T’was the night before Christmas when all the last minute shoppers were in a panic. The traffic was congested. The stores had sold out of the most desired items. Still a peaceful look back to well over a century ago brought a us a poem.

Now is the time to put away those plastic debit cards. Now is the time forget running to Target for one more item. Now is the time to enjoy what is really important in life.

Every time I read Twas the Night Before Christmas I get carried back to a much simpler time. This poem takes us back to a much simpler time. A time where Christmas shopping is over. Children are waiting in their beds for Christmas morning and the opening of presents.

My Christmas present to all of you on this night before Christmas is the poem below. May all of you and your have a very blessed and merry Christmas.

‘Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house

Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;

The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,

In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there;

The children were nestled all snug in their beds,

While visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads;

And mamma in her ‘kerchief, and I in my cap,

Had just settled down for a long winter’s nap,

When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,

I sprang from the bed to see what was the matter.

Away to the window I flew like a flash,

Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash.

The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow

Gave the lustre of mid-day to objects below,

When, what to my wondering eyes should appear,

But a miniature sleigh, and eight tiny reindeer,

With a little old driver, so lively and quick,

I knew in a moment it must be St. Nick.

More rapid than eagles his coursers they came,

And he whistled, and shouted, and called them by name;

“Now, Dasher! now, Dancer! now, Prancer and Vixen!

On, Comet! on Cupid! on, Donder and Blitzen!

To the top of the porch! to the top of the wall!

Now dash away! dash away! dash away all!”

As dry leaves that before the wild hurricane fly,

When they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky,

So up to the house-top the coursers they flew,

With the sleigh full of toys, and St. Nicholas too.

And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof

The prancing and pawing of each little hoof.

As I drew in my head, and was turning around,

Down the chimney St. Nicholas came with a bound.

He was dressed all in fur, from his head to his foot,

And his clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot;

A bundle of toys he had flung on his back,

And he looked like a peddler just opening his pack.

His eyes — how they twinkled! his dimples how merry!

His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry!

His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow,

And the beard of his chin was as white as the snow;

The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth,

And the smoke it encircled his head like a wreath;

He had a broad face and a little round belly,

That shook, when he laughed like a bowlful of jelly.

He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf,

And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself;

A wink of his eye and a twist of his head,

Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread;

He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work,

And filled all the stockings; then turned with a jerk,

And laying his finger aside of his nose,

And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose;

He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle,

And away they all flew like the down of a thistle.

But I heard him exclaim, ere he drove out of sight,

“Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good-night.”

The sad part of the Christmas season is the undue pressure we put on ourselves. When we go out Christmas shopping we try to get a Christmas present proportionality to our feelings for that person. It is much better to step back and look at what we can afford. Then look for that little thing which will make the biggest impact.

Well, it is not just at Christmas time. It holds for any other time of the year. We get in this mind set toward our love, our friendship, our caring must be measured by the size of gift we give. That is why, especially at this time of the year, we go into debt finding the perfect gift. That is why people rush around all crazy just to get all the gifts they need to give.

One of the big attractions I love about where I live is how polite the drivers are. That is not true when it comes closer to Christmas. The individuals driving their various vehicles get more and more aggressive as it gets closer to Christmas Day. 

We are only just a few days away from Christmas Day. Christmas Day is the where we celebrate the birth of the Christ. The savior of the world. As part of Christmas we are taught from a very young age that, “it is more blessed to give than receive”.

Through out the year we shop for ourselves, food, clothing, shelter, except for birthday, and anniversaries. During the Christmas season we get caught up in buying gift sets, iPhones, diamond necklaces, or various items for a loved ones.

All to often we feel there is this obligation to buy and give. For some people it is more than duty, it is an enslavement. Fighting crowds, buying, hoping the person we are buying for will not get the same thing from some one else.

The writer Mark Twain loved Christmas, but he hated the shopping. He would describe Christmas shopping as bringing, ” harassment and dread to many excellent people”. Mr Twain saw the result of all that Christmas shopping as, “weeks of hard and anxious work, and when Christmas morning comes they are so dissatisfied with the result, and so disappointed that they want to sit down and cry.”

Christmas time means a lot of food and a lot of parties. There will be people having parties at work, at clubs, around the neighborhood, and along with the usual family gatherings. One of the main attractions to a party is the food and drink. Without food, drink and the right Christmas music, some people will show up. Others will just walk in the door, say Merry Christmas and leave. It is human nature.

