Reinholt1

I received my box on Wednesday. Thank you to my Secret Santa!! I did take a picture, but I will have to post it later. All my gifts were holiday themed. I received a new oven mitt and kitchen towel (I was just thinking at Thanksgiving that I really needed new oven mitts. and Voila!! Just in time for making Christmas Cookies this week! Yay! a Christmas oven mitt - which I will most likely be using all year because I am throwing the one with hole it in out!) I also received a cute glittery penguin ornament, and a small Christmas greeting wall hanging. And a small bottle of hand sanitizer, hand lotion (orange-grapefruit-sugar plum combo scent. Smells nice. The scent lasts a long time too.) and a small soft plastic Christmas ornament filled with bubble bath. (This one was funny, it was frozen rock solid when it arrived. The color changed as it thawed too.) Thank you again to my Secret Santa for the thoughtful gifts! (I will post a picture soon!)

Starting when I was in kindergarten, my mother got me ornament making kits from the craft store. (Mom said it was to keep me out of her hair from Thanksgiving through the holidays.) Every year I made a handmade ornament for my teacher(s) as well as for grandparents & godmother. (Usually sequined ornaments. The ones that take some time and work to do. And yes, little kids can do them just fine. Just have to remind them not to get lazy and not skip putting glue on the end of each pin! LOL.) I remember having several teachers tell me years later that they loved their ornament. It was one of those unusual handmade gifts -- something that they remembered

Shipped mine and mom's out too! Now for the anxious waiting for the mailperson to come. For anyone who has yet to ship anything...I have one word for you -- MEIJER!! The ones here in Michigan have postal substations. I went to the customer service desk at 7:30 am. (After getting a front row parking spot.) No wait. Was in and out in about 5 minutes. Post office will pick up the packages and put them on Santa's sleigh this afternoon. (Yay!)

Have faith Bopeep! It looks like a lot of familiar names on the list. We've got a good bunch of secret santa's here. Everything should work out soon!

This year it will be either the day before or the day of Thanksgiving --- while the food is cooking. Somehow I managed to get 3 nights off in a row at the hospital, so that's when it will all get done! Mom is happy about it too. (Normally she would have wanted it up around the 10th - 12th.) But the older she gets, the sooner she wants to get celebrating. (She says "I could be dead by then! I want to celebrate NOW!")

WHOO HOO! Got my name and mom's name! Let the shopping begin!!

Oh Pogiporkchop! I am so sorry. (been offline for a bit...just catching up now!) I will keep you and your family in my prayers. Please let us know if there is anything we can do. [[[[[[Pogiporkchop]]]]]

::doing my happy dance!:: Gotta tell someone! I just finished my 2016 Christmas shopping! Just the little stuff left....you know stocking stuffers etc. Yip-peee! HEY CHEF ELF!! When are we getting our 2016 Secret Santa names?!? I am ready to start while the sales are hot!

Illinoismom...we understand. Life happens...we just gotta roll with it don't we. I am so sorry to hear that your daughter is having struggles with epilepsy. It sounds like it's been a rough end of the year for all of you. But congrats to your daughter on finishing the semester on such a high note! It's a testament to her character and to her potential. I am sure that whatever this life throws at her, she will face it and continue to do well!

Ah.. It was YOU Raven 20_79! Now I know! Thank you again for your thoughtfulness! I can't wait to try the Louie's seasoning mix on a roast!

Big hugs and a thank you to Pogiporkchop! It's a lot of work and headache, I know, keeping track of all of us! Thank you for your time and dedication! I hope next year you will be able to add your name to the list!

