The Christmas mood

[Night Elf]

What puts you into the mood for Christmas? Since my kids have gotten older, we don't have the magic of Santa and a morning with a ton of gifts. So this year, I'm finished my shopping early and I'm still not in the mood. Dd14 and I have been doing our Playmobil Advent calendars, and we are still not in the mood. We skipped putting up the tree last weekend because we felt blah, but promised we would do it this coming weekend. The weather has been mild and it just doesn't feel like Christmas yet. Maybe I'll break out my favorite Christmas music cd when we put up the tree and serve eggnog. Aw, I don't know. Is there anyone else just not feeling it all yet? No one in my family seems gung-ho about it. I'm beginning to wonder if they would care at all if I didn't put up the tree at all. That's sad.

[three4me]

For me it's pulling out the Christmas picture books and hearing Christmas music :)

[Guest inoubliable]

:grouphug: I say, put up the tree and play your CD. Serve eggnog and tell stories of Christmases past. It's been warmer than usual here, too, and doesn't feel very Christmas-y. We watched White Christmas today and tomorrow we're making chocolate chip cookies. I'm trying to find a recipe for fudge. I've never made it before, but everyone I knew growing up always had fudge in the house around the holidays.

[gaillardia]

I'm not feeling it too much. On Sunday I started getting Christmas decorations out that my mom painted...wooden Santas and angels, that helped. I go to church, so hearing that music helps in a different way. I live where it is sort of mild and that doesn't help because I was used to cold, sometimes snowy, Decembers. I haven't made or bought any presents. We're getting a couple of Christmas cards here and there, that helps. I'm going to make a family card with pictures of all of us on it, and write a personal note, send them off to quite a few friends if I think I can afford the postage...

Really, at Christmas time the past two years I haven't felt like doing the big shopping thing. It just doesn't mean Christmas to me like that anymore. Maybe it's because my youngest is 11 and the excitement she had isn't the way it used to be...

[Catwoman]

It starts feeling like Christmas when the landscapers and exterior decorating companies start showing up in the neighborhood with the cherry pickers, and they put up all the lights and wreaths on many of the houses. Nobody goes really crazy with the lighting and decorations, though -- everything is always very tasteful and everyone's lights are perfectly straight. :rolleyes:

 

I have to admit that I think it's cooler when the decorations aren't quite so perfect. I drive past one house a few miles away from here, and every year the whole family helps put up a ton of lights and big decorations all over the yard, and quite frankly, it's always a bit of a mess and kind of tacky -- but I have to love it because you can tell they must have had a lot of fun doing all of the work, and it just seems a lot more festive than when everything is postcard-perfect.

 

It also feels like Christmas to me as soon as I start shopping every day. I love Christmas shopping!!! :)

[Elinor Everywhere]

I feel blah this year, too. I don't know if it's because it's too warm, or I just am....ugh. Almost all my shopping is done and today I finished wrapping everything. I'm playing Christmas music, but the Advent wreath is sitting out, unlit. The house is decorated, the tree is up. Amd I still feel blah!

[Night Elf]

Christmas music. That's the order for today. Yesterday I tried a Sirius XM station called Holiday Traditions and all the songs were way old by artists I don't know. That was no fun. I'll also start talking about the tree today to the family. Maybe if we are anticipating it, it will be more fun. We use an artificial tree and the kids are the ones who put it together. DH and I do the lights. The kids put the ornaments on. If they aren't in the mood, I'll end up doing it all and that will feel llke a chore. I've a good mind to go shopping again and buy Santa gifts like board games and DVDs. That would surprise the kids Christmas morning. I did find a Doctor Who Monopoly set on BBC America Shop, but it's $35. I'm not sure I'd receive it in time anyway. Maybe I should try. I'll talk to DH.

[Lily_Grace]

We do one Christmas thing a day. :) Sometimes more, but at least one.

