When Money Is Tight We Put More Thoughts Into Our Gifts

I can't believe tomorrow is Thanksgiving! Only 1 more month until Christmas and I haven't really even started my shopping. I had my husband pick up 1 item because he sells it at the store where he works, and I ordered 1 other item online. That is the extent of my shopping thus far. Eeek!

Part of the problem... ok, the whole problem (!) is money. It's tight this year! Tighter than I remember it being for over 10 years. What I'm finding this year is that when I look over the lists I asked the kids to make for me, I'm peering closely and trying to decipher the things they truly want or need and weeding out any excess or anything I think is just a whim. In the long run this is good though. When the purse strings are tight you tend to truly look at the person you want to buy for and find something they really want.

Instead of buying 8 gifts that you see at the mall and give into impulse getting, you may decide to give your boyfriend one of the yamaha motorcycle parts he really wants and needs but hasn't been able to buy himself. Or husbands may finally bypass the bath beads and perfume and get their wife that KitchenAid mixer or another appliance she really wants but won't spend the money on herself to get. And yes, I know many women want jewelry and clothing. Me? I want a new floor in the bathroom or a steam cleaner!

Maybe this year, with the money being so tight, we'll all think a little more about the person we are buying for and only get them one or two special things instead of the commercialized excess we've been drawn into the past. Maybe we'll even get back to the real reason for the season... and you know who that is!