Who's Looking Foward to Christmas?

[cschin4]

Christmas is coming. The JCP catalog came yesterday and my kids are hungrily circling all the things they want Santa to bring them. I enjoy the Holidays but also dread them as well. They will want alot of things. I don't mind buying some things but frankly, 99% of things are played with for a short period of time and end up in the basement or on their way to Goodwill. How do you deal with getting the kids some things that they will enjoy vs. the wastefulness of it all?

[Thrifty Ray]

Well, think back to your own childhood Christmas memories and go from there....To be perfectly honest, my best memories have NOTHING to do with the presents we opened...although I loved getting up and opening on Christmas morning, I simply dont remember the gifts...

But I do recall my brother and i taping about 2 dozen sheets of paper together and coloring a HUGE Christams tree on it and surprising my mom by taping it to the front door.

I remember the fun we had decorating the tree...

and I remember the drives to look at the lights at night.

So, think about it....will your kids be disappointed and forever scarred from the things they didnt get??? or will they remember the 'times' they enjoyed???

[Thrifty Ray]

Now then, YES I am and always do look forward to Christmas. I save all year and shop throughout the year...and i decorate my house for the seasons and I am a big kid when it comes to the 'magic' of it all.

I am one of the crazy ones who looks forward to the decorations hitting the stores...and I enjoy the frenzy of staying up at night with hot cocoa wrapping presents.

There have only been a couple of years that I ever stressed during the Holidays....when my brother died, when DH was in Desert Storm and the year the puppies were all allowed in my house unsupervised and thought the tree and all the gifts were a perfect place to do their dirty work...egads.

I LOVE the Holidays and look forward to them every year. HO HO HO

[Ima saver]

I was always a big christmas fan, but i think age does something to you. Or maybe it is not as much fun when there are no kids around! Plus, I have no family! My favorite things are christmas parties!

[PrincessPerky]

Don't buy em, they will thank you later.

This is all IMO and totally unPC, but heres my 2 cents:

I don't mind window shopping, but I never let my kids think they will be getting everything and anything...take em to a homeless shelter, talk about 3rd world countries. discuss why the good will exists.. describe life in the depression era..never let a kid think they are entitled to anything just cause you lie and say Santa brought it.

I limit christmas for my kids to two preasents and one stocking,a nd I limt just what that will be...no 100 dollar gifts! I see ntohing wrong and I see everything right with honestly and limits. My kids love christmas as much as I do, they love opening the stockings, then breakfast than the two presents, with no rush to get done, plenty of time too open and PLAY with the gifts.

This is not to say none of my gifts end up in the good will pile, just that with such limited space in the list, I have less chance of the toss pile.

We are not here to make the kids smile now, we are here to help them lead happy productive lives for the next 80-100 years (life expectancy is growing) So while I enjoy the moment that is christmas (my youngest will be having his first real christmas this year!) I do not feel my sole role is to make his christmas huge, it is rather to remeber the reason (if you are not religious at least aim for some giving not all gettting please) and to enjoy some traditions and fun, and family...not just a opening frenzy of wrapping paper everywhere..which is invariably followed by a let down of 'what thats it?' even though the pile is higher than your head and the cost larger than your mortgage!

but then my kids see santa as a guy in story too.

oh and my 'gift limit' may be shrinking this year..it is hard to find toys I know will not end up in the good will pile, and I have to help gmas and nanas buy too! so I may just go with less...

[scrava]

I am! I LOVE Christmas!! I love all the decorations and whatnot. I'm an efficient shopper and usually have some done by Thanksgiving and I am always completely done by the 20th. Last year, we had just lost my mom so it stunk. It will be nice to have this year be more like normal.

[Broken Arrow]

The holidays have been rough on me lately, with all that's been going on in my personal life.

Hopefully, I'll fare better this year.

[BCHGRL]

Personally, I enjoy Thanksgiving more. You can spend time with your family and enjoy a nice meal without all the additional stress that Christmas involves.

