The holidays are coming up very fast. Halloween, Thanksgiving, then Christmas. Are there things you are doing to simplify this Holiday Season? Post your thoughts here!
Thanks,
Aimee

I get so excited about this time of year and since we don't really have four seasons here, I can hardly wait until the temps drop that give me the go-ahead to start the seasonal decor.

This is the year, with the children quickly growing up, I will not put out as I did in previous years: lots of scarecrows, pumpkins galore, apples,baskets, hay and mums. No, I'll stay with the traditional autumn items but limit the scarecrows and leave the hay out. But for Christmas, it will lights to the limit as this is the most wonderful time of the year and the songs, lights, decorations and of course the tree and nostalgia of it all, is enough to go overboard about. Thanks for asking and be sure to stop by sometime.

We are going to simplify our holidays this year and focus on family events and being together. We're going to draw names for gifts and limit spending, focusing on the grandkids.

Here are some Easy Ways to Save Money on Creative Gift Ideas

We've opted this year to eliminate Christmas cards - every one will receive an email instead. We're also making small things (from ornaments to personal gifts). We have allowed for gift purchases, but we're doing a drawing so that no one has more than one person to buy for.

Lynne, I've always hated crafts and never wanted to even think about making Christmas ornaments but the kidz have been wanting to for a few years now and with reading your reply, well, I guess I may just consider it this year.

Sometimes making crafts can be a bit boring and time consuming. But the times that I spent with my kids when they were little making things are some of the best memories. Consider that the crafts only take a little while but the memories last forever.

Thanks Cloe No more consideration....its on. We'll head to a craft store during the Thanksgiving break. You're right, nothing is more priceless than memories with those you love. Happy Harvest!

For those not really into the whole crafting thing, there are a lot of fun kits out there that take the "work" out of crafting. The kids decided they wanted to make "stained glass" ornaments, so we picked up a kit that has the ornaments pre-made (some sort of acrylic "glass") and you just paint them with the special paint that comes with the set and bake for a short period of time. No fuss, no bother, and just a little muss (but its warm, so we'll take them outside to do the craft).

In light of the recession, we're reducing the gift exchange in favor of a greater number of small, festive, and creatively wrapped gifts in the stockings, but not reducing the traditional Christmas dinner that is my husband and my annual gift to the larger family. The only reduction in our decorating this year is the use of a small, live Christmas tree (which may be a rosemary topiary if we are fortunate enough to find one) rather than a full sized tree. Our only other decoration is a wreath and bit of mantle dressing. Christmas cards will go out for the first time this year, in lieu of the large number of token gifts from previous years.

The simple things that make the holiday for me are eggnog and oatmeal raisin cookies by the fireside Christmas evening, caroling around the piano in the weeks leading up and day of, reading short Christmas stories leading up to, attending the various holiday choral concerts at the high school and college, going to the holiday open houses in local historic buildings, doing our shopping, as little as it is, on Main Street where everyone knows us (and we're supporting local businesses that we might lose in this recession), watching the Doctor Who Christmas special and listening to the Queen's address, attending the Christmas vigil and mass, a little wassailing, sledding if we're fortunate enough to have snow, and just spending a lazy day with my family.