Our Christmas Mistake…

The warm-up to Christmas this year has been more strained than any other year to this point.

In previous years, it’s been a struggle financially, even though we keep Christmas modest on purpose anyway (because that’s not the point of Christmas!). No, this year it’s more attitude than anything. One of the kids, despite Christmas always having been modest, has been pulled in by the marketing departments and hype, and is fixated on something that’s overly expensive and highly overrated. Despite talking, despite explaining, despite hypotheticals about budgets, the kid just does not get it.

Part of that is age and maturity, for sure.

But part of it, as we talked and thought about it, is totally our fault: We asked for Christmas lists. And all that does is focus a kid on the getting aspect, rather than the giving. It focuses them on THINGS rather than people, and is the slippery slope to the oft-disgusting over-commercialized Christmas so many of us despise.  (That wasn’t too strong, was it?)

This is the last year we make that mistake. As a matter of fact, we already have a plan for next year in which the kids practice giving AND budgets, and no lists will be given.

How about you? How’s the lead-up to Christmas been for your family? Any chances you’d made for next year?

The warm-up to Christmas this year has been more strained than any other year to this point. In previous years, it’s been a struggle financially, even though we keep Christmas modest on purpose anyway (because that’s not the point of Christmas!). No, this year it’s more attitude than anything. One of the kids, despite Christmas…