Plus, Thanksgiving isn't commercialized to the degree that Christmas is. Without the commercialization, you can enjoy it for the true meaning of the holiday.

[contrary1]

I'm looking forward to being able to attend some holiday events this year for the first time in ages. Too many difficult kids in the recent past; couldn't think about going out in public.

I've got tickets already to the Seattle Mens Chorus performance called JOY....on Dec. 2nd. Think that will be a nice beginning to a favorite season.

I try to have all my shopping done prior to fall...........I think I'm close already....but I usually add a few things from on line auctions if I see something odd and unusual enough for the people on my list. I do buy most of my "gifts" from the Heifer project, getting farm animals for my major gifts, & that is about as easy as shopping gets.

So, yes............I'm definately looking forward to the holiday season!

[lrjohnson]

Originally Posted by BCHGRL

Personally, I enjoy Thanksgiving more.... Without the commercialization, you can enjoy it for the true meaning of the holiday.

I'm with ya, B. My two favorite holidays are Thanksgiving and New Year's. Thanksgiving, I get mushy and really take the time to think about what I'm grateful for. New Years is a good time for me to reflect on what's been working in my life and what I'd like to let go of. Very touchy feely, but it works for me.

For Christmas, I actually really enjoy getting people gifts. The extra challenge of doing it on a shoestring this year I'm hoping will be a fun challenge, not daunting.

[kealina]

i love christmas and DH and i both enjoy ourselves, but i have to admit that lately i've been a bit disillusioned with how some of those around me regard it...

[Bluezy]

I always loved Christmas. CJ loves to open a few presents, but we do not go overboard. It's all about us being together and helping others less fortunate. Oh, and good food for all!

[dshep]

I love Christmas... the tree, the decorations, and the food, and most of all, the "attitude" in the air, everyone appears to be so much nicer, more giving, more polite. As for giving to kids, my kids used to circle the cataloges like wild indians. Letters to Santa used to at least page if not more. Yet the one thing they remember, they never got what was on their list... they always got something they had really wanted and I had always said, sorry we cant afford that.. and they forgot about it. One time my daughter saw a doll in a window, with the same name as her, everytime we walked past, she begged for the doll... and then one day it was gone, (I had scrimped on grocerys for weeks) she cried, and then forgot about it, five months later, that doll was under the christmas tree and you would have thought someone had just given her a million dollars. At 17 She still has that doll in her room. To my kids, now in their "adult" years Christmas presents means, Mom was ( and still does) paying attention to their hobbies or likes and dislikes, or even something they are going to need in the future, and hadnt even thought of.

[Kris10Leigh]

Bring on the holidays!

I love them all, and it starts with Halloween! LOL! I love to decorate! I love to watch the joy on my children's faces as they experience each holiday and I love to see the joy in their hearts as they come to understand the meaning behind each holiday more and more each year.

Thanksgiving is one my favorites as well. A few years ago we started putting up a "Thankful tree". It started out as a way for me to get the tree up early so that it was ready to decorate the day after Thanksgiving. Now it has become a beautiful teaching tool. Everyone who joins us for Thanksgiving writes what they are thankful for on a laminated paper ornament and we hang them on the tree. The kids help us read through all the ornaments from past years as we hang them on the tree. Last Christmas my mom gave me some "real" ornaments to hand it and garland all in browns, golds and yellow. I can't wait to see my pretty tree this year!

As for Christmas, I love presents! I am a kid myself! We do not buy our children anything outside of Christmas and birthday, except things they need, of course. Their grandparents take them to the dollar store on every visit and I just think that is junk. So we do spoil them for Christmas and birthdays because that is the only time of year they get toys. I believe in getting good quality things which means their presents may be expensive. We have a budget this year, though, and it is so much more fun shopping that way!

I am finished shopping for my niece, nephew and DH! Still working on others. Bring on the holidays!

[Broken Arrow]

Ah, Halloween is my personal favorite, though I ordinarily love them all. Just reminds me of the beautiful autumns in upstate NY, when I was a kid, running around trick or treating in the brisk cool winds, through the rustling auburn leaves.