Now it is my turn to thank my secret santa!! Yippee! My secret santa also did an excellent job! I asked for (and received) some local food goodies (from southern IL) that mom and I can't wait to try out! I received Country Bob's a;; purpose sauce and 2 packages of Louie's Italian Beef Seasoning. (Can be used in a slow cooker..yay!) Mom and I can't wait to try those! And Reese's peanut butter cups....yum! (And it's the 1 chocolate my mom won't eat. She is sick of peanut butter and won't touch it...heh heh heh.) And some hot chocolate mix....also safe from mom as she doesn't drink hot chocolate. And for my nerd-y side...a puzzle book. Yay! (Something else mom won't touch as she doesn't like to stretch her brain and do stuff that makes her think.) And 2 pens from the University of Carbondale for my puzzle book. (I guess I had better not make any mistakes.....) And the funny thing is ..... I know where Carbondale is! A good friend of mine from seminary is from there! And, finally, ::sigh:: slipper socks. Well....I did manage to get a picture of them before Mom claimed them for herself. (Mom: "These are mine. Afterall, I am the one who had (hip replacement) surgery!") Thanks again secret santa! You rock! Can't wait to hit the kitchen after the holidays!

Mom is still waiting as of this morning. (But that's OK because it gives her something to do!) Helper elves were required? and you didn't call me?? I have my frying pan and rolling pin ready! Shall I pull out the big guns and get the SPAM?!?

Sooooooooo..........What have you and hubby decided?

I suspect "shopping on Christmas" will be pretty much the same as "shopping on Thanksgiving". 10 years ago people would be horrified at the thought of "shopping on Thanksgiving" but open the stores and some will come, and then others will throw up their hands and say," well if you can't beat them...and I am not going to miss any deals". And then we all blame the stores, or "society" etc etc for not making us "keep the holiday" by staying closed. It all comes down to personal responsibility. The holiday will be what you make it. If you want it family centered, you have to make it family centered, if you want it religious you have to make it religious. Society will always go with the lowest common denominator when it comes to values and it will always follow the money. I watched an interview the other day, several young professionals discussing "Christmas". All agreed that it was a "secular" holiday that anyone can celebrate, it's religious significance is null. For them it is more about the good feelings, holiday activities (parties etc.), and gifts. I hate to be a pessimist, but I fear it is only a matter of a couple of years before brick & morter Wal-mart, K-Mart, Meijer et al. will announce Christmas Day hours.

LOLOL....I was wondering if mom"s secret santa was going to be one of the last one's shipped. Mom is now home from her hip replacement surgery. Still unhappy that she has to use her walker and not her rollater or her cane. She got nothing better to do but her rehab exercises and watch for the postal carrier. (We have seen all the Christmas specials at least 2x each. ) Not sure what she's going to find to do once the package arrives! ;D

a nice, heavy, (!) box in my mailbox locker! Oh boy, oh boy! Thank you to my secret santa! Going to wait until Mom's arrives and then we will open them together. I already know mom won't wait until Christmas! OUCH!!! Stop hitting me mom! (She doesn't like it when I post things about her online.) Mom's secret santa...you have my permission to mail mom's box late....REALLY late! ::ducking quickly out of mom's reach::

"Santa's other helpers" is also ready --- with ready to go!!! heh heh heh ::cackling manically::

Some of us are done shopping (per se) but waiting for those items to arrive on our doorstep so we can wrap and mail them out. (Would you believe Amazon is the one taking so long?? Everything else I ordered on Black Friday has arrived already!)

Song: There's a new kid in town Here's one from a song I just heard for the first time yesterday....funny!!! Lyrics: But I feel sick, 'Cause Senor Santa Claus you played on me a dirty trick

Welcome home Kanyon71! Where abouts are you at? I am in the Metro Detroit area. Maybe I'll come and check out your tasty dinner! Just Mom and me this year, with my dad having passed. And mom is going in for an emergency hip replacement this week so honestly -- no thanksgiving at my house this year (again). When mom is out of rehab and we are stuck at home for those first couple of weeks of recovery then I will cook the 15lb hen turkey that has been sitting in my freezer all year. (Yeah, I know 15 lbs for only 2 people! But in my defense, buying the whole darn bird was cheaper then just buying a turkey breast!!) The menu is simple for us. Turkey with sausage stuffing (grandma's recipe of course.) Those to die for crock pot loaded mashed potatoes Candied sweet potatoes (already made from locally grown sweet potatoes and in the freezer.) Canned whole cranberry sauce (because mom can't stand up to make her homemade cranberry sauce this year) One of those Marie Calendar Chocolate silk pies And time to break into the holiday liqueurs I made over the summer...raspberry, blackberry and cherry bounce. YUMMMMM! Eh! Who needs to eat!.....maybe we'll just jump straight to the after dinner liqueurs......

