Just thinking about the month makes me realize that Thanksgiving is only a few short weeks away and then the mad dash for Christmas. I’m certainly not ready for either of them. I think I’ll spend part of the day working on my own Naughty and Nice list!

A few days ago I saw a post on Facebook noting that there were only 6 more Mondays until Christmas. HUH? That means only about 6 weeks to go. A countdown? Do I really need a visual countdown to keep me on track? Maybe so. If nothing else, at least a list.

1.    Decorations.

My basic rule is that the Holiday decorations need to go up after Thanksgiving and before my birthday. It is December 5th if anyone is keeping track. Usually I have about a week to get them up. My other rule is that the decorations come down as soon after January 1st as possible.

I don’t go over the top with my decorations. I have a small table top tree and also a larger 6 foot tree. For the last few years, I’ve been putting up my smaller tree. It fits nicely on a table and I have fun hanging the ornaments. There is a special wrought iron tree where my various Flamingo ornaments hang.

A cute animated polar Bear and a Wooden Reindeer occupy my front porch. A Large Santa stands guard just inside my front door and a few  Christmas objects replace my art pieces on the walls and shelves around the house. One year, I even decorated the back porch!

2.    Cards

The first year that my husband and I were married, I hand addressed all of the envelopes and wrote a note for each card. What a massive undertaking that was. He had a Binder! Can you believe it? A binder. Yup, with different sections. In each section, were the names, addresses, and any important information so that the card could be personalized. In addition, there was an area for sent and received with the year. After 3 years, if no card was received in return, the recipient was removed from the list. Each section got a different card. He had 5 or 6 different cards, each with it’s own size envelope. Did I mention that there were about 250 names in this binder?

After that first year, We made our own cards. We settled on a trifold letter size card and legal size envelopes. My husband and I would work on them for weeks. I would come up with an idea. He would do the art work and then we would hash out the verbiage.

When we got our first computer and I discovered that I could make labels, what a joyous day. The number of cards had dwindled some but it was still a daunting task. Those clear labels with the Script font were perfect. I only had to fold the card and stick it in the envelope! I would still write a note on a number of them.

Some years I make my cards and sometimes if I find a fun card, I’ll buy them. I still mail cards. Do any of you still send out cards?

3.    Gifts.

I have taken a liking to the gift card option. Some are no brainers like Starbucks, Amazon or Barnes and Noble. There are even MasterCards and Visa’s that one can purchase. There is even an online company, ‘Quick Gifts’. They email the recipient the dollar amount that is gifted and the recipient can choose the gift card they would like!  They have total control. The card is then snail mailed to them. How’s that? You don’t even need to wrap it!

I enjoy the art of glass fusing and quilting. Some of the items that I have made throughout the year I give as gifts at Christmas time. Those are almost a double gift. I get to enjoy making them and then the joy of giving them.

Kids don’t really understand gift cards. They like to open brightly colored boxes. And at times, the box that the gift came in is more interesting than the gift! Children get some sort of toy for that very reason.

4.    Holiday parties and Christmas Day

Each year is different. It often depends on what day Christmas falls. Again, for years, my family had a Holiday party between Christmas and New Years. We would try to pick a Thursday or a Friday. My husband was a musician and entertainer so a number of his friends would stop by and a ‘jam’ session would ensue. Music filled our home along with the aroma of baked goods and a smorgasbord of hot dishes. Fun times, for sure. Love and Laughter filled the air.

Ahh, the Big Day. I grew up with the tradition of a family dinner on Christmas Eve, church at 11pm and then home. We opened our presents on Christmas Eve after dinner and before church. I did not experience the RUSH of Christmas Morning to open presents. It was just how we grew up.

My husband and I took the more traditional approach. Still had dinner with my Mom and Dad on Christmas Eve, opened a few presents and then drove home. Christmas Morning, presents, breakfast and then load the car for the trek to His side of the family. Christmas day and dinner with them.
As my parents aged, I took on the Christmas Eve dinner but we still headed over to the rest of the family on Christmas Day.

I plan to spend Christmas with my family in Los Angeles this year. A three year old and his little brother just a few months old should be fun. Will enjoy watching the older on on Christmas morning!

Now there are only 5 more Mondays!There is still plenty of time for those Christmas Cards, gift shopping and Holiday parties. Better get to work on them!