[Ima saver]

I love halloween a lot. I love dressing up in something real goofy and going to Halloween parites. Thanksgiving is hard on me cause it is my birthday. We have no family and i don't want to cook on my birthday and nobody serves thanksgiving dinner around here. Last year we went to gatlinburg, but it was so crowded and did not seem like thanksgiving at all.

[Staceyy]

I love Christmas! I don't spend much money on it though. I like to throw a Christmas party and I like to have young kids around. I send out cards, I recycle my Christmas tree and decorations and do a lot of baking. The few gifts I do give are low priced and wrapped in newspaper and comics. We light the fireplace, sit around and talk , listen to Christmas music and have a good time.

[getforfree]

To me holidays, is just extra work. I used to like new year, when I was a kid, not anymore, because all the preparation and cooking falls on me. ANd the holidays are expencive too!!! Expencive, that's the worst part.

Maybe when my kids get older, they can help me, then I will be ok.

I don't think I ever believed that the Santa is real. We were getting lots of candy from my parents for christmass, and decorating the tree. My mom would bake a lot, and prepare all the yummy food.

We don't selebrate halloween. I came from a country where they don't selebrate, and I didn't know about it untill I came to US. This all dress-up is just silly.

We selebrate thangsgiving with a cooked turkey, and lots of turkeys in the freezer. I stock up on them before that time, cut it in small pieces, and they last me until february.

We decorate for christmass, but not too much. I put the lights only inside. What's the use to keep it on outside, if you are inside anyways and can't enjoy it? I have a plastic tree that shines in all colors. I don't put any ornamets on it, I am afraid, kids might brake it and make lot's of mess. I got it 4 yrs ago a few days before christmass, and went for a price adjustment right after christmass, so it cost me only $4.

On the 4th of july this year, we did bbq outside. My dh went to the store and spend like $60 on meat, ice cream, chips and all the other food. We don't normally buy that much meat and junk food. He wanted to have friends over. I can't believe, we ate $60 worth of food for just 2 days. That's why I don't let him shop for groceries or invite people too often, especcially those that don't invite us for any dinners. I don't really like holidays. I don't know if that is normal or not. Does everybody like holidays?

[cschin4]

We enjoy Halloween. I like dressing up with the kids to take them out Trick or Treating. It is just fun. For Thanksgiving, it will just be us and my mom. I plan to make a turkey breast instead a whole turkey. Nobody likes the legs anyway so why cook all day. I pretty much just make the same menu every year which is plenty of food. Then, the leftovers, I package into tupperware and make my own TV dinners.
As for Christmas, we have purchased alot of ornaments over the years when on vacations, etc. so it is kind of fun to get those out and look at them. I think you can make these things a "big deal" without all the expense. Or, you just play it low key and enjoy.
If you really don't want to cook all day, then don't. Cut back on so many extras, get premade food, etc. We can only eat so much so I don't make that many extras. And, we don't need dozens of cookies laying around so I just buy a tray from the local Ladies Auxillary and they are quite good.

[boefixepa]

I have mixed feelings about the 'holiday season.'

1. Halloween is my least favorite. I think it's cute for small kids and all, but I REALY DO NOT LIKE the evil that I feel is associated with it. Many people use it as a justifacation or an excuse to do very evil and wrong things...that's why it's my least favorite.

2. Thanksgiving is fine, I generally enjoy it and I like cooking so when I do get the chance to cook something that great.

3. Christmas.....Christmas is hard for me...the whole season is. I've learned I have to be very careful with my emotional well being at Christmas. If I allow myself to get to caught up in the feel good things of Christamas I ended up falling just as hard. I realize I'm alone...that I don't have a SO, that I don't have any children to be to excited to go to sleep, or to watch open presents...the last few years I haven't even really decorated too much. I think I went a little too far last year as far as not decorating goes. I think I will this year. I just have to be careful and stay busy...take the focus off of how I feel.

4. New Years...never been a big one for me I generally sleep through it, but I'm happy to have a day off of work