs and the cup had nothing in it. We turned on some nice Christmas music and all of us sat down by the tree.

Dad retrieved the sleeping cats, Pele and Max, and brought them out to the living room so they, too, could celebrate the holiday. My sister and I each checked our stockings, which were quite full. Pulling everything out, we finally got to the bottom. We looked through everything that was in our stockings and then got ready to open presents.

McKibben Jackinsky

No Christmas season has passed since then that I don't recall the excitement of seeing that telltale round shape in my stocking and being overcome with mouth-watering anticipation.

The second strongest memory comes from a Christmas when I was just a couple of years older than Colby and my family had moved from Ninilchik to Juneau. My parents Colby's Grandma GG and Grandpa Walter had bought a house and my mom, dad, my younger siblings Shawn and Risa and I moved in a few months before Christmas. It was wonderful being in the new house, but adjusting to the financial stretch for my parents resulted in a penny-poor holiday season.

After Mom took me into her confidence, letting me know that year's gift-giving focus would be on Shawn and Risa, I became her confidante, sneaking presents into the house, wrapping them, slipping them under the tree without my siblings knowing. It was a step toward being more responsible, less focused on me, more focused on others.

When the big morning arrived, I was as excited as anyone, eager to witness the excitement on my little brother and sister's faces when they saw the presents awaiting them. I was so caught up in the spirit of Christmas, in fact, that it wasn't until Mom called my attention to it, that I discovered, with immense surprise, the guitar I'd secretly longed for under the tree with my name on it.

COLBY: Christmas for my family is a big deal. It is a day when hundreds of thousands of people wake up in the morning and go check if there is anything under the tree in their living room. It is the day that we wait 364 days for. It is a day when the whole family, even the cats, come out to celebrate.

MCKIBBEN: In our family's tradition, Christmas is a celebration of love shared. The excitement of giving and the joy of being given to are visible expressions of the bond that holds us together. It is a source of comfort then and through whatever the future brings, that whether grandparents, parents or children; the animals with whom we share our homes; or the millions of people with whom we share the planet we are not alone.

COLBY AND MCKIBBEN: From our family to yours, happy holiday.

Colby Aley is a seventh-grade student at West Sylvan Middle School in Portland, Ore. He plays football and the trumpet, is the family's technology expert and manages CPAley Tech Blog. Colby was born in Alaska and has lived in Portland with his parents and sister, Sophia, since he was 4. He and Grandma McK enjoy writing.