 

So far we've

-put up the tree

-decorated the house

-baked cookies

-watched a few of our favorite movies

-played Santa (angel tree)

-went to the town tree lighting

-sold Christmas trees

-had a history lesson on Christmas traditions

-walked downtown to visit the Christmas market

-read/discussed The Gift of The Magi

-worked on a homemade nativity

 

Currently in progress/to do over the next two weeks:

-memorize A Visit From St. Nicholas

-read A Christmas Carol together (yearly tradition)

-read The Best Christmas Pageant Ever

-make fudge

-go to a program at the church

-make cookies for the neighbors

-sell more trees. 'Cause that's what Boy Scouts do best! :laugh:

[DaffodilDreams]

We've been in the Christmas mood all semester because we were cast in one of the Christmas productions at a local theatre. Every theatre in our area puts on a Christmas-related play each year. Attending or performing in one puts the holiday front and center. We also get in the Christmas spirit by putting up our tree and listening to Christmas music right after Thanksgiving. We watch Christmas movies the whole month long, drive around and look at Christmas lights, make cookies and salt dough ornaments, use advent calendars (normally we do an advent wreath, too, but I can't find the pieces to it this year!), read a different Christmas book each night, and attend one or more of the several Christmas events around town. If we weren't involved in a play, we would attend Wed night advent dinner/lessons/carols at our church. We've also gone caroling in neighborhoods with friends in years past, and that's lots of fun!

[Chris in VA]

I'm battling anxiety, so it's hard to feel Christmasy, but also it's been warm and no one has come home or visited yet. My ds comes home from college Fri, my parents come the Sat before Xmas, and hopefully other ds will come from Asheville by Sunday 23rd. That will help.

 

Dd and Dh and I got our tree Monday. It was a hard day. I don't like the one they picked, and I spoke sharply to dd during the hunt for the tree, and actually spent a few moments wandering around the lot crying. God, I'm pathetic. I hate to be the *itch who ruins everything. I can see her bonding with her dad over it. Yuck. Then I found a good tree, and sent dd to find dh; he came over and said he'd already bought the other tree, thinking I had said to go ahead and get it. So we have a crappy, $80 monstrosity with bent branches sitting outside by the grill waiting to be brought in.

 

Hohoho.

[TXMomof4]

I'm battling anxiety, so it's hard to feel Christmasy, but also it's been warm and no one has come home or visited yet. My ds comes home from college Fri, my parents come the Sat before Xmas, and hopefully other ds will come from Asheville by Sunday 23rd. That will help.

 

Dd and Dh and I got our tree Monday. It was a hard day. I don't like the one they picked, and I spoke sharply to dd during the hunt for the tree, and actually spent a few moments wandering around the lot crying. God, I'm pathetic. I hate to be the *itch who ruins everything. I can see her bonding with her dad over it. Yuck. Then I found a good tree, and sent dd to find dh; he came over and said he'd already bought the other tree, thinking I had said to go ahead and get it. So we have a crappy, $80 monstrosity with bent branches sitting outside by the grill waiting to be brought in.

 

Hohoho.

 

 

This is how I feel this year. The post had their Christmas festival the week after Thanksgiving (which was still NOVEMBER) and were givinf away trees for troops. The line was so long I thought I'd managed to avoid it. We have cut down our own tree for the last seven years and I love doing that. However, when we went to the festival later they had 3 stinking trees left. So not only did we not cut down our own tree, we got the leftover tree no one wanted. And by the way we never put up decorations before Dec. Except this year the tree got put up and decorated early. But no one wanted to do the rest of the decorations so they are still in the garage. And I responded poorly to all of this - really its a free tree and I should be counting my blessings, but I just feel like a grinch. THEN add in the fact that my neighbor is already crying because we'll be moving in the spring to a place I do not want to go to and this whole month feels like a huge pile of bricks waiting to come down on my head.

Now, was that helpful at all! LOL!

[elegantlion]

I'm battling anxiety, so it's hard to feel Christmasy, but also it's been warm and no one has come home or visited yet. My ds comes home from college Fri, my parents come the Sat before Xmas, and hopefully other ds will come from Asheville by Sunday 23rd. That will help.

