Holiday Consumerism. It seems to get bigger every year. Over-abundance of all the things. Expectations, over-spending, stress of giving and receiving the best gifts. Overconsumption of gifts, food, media, keeping up with people that really aren't happy to begin with. I could fill the page with the realities of December but I’d rather spend more time getting my point across.
When our kids were little we kept it pretty simple. Something you want, something you need, and something to read. It kept the pressure of gift giving to a minimum and the budget within reason. We didn't focus a ton on gifts because it simply wasn't a huge part of things. We were content.
As time went on, and each year passed, I looked forward to the holiday season less and less. I hated buying into the trend of having piles of gifts under the tree just to have something to open. “I don’t know what to get you, and you don’t need anything, so I’m just going to spend money on this thing that you probably don’t need and won’t use”. It just went against everything that felt good to me.
Did you know Americans spend over 936 billion dollars on Christmas gifts? Yes, that’s per year, and the trend continues to curve upward.
Are we happier because of this? Do we feel more fulfilled? Am I just being a Grinch?
When I say the word Christmas gathering, do you feel peace and contentment or overwhelming stress?
For Thanksgiving this year, we all agreed we wanted intentional time together without lots of cooking, cleaning, and customary expectations. We gathered, everyone brought an appetizer, we grazed, played cards, laughed, and no one left hungry. It was a great day.
I guess my point of all of this is to encourage you to ponder your own situation.
1) Evaluate how you feel entering December (and the hangover of what occurs post-holidays). What don’t you like? What do you love? What do you want more of? What would you like to eliminate? You can’t change what you can’t identify.
2) Prioritize everything you just wrote down. Cross off the things that make you feel heavy, and add more of the things that really light you up. Ask your family members to do the same.
3) Create new traditions based on that list. Compromise where you need to, but take into consideration that your children see and feel the impact of your holiday spirit and will tend to carry that pattern into their own future. What intentions would you like to bring forth?
And just for curiosity, ask your kiddos or your spouse what you gave them for Christmas last year…. see how long it takes them to answer, or if they even can.
Maybe it’s time to give them something to remember. Time together, a day trip to a destination zone, an afternoon matinee, an adventure on their bucket list. Maybe it’s a cookie making contest, or a fun taste test game where everyone brings a “surprise” dish. Maybe you draw portraits of each other, talent not required. Identify a desire of each member of the family and spend time doing that, TOGETHER. I guarantee they will remember THAT vs. the thing you don’t know what to buy.
Take the stress out of the holidays and fall back into togetherness, laughter, and making memories. Because when all else fails, we can still have that.
Whatever gifts you decide to give this year, here is a PDF of holiday gift tags that I put together. You can print off page 1 which has ten different labels, or keep scrolling down the PDF to find a single sheet of each design. You can print on card stock and tape onto gifts, or you can
order sticky labels to slap directly on anything, including yourself. If you have Avery 5163, 8163, or 5263 on hand, those will work!
Wherever the holidays find you, I hope they are truly light, magical, and memorable!
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