Where's my Christmas spirit?

Sezzagirl

I went out Christmas shopping today and I have come back a real grumpy moo!!:(

It's not that I am unhappy at what I've bought, although a little more positive input from the OH would be appreciated:cool:

It's just that this year I feel no joy in choosing gifts, just a sense of obligation!

I'm buying for a 16 and nearly 14 year old boy and I have their big present sorted and a few ideas for useful, smaller, presents but everything seems so worthy and just not much fun!

I look at the "toys" and games and just think that they would be a waste but what can I do to get the fun back!!!!:idea:

Nanamia

Join the lovelies on the Let it Snow thread:) you can't help but be filled with Christmas spirit. X

quinechinoise

Decorating the tree/home is fun and frivolous. So is wrapping the gifts, regardless of the potentially utilitarian contents.

If you miss shopping for a little one, would you be interested in doing a charity "shoe box" gift? My daughter's school collected loads of these for some charity last year - you could choose the age/sex of the recipient so we did a box for a girl about 4-7 (or whatever the age category was). I think quite a lot of charities do these shoe box gifts.

cazpumpkin

Mine are 15/17/21 so in theory too old for games. So what I do after ive got the xmas cleaning and shopping out of the way is sort of make december a xmas countdown month. First weekend of december everyone helps to decorate the tree and house and the advent calender goes up filled with sweets. Another day is write out xmas cards and post them. Their favourite day is bake biscuits or mince pies with a xmas cd on in the background. Another evening we watch xmas movies with popcorn. Another popular thing is to go someplace and watch xmas lights being switched on at a shopping centre followed by a hot chocolate. Another day is find a christmas market. Another evening we go to a local church carol concert, a christmas pantomine or a school nativity or a christmas fayre. Rainy days we stay in and play ludo, chess or scrabble with a bag of toffees or make paper decorations. Window shopping, visiting family fill in the gaps. Nearer xmas day I wrap everything including things in the stockings or santa sacks. Xmas day itself I make sure there is a quirky or funny book in the santa sack, maybe a bumper book of jokes or similar from the works, a silly mug with a funny saying on it, just cheesy items like loo roll which is made to look like crime scene tape, or those racing pensioners from hawkins bazarre, add in a few smaller items like magic bubbles or dead fred bookmarks, then the babyish items ive put in every year since they were little, a bag of gold coins, a large candy cane, a giant lollipop, well it keeps mine happy and theyre grown ups mostly. What puts the magic into christmas for me is doing things with the family. Most of my suggestions cost very little