I really really love Christmas time and have already started slowly bringing Christmas decorations upstairs... a sparkly tree here, a Christmasy basket there... they're making their way up from the basement, and I'm making baking plans and craft plans for the girls. I'm excited! :)
With the holiday season also comes the gift giving season! I'm hoping to teach my girls a bit about giving, service, and generosity this year by doing some extra baking to deliver to friends, by taking the time to write in Christmas cards, and involving them with gift-giving as much as possible.
I am trying to be very aware of focusing them more on the giving and less on the receiving part of Christmas. I would love for them to think of Christmas as a happy time to celebrate Christ's birth, gather with friends and family, and soak up the joy and gratitude for what we have.
There are of course certain people that we want to give gifts to at Christmas, that go beyond a plate of cookies. However, I prefer not to spend my holidays in malls searching and searching for an appropriate gift. There are so many other things to do with our time, and I don't want to let shopping eat up the time that we have together during the holidays! I love to give thoughtful gifts, though, when I can find something that's just right for someone, so, I've tried to be aware of gift-searching throughout the year so that I don't have to cram it in now.
Something new that we're trying with my husband's side of the family this year is that we're all getting together to provide gifts for a family in need, instead of buying gifts for each other. I can't wait to see how this goes!
How do you manage the gift-giving part of your holidays?
I'd love to hear your ideas and things that have worked for you!
This post has been sponsored by Empire Theatres who have come up with a great time-saving gift idea: You've heard me talk about Empire Theatres' Reel Babies program (there's still time to enter that giveaway by the way & your chances are great since there'll be 5 winners!) and now I want to put a plug in for Empire Theatres' Holiday Gift Pack. You spend $30 on a gift card and you get $30 worth of coupons for yourself or to combine with the gift card as a gift! You can even order these online here. Talk about quick, easy shopping- who doesn't love a reason to go to the movies? ;)
Here are the details:
Each time you buy a $30 Empire Theatres gift card you’ll receive a $30 Coupon Booklet*. Each coupon is good for one month, and start in January 2011. You can buy the gift cards online or at Empire Theatre Locations.
The coupon booklet includes:
■Buy one General Admission Ticket and get a second Ticket FREE
■Get $2 OFF any* Combo (*excluding Kid’s Pack)
■Admission Ticket, Regular Soft Drink & a Small Popcorn only $9.99 plus tax
■Purchase a Large Popcorn and get a FREE Large Coca-Cola® Soft Drink
■$6.99 Admission
■$4.00 OFF General Admission
Disclosure – I am participating in the Empire Theatre Gift Card Holiday Campaign by Mom Central Canada. I received compensation for my participation in this campaign. The opinions on this blog are my own.