They say less is more...

Blog posts two days in a row?  Lucky!!

My favorite time of the year is the Fall...specifically the time from Thanksgiving to Christmas (okay- so technically its not really fall, but whatev!).  I like most of the stuff about this time of year- people tend to be in a better mood, looking forward to time off, seeing family, etc.  I also like giving gifts.  There is something that is awesome about it.  I think about it a lot, I consider it... hell, I have a 45 minute drive each way down  to Wakulla.  What else would you think about? 

To me, the perfect gift is one that is used a lot, or where it is completely evident that the gift giver took some time thinking about you and what you would like.  For example, 6 years ago, my mom gave me an italian charm bracelet for Christmas.  It had flags for all the countries where I had been.  It also had the year I graduated from highschool, etc.  I have since added charms for the marathon I ran, the minutes I got playing in the W-League, Win-Loss-Tie records for the last three highschool seasons and two black paw prints for Drake and Gordon.  Before Nico came, I wore it every day, except for when I went to Africa and only because I was afraid that I would lose it (I dont wear it now because it sometimes scratches and pinches Nico). It was truly a great gift.

Those are the gifts I try to give- ones that I think the receiver will use a lot (or appreciated a lot).  If you've ever received a gift from me, know that this is how I approach gift giving.  If I was ever wrong, sorry.  But my heart was in the right place. 

But it can be kind of stressful.  A lot of times its hard to figure out a good gift  because there are literally, too many that would be great.  But I guess as IE would say, "That is a good problem to have." 

However, this year in our family, we have decided to scale back Christmas.  A lot.  Part of it came from the realization that Dave and I cant have any more stuff in our house... it is out of control.  And, I feel guilty about bringing more stuff into the house, especially if it is associated with a hoppy like sewing, quilting, knitting and or scrapbooking.  Seriously, my dissertation isnt going to write itself as I work on a quilt.  And obviously, the hippie in me fights about the wasted wrapping and packaging materials.  But its also a realization that the things I enjoy about the holidays do not include fighting with holiday shopping traffic.  Nor do they include waiting in long check out lines or dealing with pissy shoppers.  Plus, I will shoot myself in the face if I become one of those parents who is in a tug of war with another grown ass adult over a Tickle Me Elmo.

Now, granted, the things that my family does during the holidays arent all hippy-fied.  For example-we love food.  We talk about it, we prepare it, we eat it, we compete over it.  Hell, my mom was pushing me to nail down a Christmas menu back in October.  Its what we do.  We also sit around and watch Christmas movies.  Even the ones that we've seen 20 times.  Yes, we all know all the lines to Christmas Vacation.  But its what we do.  We play games like yahtzee and boggle.  We used to play games like Taboo (until the Key West Incident) and Scattergories (until the double letter incident).  But we could play just about any game.  We are some game loving folk.   But its what we do.  I'd rather this kid have Christmas memories that involve getting his butt kicked by Aunt Nicole in Dont Break the Ice or his horror when Granny You and Grampy were inappropriate during Cranium. 
So- we arent doing it.  Not this year.  My mom and my sister's need for Christmas lists has made it very easy this year- just go to a list and buy something.  No need to obsess.  To wonder if it's an appropriate representation of our "love".  We made lists of stuff that we want/need.  That way we're sure that when we do give something, its something that we know will be used.  A lot.  Or LOVED.