The year without a Christmas?

Was it that bad financially?  Christmas is not supposed to be about gifts; it's about spending it with your loved ones and celebrating the religious aspect of it.  Money or not, we celebrate it every year.  It really saddens me that you feel this way.  Please share your situation, maybe we can come up with some suggestions to help. 

• Cutting back on Christmas spending this year - inexpensive gifts?
  • Christmas this year. - wannie
  • I love your ideas. I'm glad your family does too. - You can't put price on such loving gifts.
  • Crafty Christmas - jss
  • We skipped it entirely last year, and THIS year? - I probably won't even get out of bed.
    • The year without a Christmas? - so sorry for you -- :(
      • Actually, it was a relief. Family spread all over the country, - no small kids, and the whole - sm
        • Okay, I feel better now -- - not as sorry for you
        • Last year I said same thing, Christmas is for children. SM - Cece
  • Love the "family tree" idea! My lists inside......... - LMT
  • we are closing on a house next month and mortgage - is almost double our rent so we...
    • Congrats to both of you new homeowners - In the process of building myself
    • Same here - closing on house end of next month - Christina RTMT

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...yep, I'm feeling sorry for myself.  I didn't receive a single Christmas card or gift.  My only child and I decided to forego gifts for each other and just concentrate on providing gifts for my granddaughter.   A friend said she would call last week and we'd go to lunch, but I never heard anything else from her. Makes me realize I really have no friends and am not worth remembering.  Just a card would have made me feel better.

On top of that, I fear I'm going on such thin ice with both of my part-time jobs that I'm afraid every day I go in, I'll be called into the supervisor's office and fired.  I just can't keep up with the transcription as well as the other part-time person has done.  I'm in debt--really have not had a good-paying job in 2 years and things have built up on credit cards.  I used to think I was pretty intelligent--but now have doubts about that, even.  I'm ashamed about my predicament and have avoided people for over a year, so I'm sure that's part of my isolated feeling.  What can I do?

I thought it might be a good idea to post ideas for gifts that are inexpensive. I have made a few Christmas gifts in years past, but, since I've already given these particular gifts and my family members already "have one", I need new ideas!

I will start with the ideas of gifts I have given in the past:

I made family wreaths for each of my kids (grown). What I did was, buy a nice size wreath at the craft store, purchase inexpensive small frames at the dollar store (or wherever I could find them), made copies of baby pictures of my kids when they were little, family picture, pics of the grandbabies, etc. and framed each one - wired each framed photo onto the wreath, put in some berry sprays or whatever, and a 20 count string of white lights and some ribbon. Then I sprayed them with spray glue and sprinkled with the white snow stuff. Also, I put a few blank frames with Christmas card fronts so that they could add pics from the inlaws (who I did not have pics as children) and new baby pics as appropriate.

They were darling! My daughter in law actually cried when I gave them their wreath!

I also made a similar thing for my mom - I made her a Grandchildren tree - because she has too many grandchildren to get all their pics on a wreath. I just purchased a small, prelit tree from Wal - Mart, and basically, did the same thing - framed pics of all the grandchildren and children, glued ribbon to the back of the frames - hung them like ornaments, added some ribbon and some berry sprays. It was beautiful and she has used it every year since, because it is small and she can put it together herself - without much work.

I will post more ideas in a little bit, but, I need other ideas from all of you - because, how many memory or family wreaths can you give . . .

Christmas is next week.  Got pix of the family to put in the cards, and tons of Christmas cards from last year's Christmas sales.  Every day, I say, I will do these cards.  At least to grandma and grandpa on both sides.  Every day, I put it off.  DH got a roll of stamps and he has the cards sitting on his nightstand with pix, he has not done any either. 

Thus far we got several newsletters from people, saying they did this, they did that, they celebrated this birthday, their kid did this and that.  We don't plan to do a newsletter this year, b/c it seems to me these newsletters sound so self-centered! They are not even from family members, they are from DH coworkers and such.

My friends send me e-cards pretty much or we chat over the I-net.  We send holiday greetings and catch up that way.  My son will be getting grandma and grandpa's on both sides presents the end of the week, and I think I will just put the pictures in the packages when I send and forget about the cards.

This is really sad.  Years ago, Dec 1 we'd get a bunch of cards and have ours sent out.  Different colors of ink on the envelopes, red and green, holiday stamps, it would be so fun.  All the cards we'd get my dad or I would put on a board in shape of a tree and we'd put it on the wall. 

Now, it seems with snail mail, and so many other worries about cutting budget, finding enough work, I am not in the mood to write cards.  Maybe it will become a thing of the past, and the boxes of cards will accumulate dust in the top of the closet.

Anybody else in this predicament? Thanks in advance for sharing your card stories.

DAYTON - Gloria Murphy gave children celebrating her 55th birthday alcohol and then had sex with a 12-year-old boy at the party on Thursday, Jan. 29, according to police.

The boy got into Murphy’s bed at 5440 Rawlings Drive, where the married woman had sex with her adolescent neighbor, according to police and Montgomery County prosecutors. 

Two of the children at the party ran home at about 6 a.m. Jan. 30 and told a parent they saw the boy and woman having sex, according to 911 audio.

