Christmas--Less is More!

This year I am determined not to spend more for Christmas than we can afford.

That's right--I am not going to go overboard and try to keep up with the Jones'. (Not your family Cousin!)  I want the real meaning of Christmas to prevail- A joyous time spent with the ones we love and remembering the reason for the season.  I have been going crazy planning all of the cookies and all of the little sweet goodies I'd wanted to make to well....impress my family with. I admit it--I love to hear my family groan with delight while eating one of my tasty creations! But, I am not going to push it this year.  I will be much happier if I am more relaxed and rested, which means my family will be Happier as well. It(our mood) seems to trickle down doesn't it!

  I have scaled back the gift giving this year also.  I usually get my children several nice gifts, but this year I plan on getting my kids one thing they need and can use.
I cut back on the gifts for my Hubby as well. He is ok with it as long as his gift has something to do with the Colts--he gave up on the Bengals several years ago!
Soap and my bath products, homemade jelly and handmade cards  will be given away as gifts this year.  I do have most of my gifts ready--just 3 more to go and I have to take the kids with me to pick out their ceiling fan, coat, and shoes. They are grown so it's not such a big deal for them. They will have goodies in their stockings--yes I still fill the stockings!  It's something I want to hold onto--they are still my babies and always will be.
  When my kids were little, I would fill their stockings with some practical items.  Bubble bath was a luxury for them--usually just used dish soap. I would put chapstick in for the boys and lip gloss for the girls. I used to get fruit in my stocking, so I did that with my kids as well. Jessical loved pears and they were usually too expensive to buy many so she would get pears. Jonathan liked the little mini banannas, so he got them. Michael liked apples and carmel dip. Kailyn got kiwis.  If I got a sample of something they could use--it went in the stocking as well. 
   I still do that--yeah,  I know I'm cheap. I use coupons to get bath products they can use now. I've had a bunch of stuff hidden that I picked up at a great sale back in the summer.
   Don't get me wrong, we never went crazy when the kids were little. The had a rule at Christmas--3 gifts were good enough for Jesus so 3 gift are good enough for you! They were fine with it--who could deserve more than Jesus--not them!
So they asked for one bigger gift and two smaller things. It worked for my family, why couldn't it work for yours?
  So I am cutting back on gifts, planning less candy and cookies,( I'm diabetic so that is good!), and generally going to try to scale back everything in order to have an easy, simple, joyous Christmas with my family.
  I hope you can give yourself permission to cut back and relax.  It can be true--Less is More!!

Blessings,
Lisa