Note to self: remember to start Christmas shopping early next year! Try to remember what it is like to enter into the public arena on any weekend in December, and remember therefore to avoid the experience at any and all costs. Also remember that your family is growing and Christmas shopping is not the simple affair it once was. Two or three weeks just isn't going to cut it any more.
Proposed implementation plan for Christmas Shopping 2006:
November 1 - Make Christmas List of Friends & Relatives
Halloween
is over. Move on. Also, skip Thanksgiving - there's no time. If travel
is possible, visit Mom & Dad for turkey and stuffing. Mom makes a
far better Thanksgiving dinner than I would anyway. If travel is
impossible, forget the turkey. Eat at Waffle House.
November 1-7 - Finalize List of Friends & Relatives
Go through your address book and make sure everyone who has stayed in touch with you this year is at least getting a card. Oh, right! MAKE CHRISTMAS CARD LIST! Also, call all relatives and catch up on births, deaths, marriages, etc. over the past year. Ask them how their family is doing, and take note of the names of all your nieces, nephews, first cousins, second cousins, and first and second cousins once-removed. Remember - it's a big family - write it down!
November 8-14 - Buy Christmas Cards & Make Gift List
Find
nice cards: Christmas cards for friends and relatives, holiday cards
for everyone else. Wherever possible, save trees - use e-cards. Also,
make list of gifts for everyone on gift list. Start buying the "easy"
ones immediately - CD's, DVD's, books, etc. Organize! Make list of all
CD's and DVD's and buy them all at once. Do same for books.
November 15-21 - Do All Non-virtual Shopping This Week
Buy
all presents that have to be purchased in person. Under no
circumstances will you allow yourself to be forced into an actual store
after November 21. Remember this! Also, start on any "project" gifts.
Create appropriate timelines for all gifts that involve making,
building, drawing, painting, organizing, or otherwise creating the gift
itself. Also, organize all gift-buying excursions that might involve
significant travel.
November 22-28 - Send Christmas Cards & Start Virtual Shopping
Send
all Christmas and holiday cards this week. No exceptions. Go without
sleep if necessary. Stay wired on hot chocolate. You can do it. Also,
make all virtual purchases that have to ship from a significant
distance or ship to rural locations. Do anything and everything
necessary to avoid "rush delivery" charges.
November 29-December 5 - Finish Virtual Shopping
Complete
all Christmas purchases. There will be no more buying of things after
December 5. Unless, of course, one of the kids suddenly realizes that
what would make them utterly and deliriously happy is something they
forgot to mention until just now. This WILL happen. Plan on it -
practice deep breathing exercises. Do yoga. When the child looks up at
you with those big, sweet eyes, do not panic. You have finished all
your other shopping, so you can handle this one, simple request. Smile
and hug the child. Then bake Christmas cookies together.
December 6-25 - Relax and Enjoy the Holiday!
Take care of
all last minute requests in a joyful and leisurely fashion. Get a tree.
Hang Christmas lights. Engage in those creative Christmas gift projects
for the same reason you came up with them in the first place - because
they're fun. Go to Barnes & Noble mid-week and buy nothing but hot
chocolate. Be a beacon of calm and good cheer for all those poor souls
who are in the position you yourself were in last year. Spread
Christmas cheer among friends and family and even among perfect
strangers.
REMEMBER THIS YEAR AND DO NOT FORGET THE PLAN!!! As for this year, just breathe. Remember, somehow everything's going to come together. It always does. Don't panic. Shop with joy. Skip the Christmas cards. Put in your time at work with gratitude for the opportunity to make a good living. Smile and hug the children. It's a happy time of year. Even if you're busy, bask in it anyway.
Comments (4)
I'm very impressed you can get hand-crafted items done that quickly. I had planned to make quilts for my granddaughters this year. Alas, they are still in strips on the sewing table. My plan is to get them done for next year. I'm just glad I hadn't told them they would have them THIS year. This way they aren't disappointed. I thought about stressing over it and decided deep breathing was a much better option. I'll look forward to your progress reports next year.
Posted by Cynthia | December 12, 2005 4:15 PM
Posted on December 12, 2005 16:15
Well, it depends on the item, of course! I'd tell you the kinds of things I'm thinking of, but my friends and family all read the blog so it would spoil the surprise!
Hand-made quilts are not on the list though. They sound like ambitious projects, and absolutely wonderful gifts. I'm sure they'll be appreciated whenever they arrive!
- EM
Posted by EM Sky | December 12, 2005 4:41 PM
Posted on December 12, 2005 16:41
EM, you're so right about this:
"Two or three weeks just isn't going to cut it any more."
Thanks to self-employment I finally have my yearend sabbatical set in stone for sacred me-and-my-family time, but the only way I get any serenity at all during it is when my Christmas "chores" are done ahead of time.
This is great advice.
Rosa
Posted by Rosa Say | December 17, 2005 8:10 PM
Posted on December 17, 2005 20:10
Thanks, Rosa. I've been "basking" in Christmas shopping over the past few days and loving every minute of it despite the fact that Christmas is now just a week away. My secret? I flew up to the mountains of New Hampshire to visit family and have been wandering through the shops of local craftspeople as a part of my vacation. I love doing that anyway, and Christmas gives me a wonderful reason to buy things instead of just window shopping. I'm enjoying myself immensely!
Have a marvelous sabbatical, and maybe after the New Year I'll hop out for a visit. I haven't been to the islands in a couple of years now - far too long! Hmm... what's the next big shopping holiday... do you think I could get away with shopping the islands for Valentine's Day presents? ;)
Posted by EM Sky | December 18, 2005 1:19 AM
Posted on December 18, 2005 01:19