Jennette McCurdy , 21, is a TV actress, singer and former star of Nickelodeon's "iCarly." She currently co-stars with Ariana Grande in the comedy series "Sam & Cat."

Growing up, Christmastime was for me just like it was for every other child in the universe: leaps and bounds more exciting than any other time of the year. It was a time for homemade cookies (and more importantly, the dough), Christmas movies every night, and beautiful, festive lights as seen through the windows of our family's hip Ford Windstar minivan.

Every night for the twelve days leading up to Christmas, there would be three quick raps on our front door. My brothers and I would scurry over, open it, and find some sort of a holiday-themed treat accompanied by a clever poem. The poem was always signed, "Love, the Phantom."

This Christmas Phantom, along with mom-made reindeer slippers, a daily holiday "activity packet," and a Christmas Kid Cuisine for every lunch in December, were just a few of the traditions the McCurdy family held near and dear every holiday season...

... Until I turned double digits, the big 1-0. My brothers were then getting too old to care about Christmas. They were no longer as acute with their Christmas sensibilities as they had once been. The reindeer slippers remained tucked in drawers, the activity packets went untouched, and kid cuisines were traded in for meals that would, I don't know, satiate their hunger or something.