I'll be the first to admit that I am not from a blended family, so I may be missing some of the finer subtle points that coming with being a family together. I apologize for that in advance. #1 I agree with the basic sentiment of the group here. The older ones need to grow up. They are still in emotional competition with a 17 and 18 year old over who gets the most stuff?? Really? Time to grow up! and you and hubby are the ones that need to guide them into maturity. I applaud you for wanting to set some boundaries now so you can enjoy the holidays for years to come. Question. What does your husband think of what happened last year? What does he think would be a good solution? What ever you decide, you both need to be on the same page. #2 You never said how long you two have been married. Has this been a more recent marriage? That can make a difference. Honestly, I like your practice of just giving them money for Christmas. The older ones all get the same amount. They decide how to use it. Now you can focus on just being family and having fun together. You also did not mention how many of those 6 children are living at home with you. That can make a difference too. #3 My mom's side of the family is huge. When I was a kid growing up, we all knew that all the kids/grandkids -- anyone under 18/still in high school got the gifts. Past 18, you were an adult. The adult children got a monetary gift - to use as they chose. The adult grandkids drew names on thanksgiving and bought 1 gift for that cousin. There were just too many of us and as a family we valued being family together on Christmas. Competition over who got what would have killed us as a family. My suggestion would be for you and hubby to agree on a set amount for each adult child. And let them know in advance that each household (in case they are married or have a significant other.) will get the same amount because you love them all equally. For those that live under your roof...give them the option of that amount or buying gifts. (Let's face it. Even being a mature 24 and holding one check while a 17 and 18 year old are ripping open several packages ..well who wants to be left out of the fun?! Let them choose, with the understanding that you are only spending the given amount.) And with the 17 & 18 year old, do what you feel best. If you able to spend an extra $100 for something then do it guilt free because they are kids and they aren't expected to have the resources or full emotional maturity that someone in their 20's or 30's should have. I would also sit down with your husband and figure out what to do, small but equally, for grandchildren, before you get overwhelmed each year by sheer numbers (you do have 6 children you know.) Maybe a $25 savings bond for college each year per grandchild or something similar. (When you have 20+ grandchildren this will make sense.) If the older adult children still huff and puff about who got what this year...then maybe you and hubby should say "OK, New family, New tradition." Buy gifts only for the under the roof minors to open on Christmas morning. Spend the money you would have given to the ungrateful adult kids on a special meal together or maybe buy a block of tickets to see a holiday show together. These are your funds, not theirs. Use the funds to bring family togetherness and joy during the holidays. And hubby has to be the key here. His children didn't get their greedy attitudes from under your influence. So they will not think kindly upon you if you are seen as the one making changes and taking their money away. But if you want to help them learn to focus on being family together and not on who gets how much, then hubby has to step up and be leader in creating this new family centered tradition. Anyway...all IMHO. You and hubby do whatever you both think best and stick to it. Best wishes!

I am not impressed either. I also stock up on candy and stocking stuffer type stuff. Prices are not as good this year as the last few.

That's how it worked last year. I went back on black Friday and used $32 in rewards from Thursday to buy $32 of essential free chocolate for my choco-holic mother. But then again....Rite Aid...like so many stores, had one sale for Thursday and then a 3 day sale for the black Friday weekend last year. I'd read the small print...or ask a manager on Thanksgiving day to make sure you can use the reward points on Friday.

You can add me to your volunteer elf list too. Hopefully you won't need us but you never know..... Maybe the three of us should become Santa's "other helpers" instead....... ....and pay the slouchers a "visit"....if ya know what I mean.....: