Chewbybell

21-Scrooged 43-Love Actually 37-Die Hard 4-Miracle on 34th Street- Original 1947 Version starring Natalie Wood and Maureen O'Hara 8-Fred Claus 19-The Santa Clause 2 2-Christmas Vacation- 2009 Champion 9-Christmas with The Kranks 57-A Christmas Carol- 1984- George C. Scott 12-Eight Crazy Nights 59-Scrooge- 1951 - Alistar Sim 63-Santa Baby 6- Polar Express 61-The Nativity Story 42-Santa Buddies 13-Elf 14-The Grinch 1- The Santa Clause- 2010 Champion 46-The Bishop's Wife 28-Mickey's One Upon a Christmas 7-Four Christmases 24-Surviving Christmas 56-The Preacher's Wife 3-A Christmas Story- 2008 Champion 18-Muppet Christmas Carol 64-Santa Clause 3- The Escape Clause 60-A Christmas Carol 2009- Jim Carrey 58-Family Stone 31-The Christmas List 38-Gremlins 52-Miracle on 34th Street- 1994 version 40-The Holiday

The wrestling with the tree is actually one of the things I miss most about getting a real tree- it was always such an adventure and ordeal to get it just right, decide the front, etc, and I liked it all, including standing out in the freezing cold to pick out the tree each year. Makes me sad not getting a real tree, but on the other hand I don't want to make my little one have an asthma flare, so fake it will be.

I have three girls (8, 6, and 2 yo), and they each have two pillow pet type animals- each one has a "real" pillow pet and a knock off pillow pet, they can't tell the difference. They all three love their pillow pets, the big two sleep with both of theirs every night (they like a lot of pillows) and the little one would but for allergy reasons has to sleep on a special pillow, she snuggles it during the day a lot though, or steals her sisters while they are at school They are getting another of the knock off ones for Christmas this year (they had them for $2.88, I couldn't resist because they will love them).

My little one's birthday is November 24th, so after that some time. We do refer to it as her tree though because we had to buy it due to her allergies, we were always a live tree family until we were forced otherwise, so we have talked about putting it up for her birthday since it is her tree, but I want her to feel like she has her birthday all to herself and not a Christmas thing, so we probably won't.

Last year it took five evenings of 3-5 hours each evening Santa even wraps the presents, even the wee stocking ones since there are elves whose only job it is to wrap presents (thank you Ellie the Elf). This year we have less presents, so it should take less time, surely.

We have bought most of the things for our kids, and a few for the other people we buy for, the prices I got the presents at were either really good prices or I knew they weren't going to go cheaper. My kids are still little though, so no electronic stuff really (well a couple DS games), just toys and those were toys that have went on big sales throughout the year so we snatched them up then.

I love it! My husband does not, but that is okay because it means more for me!! ...not really, my kids love it so they drink most of it now.

Presents from the family are Christmas Eve and then Santa comes over night and presents from Santa are Christmas morning- this is how I was raised and how we do it with my children, with the minor exception that presents from mom and dad are either early in the day on Christmas Eve or the day before (depending on my husband's work schedule), then we go to my parents where we do presents with all of my family on Christmas Eve night (how I have always done it). Santa always comes at night and wake up to them on Christmas morning though.

12 Days of Christmas by Straight No Chaser, makes me laugh every time.

I have received two $10 of $10 purchase coupons in the past couple of weeks- one good for this week, and one good until December 24 (I am saving that one for black friday :) ), and I do NOT have a JCPenny credit card. I do use my debit card when I shop there though, but I doubt they go by that. I have maybe spent $50 (probably less) there this year, so it can't be that I am a big spender, I am guessing I am on some mailing list.

The excitement of getting a good deal and finding exactly the item you were looking for in that store-even if it isn't for you but for one of the people you are shopping with.

