Claus for Celebration - Getting Organized

nospam@example.com (Dawn Stanko) — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 18:57:18 -0400

Oh my gosh! I went up to the attic the other day and I have so much Christmas stuff, I could start my own store. As a matter of fact, I have actually given that some thought. I can't help myself! When Christmas comes around, something inside of me goes crazy! I love to turn the house into a Christmas wonderland.

I have started to use plastic bins to organize the place. It gets kind of cold up there to spend too much time looking for stuff in cardboard boxes. They might find me up there, my hands wound tightly around that snowman or Santa ornament. "Just one more cute decoration!", she said as her fingers slowly started to freeze into position. Can't you just see it now?! lol

Eventually, I would like to have everything organized and labeled. But, for now, I'll settle for just getting the stuff from cardboard to storage bins. I love Rubbermaid brand. A lot of the other brands seem to crack too easily.

This type of item usually goes on sale after the holidays, but if I wait that long, I'm afraid I'll never do it. One woman I know gives her Christmas gifts in Rubbermaid containers. I guess she figures there is always a use for them. She's probably right. I don't know if I would actually request containers as a Christmas gift, but I do think that it is a good time to get some for myself.

Whenever I go to the store to get them, I can't seem to find what I'm looking for. This time I'm taking the easy route and shopping online.

How organized are your Christmas decorations?

Shop at Rubbermaid.com and save 10%.

Remember the Reason for the Season!

nospam@example.com (Dawn Stanko) — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 12:30:00 -0400

My Christmas Notebook- Starting the Gift Giving List

nospam@example.com (Dawn Stanko) — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 11:14:41 -0400

As I've mentioned before, I keep a Christmas notebook to help me stay organized during the holidays. The first thing I add to the notebook is my list of people I give gifts to. I keep a master list on the computer which is altered each year accordingly.

There are not too many gifts on the list as we've taken to giving "family" gifts when possible. Another thing we do is choose a new person each year to add to the Christmas list. For example, in our church parish, there are many older people. So, for the past several years, we have chosen someone and surprised them with a gift. Most times, for these people, I have chosen a gift basket. I love baskets! They are pretty, make a nice presentation, are full of goodies, and can be personalized for the recipient.

My kids are the first ones on the list. My older ones, the teens, have already begun to make their requests known. One of my sons, in fact, has been sending me emails with links to the ideas he has.
The younger ones, the girls, will see the catalogs in the mail soon and will not be shy about what they love! Of course, we also have to add Santa gifts to their list. And I can't forget the stocking stuffers!
We also usually buy a family gift for ourselves and/or the kids. For example, one year it was the PS2, then a pool table, air hockey table, etc. Something that we can all appreciate and put to good use instead of in a closet.

Next come the parents. My mother, bless her heart, still loves clothes. However, it gets harder each year to buy for her. She has always been petite and I'm telling you, she shrinks more every time I see her! lol
This year, it is my goal to find places that specialize in petite women's clothing. I will be sure to post them here! These sizes as well as larger women's sizes seem to be the hardest to find.
My father in law has a favorite local restaurant and never objects to a gift card.
Ever the daddy's girl, I will spend extra time finding a gift for my father, which is not always easy, either. You know how parents are! "Oh, I don't need anything", they always say. And you think to yourself, "Now what do I do?" lol

For the few individual gifts on the list, I can take a bit more time to look around. But I will come up with some basic ideas to follow. Certainly, a gift card will almost always be a useful gift.

So, although the list is fairly short, it will still take some time to execute. I will be posting my official gift giving list soon with my ideas.

Remember the Reason for the Season!