Search Results for: blog getting into the christmas spirit

Tis the Season of Getting

I am going to just throw this out there;  I don’t see anything wrong with buying your children a lot of gifts.  Christmas may not be about gifts but we all know gifts help make the season bright.  If we didn’t believe that we wouldn’t give to Toys for Tots, Operation Homefront, or go into an insane amount of debt every year.  Like it or not, gifts are here to stay and I do not feel that is negative.  Who doesn’t like to unwrap a gift?  Who doesn’t like to see their children’s eyes light up when they open that … Continue reading →

Getting Into the Christmas Spirit

Now that Thanksgiving is over and Advent has officially begun, my family is really getting into the Christmas spirit. It also helps that we put up our tree yesterday. Fa-la-la-la-la and ho, ho, ho! It’s off to create memorable holiday scrapbooks I go. Every year I swear that I am going to be more organized when it comes to collecting material for my Christmas scrapbook. I’m tired of creating the same, boring timeline of events: buying the tree, decorating it, baking cookies, listing presents everyone received, blah, blah, blah. It seems all of my layouts blur into one. They all … Continue reading →

Christmas Traditions

Thanksgiving has finally arrived and now thoughts can turn towards Christmas. That is, unless you have already been thinking of Christmas since Halloween. I on the other hand am following Nordstrom’s lead. In case you missed it, Nordstrom had a sign that said the store wouldn’t be decking its halls until November 27th because it liked the idea of celebrating one holiday at a time. But now the time is here and I am ready for some Christmas spirit. I was thinking today about Christmas traditions. My family and I have a somewhat odd one – on Thanksgiving, we watch … Continue reading →

Keeping the Holiday Spirit When You Feel Like Scrooge

When you have to watch your budget over the holidays, you may start to feel like Scrooge himself. Always being the watch dog over finances can do that to a person. You can begin to feel like the bad guy. Just remember that Bob Cratchit was on a budget, too, and he represented the very spirit of Christmas…a loving family who honored the Savior’s birth. Take the Focus Off of “No” It is easy to get into the habit of focusing on the “nos” all of the time. “No, you can’t have an iPod even though your friends all have … Continue reading →

Getting Out of Debt

For many years, the leaders of the Church have counseled us to avoid debt and to pay the debts we have. President J. Rueben Clark, Jr. said, “Interest never sleeps nor sickens nor dies; it never goes to the hospital; it works on Sundays and holidays; it never takes a vacation. … Once in debt, interest is your companion every minute of the day and night; you cannot shun it or slip away from it; you cannot dismiss it; it yields neither to entreaties, demands, or orders; and whenever you get in its way or cross its course or fail … Continue reading →

Who Does Christmas at Your House?

Yesterday I wrote about how I’m married to a Scrooge and that for any Christmas cheer to be spread in our house it’s up to me to spread it. Wayne doesn’t string lights, wrap garland (or presents), or mess with picking trees. His one and only contribution is getting our fiber optic tree out of the attic. After that I don’t bother asking for any more Christmas assistance because I know all I’ll get is a big bah humbug. I sort of envy those women whose husbands get into the spirit without too much griping. The ones who take the … Continue reading →

Hawaiian Style Christmas Cookies

A week ago today I was braving the crowds at the grocery store in order to get the ingredients I needed for our Thanksgiving feast. Today, I’ll be back at it again. This time to gather the ingredients for all the Christmas cookies I plan to bake in the weeks to come. Weeks… Who am I kidding? Our first round of Christmas parties starts on Saturday, December 1st. My friend and former colleague is hosting a Christmas party in her newly renovated home and I want to get a few batches of her favorite cookies done in time to take … Continue reading →

Christmas Shopping with Baby

Are you heading out this weekend or next to get some Christmas shopping done? Most of us have gone shopping with the baby in toe and we know it comes with its own special set of needs and responsibilities. So let us dive in on the discussion to make Christmas shopping with your baby successful for both of you and to reduce the amount of stress either one of you might undergo. When it comes to Christmas shopping here are some tips to making it go easier on both of you: Choose your own time Take your own pen Don’t … Continue reading →

Holiday Fun for Free

Various retailers have been displaying their holiday merchandise since Labor Day, so it’s no surprise that city Christmas parades are taking place earlier and earlier each year. Yesterday, I discovered that our town’s annual holiday parade is heading down Main Street on November 17th this year. A Christmas parade less than three weeks after Halloween? Apparently, this early-bird trend is sweeping the nation and it’s not just parades, but a slew of other holiday-related events as well. On the bright side, many of these festive experiences are free and open to the public, allowing cash-strapped families a chance to get … Continue reading →

Free Halloween Apps for iPhone and iPad

Need some help getting into the Halloween spirit? Try some of these free Halloween apps for iPhone and iPad. I found some really cute and kid-friendly Halloween apps, and a couple that might be too scary for little kids to play with. They are not quite the same as the free Halloween apps for Android that I found for yesterday’s blog. Carve-a-Pumpkin is a free app from Parents Magazine. (It is created by Resolute Digital, LLC). This kid-friendly app is compatible with both iPhone and iPad. The app shows you an image of an pumpkin, and you use your finger … Continue reading →