The parent then called police at about 6:15 a.m., according to a police report and 911 audio.

Murphy did not force the boy to have sex, but since he is younger than 13, it is considered rape, Lt. Patrick Welsh said. No other children were involved in the sexual encounter, but some other children at the party consumed alcohol, according to police.

I truly want to wish every single poster a Merry Christmas. 

My want list for Christmas:

I want to recognize the Christ in Christmas as well as the fun of holiday celebration and cheer through many venues. 

I want to be mindful of every human being that has less than I do, for there are many.  I am the most blessed person I know:

I want to be thankful that my family is all with me, intact, in communication (hahaha), not estranged, and loving/enjoying being together.

I want to be grateful that I am gainfully employed and have other options if I so choose.

I want to celebrate that I have my health intact.

I want to live respectfully toward others because I live in a country that provides protection and security for me and others, God bless and save them, are willing to make the sacrifice to provide it for me.

Most of all, I want every person who feels lost, isolated, alone, left out that you are not alone. Just know that He is mindful of you.  I know - not believe, but know - that God knows exactly who I am and where I am going and He will take care of me.  I want you to know that, too.

Merry Christmas to each one of you and yours ...

Busy MT'ing

Oh please, don't anyone flame me. I honestly can't take it right now. I am so depressed, I can't believe I'm depressed enough to write here. I am not a depressed person - ever. I don't know if its my age (50) or something else. My job? I don't know, but this Christmas just did me in........Every year I do the same thing - I really like giving things and am just boringly nice - a good old egg type. Laid back. Usually give stuff anonymously, so nobody knows. But at Christmas, I like to give little things. For instance, I will go up and down my street and put cards in mailboxes, signed your neighbor. I know some animal rescuers in my area, and will leave them a card, thanking them for their work, and stick little cat toys on it, if they are cat rescuers, or dog toys if dog rescuers - I just take a simple card and put cute stuff on it. No big deal, really, but something to try and be nice. I have a few elderly shut-in neighbors. I give them cards with little boxed cakes or stuff, potpourri - little things. I send cards to all my church members, my coworkers and yet....not a mention of it from anyone. I also will stick a card unsigned in a house who has really cute Christmas lights up or something, just saying how great their house looked this year, or whatever. My kids and I like picking a different house each year and doing that.  But the bummer thing is - nobody cares. Nobody even smiles at me, nobody even acknowledges anything. I don't expect huge praises or calls or people stopping by, or announcements in the local paper, but a smile? I have passed some of these people on the street and they just grunt at me. They USED to be friendly, but now the attitude is just no big deal. I'm not even worthy of a small smile. My husband thinks that these people just take me for granted by now -  that they just are not really nice enough to smile back. Or that I make them feel bad by being nice. I really used to enjoy doing this, but now am just so despondent about it. I have decided next year, no cards, no nothing, no reaching out to neighbors - just let them all alone. Is it me? Am I a jerk for giving out little cards and stuff? I am not bothersome. I'm really shy actually, and never impose, other than these Christmas cards, or if I know its their birthday or something. In this day and age, am I just a pain? The rest of the year, again, I give things anonymously, or practical things like dog food donations, etc. I won't stop that, but I just have given up on trying to be personable at Christmas. But I don't understand what I have done wrong... If I were a nosey neighbor type, always intruding or asking for something, I would understand. But I'm the exact opposite - never ask for anything from anyone. Is it just our times? Should I just go stick my head in a hole?

Sad to say, about the only thing we really do for Christmas is I actually cook a traditional Christmas dinner. We haven't decorated the house or given gifts for years. Our son (now 20 years old) prefers money so he can buy what he wants, and my husband and I set an amount based on what our budget can handle and we each buy what we want.

Pathetic, huh?

After everything was open and my brothers and I were so excited to be playing, my Mom asked me to get something from the kitchen.  Of course it was dark because we'd get up so early.  There it was my Barbie Dreamhouse in the kitchen!  I loved that Christmas and it got lots of play...

 Fav foods are cookies, cookies, and more cookies that my sister-in-law makes.  I have an aunt that makes Walnut cookies to die for!  Every year she'd bring a tin, but we don't see her much at Christmas now that my parents are gone. 

On a lighter note, I love seeing our kids opening their stuff!  It brings back great memories! 

I celebrate Christmas because to recognize the birth of Jesus...and I love decorating.  I love to give presents, but do not really care if I receive any.  Too many people have forgotten what this holiday is all about.  I do not say Happy Holidays to people...I say Merry Christmas.  If they don't like it, I don't really care.  I'm tired of the liberals trying to take God out of everything.  That's one of the reasons this country has gone to Hell and will continue to do so.  This country was founded on Christian values, but most have forgotten that.  A friend of mine is Jewish, so I do say Happy Channukah to her, but that's the only exception.

So, Merry Christmas everybody!

What are you doing today to get ready for "the big day" tomorrow? 

Any special activities or traditions you and yours engage in on Christmas eve?

Anyone have lots of cooking/baking in front of them today and tonight in preparation for tomorrow?

Any last minute shoppers or some with just a last-minute gift to pick up?

I'm curious...What's everyone doing today and tonight?

***MERRY CHRISTMAS, FELLOW MTs***