Too tired to shop

[Sandra]

Eeek! That's a frightrening thought, to tired to shop ...what i mean is Santa's coming. I know I know but he is. I can't wait til the last few weeks I have to do the job in small do-able shifts. Problem I am not so good now and although i love Christmas and doing just the right thing for the right person I am afraid I am not going to be able to. I"ve only got about 4 or 5 good weeks to shop as i cannot do the crowds etc, and i want to be rested enough to enjoy the visiting part and I'm feeling so yucckky right  now I am afraid i will lose more and more time. This chronic illness thing is for the birds....no I like the birds it's for something else more miserable.
Had to go for an ultrasound this morning about a half hour away and you'd think I'd ran a marathon. Something miserable wrong with my right side that's causing all kinds of trouble.
So I gues I'll put my hinder back in my bed and look at catologues and magazines for some ideas, make my santa list and make a plan, at least that's something. Hey maybe i could hire the kid next door to shop for me???/Wonder what that would cost me? Boy it costs lots to be sick, have to pay to have my grass cut, my gardens tended, vaccuuming done, never mind the medications! Oh boy enough howling, thanks for being here, Sandra

[Scottietottie]

Hi Sandra 

I did a lot of my shopping online last year - loads of it. They'll post it too! There are various sites like findmeagift.com and iwantoneofthose.com as well as Amazon.  If you shop through the amazon link on the home page - sjogrensworld gets a donation too! I always shop for my son and DIL who live in MO that way. They both keep 'wish lists' on amazon so I even know they actually want what I send them!

Take care - and the hassle out of Christmas - Scottie 

[Epson]

I 'm with Scottie, shopping on line makes Santa's work so much easier and I love the emails I get from the elves.  If I never had to move my keaster in to a store again it would not bother me one bit.  I don't like to go to the store and buy things because if brain fog sets in, who knows what I will bring home, last year I brought home a goat.  My wife made me bring it back.

[allium]

A goat? Really?  Now, what's wrong with that!   

Sandra, online shopping is a great invention.  Keep your catalouges for better reference for what things look like, but make a list and start surfing.  Don't forget eBay; sometimes you can find great deals on a lot of things.  Just be aware of the shipping costs too, and compare prices between sites like Amazon.

Some one mentioned Freecycle at the bottom catagory.  Another way to "shop" online.

I hate going to stores and malls at Christmas-get very crowd clausterphobic. And now I don't feel good either.


Don't forget to make a list of the things YOU need too, to give to people if they ask for suggestions.   Don't hesitate to ask for what you need the most; their time and help.

Sheila

[Epson]

My wife thought the goat was a baaaad idea

[Sandra]

.....baaad idea  . Actually I was going to buy a goat last year, for my sister...but I bought her community water instead. We had had a drought here and water was scarce my brother lives up the road and has two children they were buying water by the truckload for their well all year. I thought how hard it would be to raise kids without water, so for my sis I bought a community water station in Africa through Oxfam. It's a really fun site and great people, you can buy camel's this year ....and all kinds of stuff. Sandra

[SeaBreeze]

I cyber-shop for what I need for the holidays...
But our small family has not done extravagant holidays in a long time.. We concentrate on being together during the season as much as possible, which is really nice. We do buy gifts for the children, but we've come up with fun stuff to do.. like old fashioned board game night, no electricity night TV and everything goes off and we 'talk'... amazing... We used to take a ride to see 'lights', but prolly not a lot of lights around this year, and gas is too high to just 'drive' around.. Usually people think that is 'weird' and say they "can't imagine" not shopping and gift giving.. BUT I think this year with the economy the way it is our type of celebration will be more of the 'norm'... I really think that once people get a taste of the low-stress, economic holidays they'll be celebrating differently...

[Billydude]

Definately shop on-line.    But I just don't buy for anyone.   Everyone just has to understand.  I'm still awaiting  a disability decision and with hardly any funds coming in that is just the way it has to be.   No kids so thats not a problem.
Steve

[ruby52]

Online shopping is the only way to go.This yr. the grandkids are upper teens so I'll give money cards.The adults in our family rarely exchange gifts unless an agreed upon exchange by everyone.I always make homemade cookies,candy, and cheeseballs for each family.This yr. I might not be up for that but it's my goal anyway.

[Epson]

Who needs to buy for grand kids?  Kids today have so many toys, it's obscene, so my wife and I decided to buy savings bond for birthdays and holidays.  Half of the toys only get played with once, why not flush your money down the toilet?

OK I am going to give the kids a little something, we found some coal down at the Rocky River while the dog was swimming.  Merry Christmas children   Christmas bah humbug.

[irish]

We don't do big Christmas and never really have. Now that our kids are older we just buy for the grandkids and don't exchange gifts amongst us grown ups. Everyone has more than what they need. I never have bought big gifts for the grandkids. They like my "care" packages. I give them boxes with pop tarts, one like beets so she gets a can of those. Another likes mandarin oranges and they all love to get their very own big boxes of the cereal that their folks won't buy as it is too spendy. Lots of little items and they get such a kick out of it.

My DIL and son buy one present for kids from Santa and she shops for clothes and some toys at the consignment and thrift shops. She also makes sure that the kids give a donation to someone that is needy so they know that Christmas is not just to be selfish.

Epson, I have never gotten a goat, but I did get a used hay baler for Mothers Day one year. Irish