I Haven’t Started My Christmas Shopping Yet…Because It’s Not Even Halloween!
Can't we wait until December to enjoy Christmas?
Christmas shopping. I haven’t started yet but as each passing day goes by in early October, I am bombarded with the newest line of ornaments, holiday shopping sales, and catalogs.
I just put up our Halloween decorations yesterday and cannot even fathom Thanksgiving yet, so why must Christmas be in the forefront of our minds now?
Every year, the holiday push comes sooner, but this year it seems like we went straight from pool parties and barbecues to Santa statues and Christmas stockings. I know a select few moms who finish all their shopping by the end of November. That seems like a win-win situation, if you can get all the shopping done early, you might actually enjoy the holiday, but I have never been able to do that, and man, am I already stressed!
Perhaps moms, who tend to bear the brunt of the bulk of the holiday prep work, need to have a mental break between the fall holidays, a short respite before the pressure to get it all done yesterday elevates along with our blood pressure. It’s not only the hefty to-do list that is stressful, the idea that it all needs to get done perfectly so we can give our children the perfect holiday memory is what also causes agita.
Not only must we start our holiday shopping before we carve our pumpkins, but we have to get our kids iPads and apps instead of board games and bicycles. The majority of the major retailers already have their stores ready to go for Christmas and Hanukkah, and have since the end of September.
I understand that in our slowed down economy, retailers need to put their best effort into making sure their holiday season is the best it can be, but it would also be nice to enjoy Halloween and Thanksgiving before we just right into the frenzied December holidays.
My goal now is to at least start shopping by Thanksgiving and proceed with an orderly plan.
And once I actually do get done with Christmas shopping, I better get on top of Easter because I know that bunny will be out on the shelves right next to the Valentine’s Day candy…the day after New Year’s.
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I like to get my Christmas shopping done early because I can buy things here and there throughout the year so it’s not such a big hit to our budget all at once. We bought our 2 kids’ “big presents” last weekend, so we’re 90% done. It also doesn’t help that both kids have birthdays right around Christmas (November and January). It’s just too expensive to wait until the last minute.
My oldest turned 4 this summer. Which means buying her gifts & “hiding” them in the cart has become impossible (especially with a 1 year old who is a handful). So for the first time, I’ve had to start way early to avoid a major one shot shopping trip. Plus, I look for clothes or gifts on clearance/sale to save some $$
Last year I tried to start shopping early for my son (3 at the time) and husband. I found some really good deals at garage sales & second-hand stores, but because the shopping was so spread out I forgot how much I had bought and wound up with WAY more than I realized until I started wrapping and had it all in front of me. And of course, you can’t return items to garage sales
I ended up putting aside quite a bit to save for his spring birthday & Easter. This year I’m keeping a list on my phone and in Google Docs of what I’ve already bought and planning to buy so I can try to keep my shopping in check. But chances are I will overbuy for my son again this year and still be out on Christmas Eve trying to come up with something to get my in-laws :-/
@Amy 90% done already? I so admire you!