 

Dd and Dh and I got our tree Monday. It was a hard day. I don't like the one they picked, and I spoke sharply to dd during the hunt for the tree, and actually spent a few moments wandering around the lot crying. God, I'm pathetic. I hate to be the *itch who ruins everything. I can see her bonding with her dad over it. Yuck. Then I found a good tree, and sent dd to find dh; he came over and said he'd already bought the other tree, thinking I had said to go ahead and get it. So we have a crappy, $80 monstrosity with bent branches sitting outside by the grill waiting to be brought in.

 

Hohoho.

 

 

((Chris))

 

This year? Christmas mood? Probably not happening. Dh wants a tree, I don't for many reasons other than scroogy reasons. I haven't decorated one thing and don't plan to. We may get to start shopping this weekend and I don't even care about that. I have family coming up to see us and my parents and now I'll have to buy them gifts when I hadn't planned on it. They usually buy for us, which I wish they wouldn't.

 

Dh started a new job this week, he worked 13 hours yesterday was 2 hours away and his phone battery died. I had no clue where he was and when he was getting off until he got back to the shop and in his car to charge the phone. I was getting worried. He's exhausted and grumpy.

 

Next week ds and I are supposed to go to the Art Museum with this family member. I've been dying to go there since we moved and logistics and money haven't worked out (it's over an hour away). So I'm holding my breath that this person and the weather both play nice. I'd like some money to spend in the gift shop, that's really all I want for christmas right now.

 

I also discovered last night that I am allergic to the green tea with orange peel and jasmine that I bought. I had to take 3 Benadryl and still itched all night long. I'm this close to calling off school and watching movies all day.

 

Last night I watched part of the Sandy benefit concernt. Eric Clapton got me off my butt and I was dancing in my socks in the dining room. I'm considering skipping the entirety of the holidays and just playing some Clapton.

[Starr]

I think Christmas does change as your kids get older. For years you live off of their excitement. My brother is crushed that dd's Christmas list showed no signs of childhood. Doing things for others helps. We went and wrapped presents for the local Holiday Fund. I got to see all the toys. :) And the kids at church are getting excited about the pageant on Christmas. So we carry on with our traditions and love Christmas however is gets here. Lets not talk about being 3 days behind with the Advent Calendars...

[TN Mama]

Hugs, Beth & Chris.

 

Beth, I almost convinced my family that we didn't need a tree this year. We usually don't put it up until we're about a week into December, and we're not going to be home for the entire holiday, so I didn't want to get everything out, go buy a tree, spend tons of time working on everything, etc. But... in the end we did it and for that I am so thankful. Christmas music, baking cookies for our neighbors, having hot chocolate or cider, candy canes, playing the Christmas game (20 questions, basically) has helped in the past.

 

Volunteer or service of some kind has also helped. We rang the bell for the Salvation Army, and went shopping for Toys for Tots.

[Happy]

I was in a non-Christmas funk last week. Part of it was the unseasonably warm weather, part...just not into it. I hate that attitude, so I made sugar cookies. I only make sugar cookies in December. I prefer the Christmas tree cookie cutter. I made half the recipe, and had a cookie or two each day last week. When those were gone, I made the other half. We made a concerted effort to get the decorations up. Nothing irritates like the jumble that happens when we get the decor boxes out. Ugh. So we got the tree up and decorated, the mantle done and stockings hung. Swapped out the regular dishes for the Christmas ones. On the last warm day, we got lights up outside. I made some little Christmas trees out of tomato cages (wrapped in burlap and a string of lights.) in the backyard. Those made me ridiculously happy.

 

As the house has gotten more cheerful, so have I. But I'm keeping sugar cookie dough made up in the fridge, just in case.

 

I'm not stressing over Christmas this year. Any December I have without a cancer diagnosis (like last year) is a GOOD one. :0)

[Jenny in Florida]

I'm having a tough time this year, too.