We have Christmas eve at my Grandma's (about two hours from here), then we drive back home to have Christmas morning here and see what Santa brought, then jump in the car and drive an hour and a half to my sister's for lunch (same side of the state as my Grandma's, everyone lives close but us). After this, we used to then drive four hours down to my husband's family, but a couple of years ago my husband said no more to that because it was just too much and the kids were sad to leave all their new toys, so we started going down the weekend before or after, however this year that is going to change more because my littlest is very very allergic to something down where his family is (she has severe allergic asthma, and last year the trip the weekend before Christmas set her off so bad that we very nearly spent Christmas in the hospital), so the little one and I are staying here for sure, I think I am going to make him take the other kids down though because I feel bad everyone not going, but we just can't take the little one, we have tried two trips down there since she has gotten so severe and both times was a nightmare- when you have to start a breathing treatment within 10 minutes of walking through the door, something is bad.

I go through a ton of wrapping paper too. We also have a different one for each child, then there is one for my husband and I, then I try to do different ones for the opposite sides of the family so that we take them to the right places (especially since one family is over four hours away). Santa also wraps each child's presents in their own papers so that they aren't mixed up in the hubabaloo of Christmas morning. So without wrapping a single present, I need at least nine rolls...then the kids usually end up needing two or more rolls each, this year we are cutting way back on what we are giving them though, so it might just be one each this year.

I just got the one ten dollars off $100 too.

Does anyone know where to buy inexpensive suitcases that are not just plain? My daughter is wanting one for Christmas, but doesn't just want a plain black one, she wants one with some kind of design, and all the ones I have seen are pricey. Where can you find inexpensive luggage, like a pilot's case that isn't just plain black or red?

We had to make the switch last year after my little one's allergist looked like I had all of the sudden grown a third head when I said "would a live tree be okay", it is not like i was going to get one I KNEW she was allergic to. We got ours at Lowe's, after shopping around it was really the cheapest for the tree we wanted- which was an 8ft prelit that resembled a fir tree since that is what we always have had.

I had a sling and a front pack when mine were little like that- all of them were attached to me until they were 18 months old or so, so that front pack and sling came in very handy.

My kindergartener has requested a suitcase from Santa, wouldn't be so odd if she weren't only five.

We went searching for one of these for my dd for her birthday this year and had to go to ebay for a good price. I talked to associates at Walmart and Gamestop and apparently the system is discontinued. We got one on ebay for $40 though, much better price than the $80 used price Gamestop wanted.

I have started and done pretty well, I am usually at least halfway done by now though, not so much this year. I like to look all year for just the perfect gift at a price I am willing to pay for each person because I hate just getting desperate and grabbing something at the end (because that is what I do if I don't have it already, I get panicky and just grab something).

Well, we are very into Christmas- especially dh- but some things that we do you could do and it wouldn't have to involve your dh. One thing we do (multiple nights) is put on our santa hats, the kids put on their jammies, and we drive around while listening to Christmas music and look at the lights, we do a different area of town each night out. Sometimes, the kids will stay in their regular clothes, we will all wear our santa hats though, and we will go eat ice cream after looking at the lights. For ornaments, you could make birdseed ornaments with peanut butter and birdseed, and hang those on your trees outside for the birds to eat- we often use pinecones for this. We do a special something every night in December for Christmas- be it making cookies, seeing lights, going to the Christmas parade, reading a Christmas book together, making reindeer food, etc, etc. None of it really would require decorating or anything, so it shouldn't bother your husband too much. As for Christmas presents and everything, surely the two of you can do those in her bedroom and not bother him.

We have a storage cabinet in the garage that has a latch that is so high up that even I have to have a ladder, so we hide them in there, my kids have never figured it out thankfully, they aren't really snoopers though, I know it won't work when they are teenagers unless we threaten them that they will have to mow or something if they go out into the garage.

We are definitely cutting back- a lot- I wouldn't say it is so much because of the economy persay, but because my daughter requires lots of $$ meds, we have insurance, but still out of pocket is crazy high, I guess I could blame the economy, it would be nice if dh got a raise to pay for said meds Thankfully my kids are young and the most expensive thing any of them has asked for is the Smurf DS game (that I got on sale at Best Buy)....well one does want a suitcase, but I am hoping there are some of those for super cheap on black friday, I know I have seen them in years past.

I will go with Lowe's 10/19 just to be different.

1- Christmas Vacation 2- The Santa Clause