I pride myself on giving gifts that are creative and customized to the recipient. I listen to my loves' unofficial wish lists all year, plus I think about things that might transcend them to a happy memory. For example, last year I gave my sister Sarah the paperback book, "There's a Boy in the Girls Bathroom" by Louis Sacher. When we were super young, maybe grade school, we loved this book, we read it multiple times. Over the years, the book was lost and forgotten. I gave it to Sarah and though it wasn't the most expensive gift in the world, it gave her a gift and a memory in one small package. Priceless.
Last year, I scouted around for three months online looking for a used upright piano in great condition in the $300 price range. It took some doing, going to some crazy spots found on craigslist (some places that I realized, after the fact, I should not have ventured alone.... whew), but I was able to find a gorgeous mahogany brown upright in the first week of November. The couple was going through an ugly divorce and it had been a gift for their wedding and neither person wanted it.... SCORE! I don't mean to sound insensitive, but this piano was a steal and I couldn't wait to see Trandon's face when he opened it.... which was another dilemma altogether. Wrapping a piano in quite a feat, I had to use a refrigerator box and some other odd things along with five rolls of wrapping paper to get that mother effer covered and nice looking (nice enough). And then it just had to sit in the living room, taunting Trandon, for six weeks. I worried that he would guess, but the funny thing is he never thought I would buy that (considering our price restrictions) so he didn't even come close to guessing. All in all, awesome, hard to top.... which leads us back to my problem.
So Trandon has been talking for two years about how awesome it would be to have every animated Disney movie on DVD, minus the abominations like Aladdin 17 or Little Mermaid: Flounder's Adventure to Wherever. The point: my budget won't allow for me to buy them all, plus Song of the South has been banned for many years now so at best I could probably round up a VHS copy. I would need each movie to be about $5 so that I could get them all. Do you think its worth me looking on craigslist, eBay, and all those obscure spots for DVDs? Or should I scrap this idea and come up with something else?
I just looked on Amazon.com and it seems like if I was willing to buy VHS, I could pull it off with my budget constraints and still buy a VCR. But that would only get me so far... at a certain point, the newer releases would only be available on DVD and/or BluRay. Would it be lame to mix media like that?
I love Christmas.
No seriously, I'm not saying "Oh em gee, I love Christmas". I am in a serious relationship with Christmas. I love everything about Christmas. I love the smell, the snow (though in AZ, you kinda have to drive out of town to see a White Christmas), I love the baked goods and treats, and DECORATIONS, and the music, dear god, I love it all. But mostly I love buying perfectly thought out presents. Trandon, my love and leveler, has instituted a rule that I can't start planning Christmas presents until August 1st... apparently he needs a window of Christmas freedom. In turn, I always abide by the rule that NO ONE is allowed to make personal purchases after Halloween. Nothing bites more than being beaten to the punch by the gift recipient. So yes, I love Christmas. I love the build up, the day, everything. I don't think there is a way to outline everything (or if there is even a point) because the truth is, if it is related to Christmas, I effing love it.
Among many things that I deemed in the "pro" column of having young children (insert implied "con" column ;D ), having claim to hosting a family Christmas celebration at home was top of the list. Judge if you have to. So once Princess Kady was born, I began lobbying with my parents to get on the Christmas rotation. I was now the person in the family with the youngest children (by two days Cousin Jakey) and this fact made me feel entitled to a chance to host the family Christmas festivities. So after some finagling, this year, Christmas 2010, I will be hosting my first ever family Christmas event!!!! My parents, my grandparents (hopefully! they tend to have a demanding social schedule), my sibs, my kids, my guy, and don't forget "8 pound, 6 ounce baby Jesus"! No, but really, this year is going to be great. I have been thinking about Christmas all year, which brings me to the creation of this blog....
I want this year to set the tone. I want to create new traditions that my children will look forward to every year. Things related to giving back, to community love and involvement, things that are just plain fun, certain foods they will look forward to eating, or places that they look forward to eating in. Special events, like "The Nutcracker," "A Christmas Carol," or Zoo Lights, that excite them. I don't know, I just want this year to be the jumping off point for my new little family to create memories that will live with us for a lifetime and outlast me when I'm gone. That my kids will remember me and the love they felt and the special memories we shared. Maybe that's what I love about Christmas, the culture. I want to reignite the culture of Christmas. Christmas is a perfect example of that saying that I'm about to butcher: its more than the sum of its parts.
So I am trying my second attempt at blogging (the first time got interrupted by being a full time mother, employee, and student). Please feel free to post things in response to my most pressing topics or about anything that you think a woman who is trying to kill it this Christmas would need to know.
One last thing: I walked into Super Walmart this morning, and to my surprise and delight, I was greeted by a giant Christmas tree shining brightly (right as you walked in, in between kids backpacks and produce). That was my first Christmas smile of the season. Many more to go.
Merry Christmas!