 

It's been hot here, which doesn't help. But, also, my son and I are not in a good place, which makes it difficult for me to get enthusiastic about shopping and making gifts for him. And then I feel sad that I'm not enthusiastic, and then it bleeds over into the rest of the holiday prep.

 

Plus, he's been sick for over a week, which meant that some of the holiday-themed performance stuff I was really looking forward to got either skipped or dramatically abbreviated. So, for example, he was scheduled to dance for a big community event we used to take the kids to every year. I had this lovely image in my head of going to see him perform and then wandering the streets, listening to the Christmas music and looking in the store windows, watching kids play in the fake snow . . . As it turned out, it was all he could do to get through the performance, and he had to go directly home. My daughter and I stayed for a little bit, but I felt guilty and worried about my son, and we headed home, too.

 

We're in a yucky place with school, too, meaning we can't take off the time we usually would around the holidays. And he's angry with me for making him keep up with schoolwork even though he's sick.

 

Now, I'm under the weather, too, and struggling to find the physical and emotional energy to maintain any holiday mood.

 

And my daughter is just not into any of it this year. She's turning 18 tomorrow and is getting really antsy to get out of here and get on with her life. That's as it should be. It's good. It's healthy. But it keeps smacking me upside the head when I least expect it.

 

For example: I make each kid a personalized ornament each year, with the idea that, when they move out the ornaments will go with them to form a "starter set" for their own trees. When my daughter was little, I started making her these little clothespin angels, usually with cross stitched designs on them. I started out buying kits, but they've gotten more personal and more elaborate over the years. I always give each kid his/her ornament on the night we decorate the tree, when we are otherwise done hanging things. It was a little tough to find time to decorate the tree this year, between everyone's schedule and at least two of us sick. However, we made time Wednesday evening, played music, watched Elf in the background, unpacked the ornaments, told stories, the whole shebang. At the end, I handed each kid the new ornament. My son gave his a cursory glance and hung it up and went back to the TV. My daughter oohed and ahhed and noticed every detail. (I had made it to look like her during our recent NYC trip, including having it hold Playbills from the shows she saw and a book she bought there and other little things.) She hung it on the tree and gave me a hug, then sat down on the couch and wondered aloud whether this should be her last angel, since she's about to be 18 and probably won't be living with us next year.

 

And I lost it. I just sat there and started crying, quietly (thank goodness), but without any ability to make it stop.

 

Actually, I'm crying now, just typing it.

 

And so, of course, I made her feel badly, which was not at all what I meant to do. She should be thinking forward. She should be getting on with her life. It's time. She's ready. But I hate that this is ending and that our "last Christmas" is such a dismal one.

 

We haven't done our Advent calendar at all. I dug it out, set it up in the living room and waited for someone to mention it.

 

I haven't put up the outside lights.

 

We ran out of ornament hooks while decorating the tree, and I was supposed to go get some yesterday. Instead, I spent the entire day sleeping on the couch in between coughing fits. So, there are a few forlorn ornaments scattered around the room, and no one has put the skirt under the tree, because it's not "done."

 

Our tradition is that, from the night the tree goes up, one present magically appears under the tree each night. This year, the tree is still sitting there, present-less. And, honestly, I haven't done enough shopping or crafting to have gifts to put there.

 

No one has decorate the living room or any other part of the house.

 

My daughter hasn't even bothered to set up her village of dollar store Christmas houses that she's collected over the years.

 

At this point, I'm torn between forcing myself to get off my butt and go through the motions, hoping something will kick in while I'm busy and just calling it a day.

 

So, if anyone ever does find that magic remedy that will save this holiday for us, you will let me know, right?

[elegantlion]

I'm having a tough time this year, too.

 

So, if anyone ever does find that magic remedy that will save this holiday for us, you will let me know, right?

 

((Jenny)) I'm sorry. I wish had magic fairy dust, I'd share.

[Mom-ninja.]

My dad is in the hospital for the 2nd time in a week. So, no, I'm not feeling the Christmas mood.

