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Anyone else finding the Holidays stressful?

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Posted 12/11/2011 8:14 PM (GMT -5)
Hi all,

I don't know about you, but maybe because I'm older, I'm finding the holidays really stressful!  Presents cost so much money, I'm not rich or even close to it..   My boyfriend has daughters, a grandson and heat costs are high, the cost of food is expensive, and the list goes on.

I'm in the middle of knitting a scarf for one of his daughters who I'm not that close to...  

Anyone else finding this time stressful?  I hate it that Christmas became so darn commercialized!!

Denise

Posted 12/11/2011 8:21 PM (GMT -5)
im with u...but i have found that even christmas needs to be simplified....and its alot easier to just ask them for three things that they want and get them the one thats least expensive...lol....and if u dont want to do that....then a gift card...people will be ok not getting a boatload for christmas...and if u knit...why dont u knit a couple of stockings...go to the dollar store and stuff it...i love those kinds of gifts for me cause i love to plunder...and i LOVE homemade gifts....trust me....we cause ourselves to worry and we probably are worrying for no reason...all his daughters will probably love whatever u do for them....i think lyme always makes me feel not good enough which in the past caused me to overbuy when in reality they didnt even need or want what i had gotten them
Posted 12/11/2011 11:06 PM (GMT -5)
I work at a retail store, so I find it doubly stressful! But you have to think of the holidays in terms of this...in a few months, no one will remember your decorations or how many cookies you baked or what gifts you got for them (unless it's something really meaningful, but this need not be pricy). But they *will* remember spending that time with you, whether it is at a large family get-together or a small, quiet evening. My mom was telling me today how even though she spent a fair amount of money on me for Christmas, it won't look like much. I told her I didn't care, and I hadn't even given her much of a list of ideas to buy me anything because I didn't expect much. People overestimate how meaningful gifts and all that jazz are, and underestimate what they will actually feel and remember when it's all done.

As for food and heat being costly...snuggling up with a loved one or a pet while keeping the thermostat low can be emotionally satisfying. And saving money by not eating all of the cookies and candy and other unnecessary snacks isn't such a bad thing for our waistlines and self esteem. Stick to the basics and you'll find you have more time to relax and actually enjoy the holiday feeling.

I'm happy just blasting fun Christmas songs while snuggled up in my bed with my dog after a long day at work with crazy customers. I got my parents a little bit for Christmas, but I'm also working on a colored pencil drawing of our home since I'm pretty artsy. I'm just hoping I get it done in time to give it as a present. I'm thinking that will mean more to them and they'll brag about that more than the other stuff I got them, lol.
Posted 12/11/2011 11:35 PM (GMT -5)
Yeah, I've come to hate the holidays. Family always cooks stuff that makes me sick (severe migraines, nausea, etc.) to be in the house during/after the cooking. Holidays = food. And usually food I can't be around. So I have to stay home alone. I spent Thanksgiving alone, and it'll probably be the same for Christmas. No thanks.

I love giving gifts, watching people's faces light up with happiness, decorating the tree, all that stuff. But the whole food thing just kills it for me, and I wish it didn't have to be that way :( :( :(
Posted 12/11/2011 11:36 PM (GMT -5)
Alaskah...You have the right idea. My family and I love board games and belting out the Christmas tunes and really just enjoying each other. As far as the workload everyone chips in an then I am not worn out for days.

I hope everyone has a great holiday season.


take care, Amy
Posted 12/12/2011 7:33 AM (GMT -5)
My sister told me that in their immediate family they have gone over to the "Secret Santa" system where everyone is assigned just one present to buy another person in the family. She and her daughters realized that all the gift buying was falling on the women of the family and it had become very un-fun! Of course the littlest are excluded.

My own daughter and I take a good look at Christmas each year and identify what we enjoy and don't enjoy and simply weed out what is not good the next year.

I have found in the years that I was very ill that the world does not stop if these things for the holidays are not done. And it is no good doing them if you don't enjoy it. The less I do, the more everyone else pitches in and helps. Not every "Tradition" has to be done every year. And if you do it once, it isn't necessarily a tradition!

Now that I am feeling well, I have gone a little too much the other way. I don't feel any anxiety, panic, guilt or pressure. Only problem with that is that I haven't gotten very much done!! Look at me, no worries!!

Might be a busy week!

So put your jolly hats on and only do what you enjoy!
Posted 12/12/2011 8:01 AM (GMT -5)
I like the Secret Santa idea... Problem is my boyfriend's daughters have no money or very little..   I am very close to 2 of his daughters so I am just going to get them each a gift certificate to a store they both like.  The other daughter I am half-way done knitting a pretty scarf..

Then there's my boyfriend's grandson who I adore!  He is 3 years old and all excited about Santa!

Years ago when my nephews and nieces were little, we only bought for the kids, no adults. 

Then my Mom's BD is coming up and she hinted at some books she wants that are new on the market.   Hey, my Mom will be 86?  I lost count..

I live alone, support myself, and it's just hard with this economy, etc.

Honest?  I love looking at the little Xmas tree's I put up and other decorations, my cats like them too I think!   Yeah, I'm kooky..

I just can't wait until the Holidays are over.. 

Razzle, so sorry about the food..  I actually had a stomach flu around Thanksgiving and couldn't eat anything until Thanksgiving Eve when my boyfriend came over and I felt slightly better so we bought a Turkey the night before and I did manage to cook it the next day... Minimum trimmings, just stuffed it and made potatoes...  At least it was something and he enjoyed it... 

The bottom line is it gets expensive!

Posted 12/12/2011 10:47 AM (GMT -5)
I love it when our family does the "white elephant" exchange. That is just so much fun. And, you can put a limit on the cost of the gift, like $10 or whatever you choose. It makes for a very fun time.
Posted 12/12/2011 11:19 AM (GMT -5)
Oh heck yeah! Holidays are very stressful to me - both good and bad stress. I lost a son to SIDS many years ago and his birthday is Dec 24th - he would be 19 this year...we honor him with a candle lighting every year on his birthday. I have two daughters that are now grown. Even though, I like going to parties and the like (when I am not Lyme-ified), even when healthy, I like the smaller, cozier gatherings for the Christmas season.

Also, all the hustle and bustle...and the extreme commercialism of Christmas any more. I heard a neat idea on NPR one day last week where I am going to ipose for me next year. Instead of ANYONE buying me gifts, I want them to donate whatever they would have spent on me to one of my favorite charities - this is the true spirit of the season! I have about half a dozen charities I can think of - SIDS Foundation, Lyme Disease Association, our local homeless shelters, needy children at Christmas, etc. Unfortunately, it was too late to invoke this year.

I did put up some outside lights yesterday but Saturday shopping this past weekend was S-T-R-E-S-S-F-U-L....uggh!
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