[Lady Marmalade]

Not feeling it either. But I'm trying, I really am. After two weekends of the kids dancing in The Nutcracker, and this coming weekend being our church Christmas Play, I'm just really ready for the busy-ness of the season to be over. Maybe once we get past Sunday I can relax and get in the mood.

 

We have put up Christmas trees. We have five of them up in the house right now, and DH has put up lights outside. But none of the other decorations have come out yet, and now I'm starting to wonder if it will be worth it to get them out.

 

Adding to the blah mood is the fact that we're having serious vehicle troubles, and the very little I'd set aside for buying gifts has been eaten away at for car repairs. Now we still don't have a working vehicle, which I really need, AND my Christmas fund is dwindling. There isn't enough there to go around, and I haven't purchased a single thing for the kids yet. They know it will be a lean Christmas, but I hope we can get this van fixed, because I can't shop for even little things if we need if for the van.

 

I think after school today I'll put on some Christmas music and do some cleaning so that maybe I can get a few more decorations out. I have to keep trying!

[astrid]

It starts feeling like Christmas when the landscapers and exterior decorating companies start showing up in the neighborhood with the cherry pickers, and they put up all the lights and wreaths on many of the houses. Nobody goes really crazy with the lighting and decorations, though -- everything is always very tasteful and everyone's lights are perfectly straight. :rolleyes:

 

Exterior decorating companies?? Never heard of such.

 

astrid

[Catwoman]

 

Exterior decorating companies?? Never heard of such.

 

astrid

 

 

They decorate the exteriors (and the yards) of homes and businesses for holidays and special occasions. Some of them do some amazing stuff; others are just OK, and the houses don't look much better than if the homeowner got some strings of lights and a ladder and did it himself. I guess it all depends on how much you're willing to pay for Christmas Light Bragging Rights. ;)

[mhaddon]

It still hasn't sunk in because we cant buy any gifts. It's hard because I have all Santa believers. We are trying to make a few things and putting together a tax check vaction for the kids to open... So Christmas feels blah and depressing. But the kids have no idea. We have put up all our decorations with music, we have the Kids christmas program at church Sunday, caroling, and cookie decorating party. Wednesday is our huge baking day, gingerbread family (whole family) get together next weekend. We are doing hot coco and looking at lights tonight and I have thrown a few crafts together. I hope some of this makes up in the memory area. We've pulled out all our special Chirstmas books and have been reading. Tomorrow my daughter is going to a thing at her tumbling gym. I could skip this year and be fine :oops:

[5LittleMonkeys]

What got me in the Christmas mood this year? Making, buying, going through some of our own stuff and packaging it all up for the Hive family we are helping out this Christmas. It kicked off the holiday season perfectly for us...to give to those who are just in a tough spot this year at Christmas time; a spot my own family has been in many, many times through the years.

 

I've extended that over the last couple of weeks by doing little things as I can. I was going to put some items on Craig's List (an almost new a bicycle, a highchair, a wooden train set along with the layout my husband built on wheels) I ended up giving those items to people that I knew could really use them and weren't in a position to purchase those things for themselves. I've paid for two people's orders at the McDonalds drive through, paid for a couple items for the older lady in front of me at the grocery store (she was having to take a couple items off her order because she didn't have enough money), and held a woman's SCREAMING child for her while she was trying to mail packages at the post office. That one ended with me getting a migraine but it was worth it to see the relief on her face when I offered. These things took little effort on my part but had a big impact on my attitude and outlook.

 

I'm hoping to get some homemade items prepared for neighbors next week and I'm also trying to think of something the kids and I can do for one of the nursing homes near us. It seems the more I do in the spirit of Christmas the more addicted I get to it. :p

[5LittleMonkeys]

 

Exterior decorating companies?? Never heard of such.

 

astrid

 

When I was a floral designer years...and years...ago we (the owner of the floral shop and I) would be commissioned to come into people's homes and deck them out in holiday cheer. We'd do outdoor stuff too like wreaths, swags, garlands... People paid a ridiculous amount of money for it. I always thought it was kind of sad. There were lots of houses with children and not a single homemade or keepsake type of ornament anywhere to be seen. They were gorgeous to be sure but not at all reflective of the family...more look but don't touch, everything coordinated to a T, magazine shoot quality. (Well, on second thought maybe they were reflective of the family. ;) ) I often think of those people when my kids are decorating our tree. I think they would be quite appalled at the mis-matched Hallmark ornaments, DollarStore baubles, expensive glass treasures, glued and glittered styrofoam snowmen, and the reindeer my oldest made out of a paper bag when she was 5 that's missing one googly eye and half it's antler. :lol:

[annandatje]

It starts feeling like Christmas when the landscapers and exterior decorating companies start showing up in the neighborhood with the cherry pickers, and they put up all the lights and wreaths on many of the houses. Nobody goes really crazy with the lighting and decorations, though -- everything is always very tasteful and everyone's lights are perfectly straight. :rolleyes:

 

I have to admit that I think it's cooler when the decorations aren't quite so perfect. I drive past one house a few miles away from here, and every year the whole family helps put up a ton of lights and big decorations all over the yard, and quite frankly, it's always a bit of a mess and kind of tacky -- but I have to love it because you can tell they must have had a lot of fun doing all of the work, and it just seems a lot more festive than when everything is postcard-perfect ....

 

Two different neighbors a couple doors down from us have electrical contractors do their exterior lighting decor. One is spectacular multicolored display while the other is what most would consider more tasteful and understated. We now have tradition of drinking hot chocolate on porch Wednesday night before Thanksgiving to gaze at the display as the decorators finish the job on the house cattycorner from us.

[Deb in NZ]

It's summer here for Christmas & it never feels right to me as I grew up in New England where Christmas DOES look like the Christmas cards. Usually I get in to the holiday spirit & we have adapted some of my family's traditions to fit our bi-cultural family. This year nothing seems to click. Thanksgiving was just us (dh, me, & our 3 dc.) I was just too tired to even think about inviting anyone. Dd moved home the week before & the house was in a bit of an uproar to make room for her again after her being away for 3 years at uni. Advent began & we were away at a regatta. Then I never got back to starting our normal Advent traditions. I began some major decluttering before dd moved home, but got interrupted & the lounge looks worse than it did before I began. Because of the mess I am reluctant to do any decorating. Even ds#1, who usually begins to play carols mid-October, isn't too fussed about Christmas. :confused1:

 

Yesterday I told myself "enough was enough!" & I made out a list of our normal holiday baking. So far I have baked:

---Fruit cake (for my Kiwi dh)

---2 Banana breads (one for ds#2 to take to regatta tomorrow)

---Apple Cake (again for ds#2's regatta)

---Oatmeal-Raisin holiday cookies

---Coffee Drop Cookies

 

Still to bake are:

---Chocolate chip/M&M cookies

---Shortbread biscuits

---Gingersnaps

---Peanutbutter cookies

---Chocolate Crinkles

---ANZAC biscuits

 

I usually make up platters for extended family & my dc's coaches / scout leaders / etc. This year my "to give" list is much shorter, so my dc will be happy to see more left for us. :laugh: I hope the holiday goodies help to jumpstart the holiday spirit. Dd & ds#1 are feuding & it's driving me crazy. Dd has spent the past 3 years at uni, graduating just this week. She is still living in the uni mindset (lots of freedom, not much responsibility.) Don't get me wrong, dd is a well-adjusted, mature young lady, but she just isn't at the same place (maturity-wise) that ds#1 is, even though he is 2 years younger. Ds#1 has been working full-time since April, when he began his apprenticeship. Ds#1 has a much more "grown-up" attitude towards working, responsibilities, & life in general than his older sister. I can see more fireworks coming end of this week when dd's BF comes to visit. We've told dd that they will not be sharing a room, but I don't think she believes us. His parents have the same rules, she's told me in the past. Please pray for a peaceful visit for us. Dd ships out on 27 December, so I'd like to be on good relations with her when she departs.