The easy way to serve food at a party is just sitting it on a table in a tray. A good variety of food on party trays can please a multitude of likes and dislikes. A good party tray will have a variety of fruits, vegetables and meats. Hopefully not all on the same tray.

One of the most successful party trays I have found has been bread with spinach dip. It can be bought at Winco  for $4.95. I can make the same one for just under $3.00. Besides saving money, people are impressed with making some over running out and grabbing some pre-made.

Growing up one of my fondest memories of Christmas was getting presents in the mail. They came from relatives who lived across the United States. Aunts and uncles in Arkansas would send boxes of mixed nuts. They had a farm where they grew nuts. Other relatives in Los Angels  would send a box of candy. We could count on grandma to send winter gloves, or a hats to keep us warm.

At the beginning of December dad would come home with boxes of towel sets, and other box gift sets. Then he would pull out all those brown paper bags from the grocery store. He had been saving all year. Each gift set was wrapped in brown paper and tied with course brown string. The labels were carefully hand written before being stuck on the package.

We are getting close to Christmas. If you have not shipped off your Christmas presents, you had better get them wrapped, and down to the shippers office. Regardless as to what UPS, USPS, or FEDEX tells you. This is their busiest time of the year. Mail it to it may not get there.

So in this post I would like us to look at all your shipping options.

Grouponicus and Gobblepalooza are some of the fancy names we are seeing to describe the after Thanksgiving Black Friday Day sales. For about a week now I have been getting emails from Amazon.com and others announcing Black Friday/Cyber Monday sales. Some stores have jumped the gun and have already started their sales.

At one time Black Friday was the starter pistol firing, to signal the start of the Christmas shopping season. Last year we saw some stores, like Sears, who normally don’t open extra as early on Black Friday, open earlier. This year we are seeing a lot of stores having pre-Black Friday sales. Only a small number of store are not waiting for November 25th to launch their Black Friday/Cyber Monday sales.

I have read that Kmart and Wal Mart will be open of Thanksgiving Day. This is almost enough to make me stop shopping with them. Thanksgiving has always been set aside for family gathering and watching TV. In our fast pace disjointed world, Thanksgiving has become one of the few times families can come together and reconnect. Now those who have to work on Thanksgiving Day will have a harder time to connect with family members.

We are less than two months away from Christmas Day. The holiday shopping seasons officially starts in less than three weeks, with Black Friday. Already we are starting to see hints about Christmas shopping, and where the best deals will be at.

Commercials from Wal Mart stating the best deals will only be from them. Kmart has ran some commercials about how we need to use their Lay-A-Way plan as part of our Christmas shopping. Many other stores have already started displaying Christmas decorations.

Websites like TheBlackFriday.com have been posting what items are being sold and for how much. Then retailers like Target are wanting you to create an online account to see their Black Friday deals. Even the online retailers like Amazon.com are offering special deals from Black Friday thru Cyber Monday.

This is one of  those Halloween Day where we get to celebrated for the whole weekend plus one day more. On Friday many schools had their Halloween or “Harvest” Day celebration. Some Trick or Treaters were out gathering treats on Friday evening, instead of Monday October 31st is the official Halloween day.

Many community organizations and church groups will have their Halloween or Harvest party either Friday, or Saturday or Sunday evening. Still a few of the more traditionalist will have it on Monday. Many people I have talked with have told me a weekend evening is better on parents, and children over having the activity on a school night.

Over the past several years we have gotten away from giving out homemade treats, because of a sick few individual who have spoil a great time for everyone else. It is a sad commentary on our society where caramel dipped apples and home homemade cookies can not be accepted from our neighbors, for fear of them being laced with something what would harm our children. We have had to turn to only allowing our children to accept factory sealed bagged candy.

Traveling anytime between Thanksgiving and Christmas and even through New Year Day can be a double sided coin. It is great time reconnect with family members. On the other hand holiday travel can be worst than exploring the Brazilian rain forest with a three legged mule.

Statistics show more people travel in the time period around Thanksgiving and Christmas. Do you remember seeing on TV, every year during this time of year all those people sleeping in airport terminals? What about delayed or cancelled planes, trains, buses, and cars? Most all of those problems were caused by weather. In the United States some of the busiest travel time is while we are having some of the harshest weather of the entire year.

Traveling during these holidays is not always grim and bleak. If you must travel you may be able to side step a lot of the horrors of holiday travel and save a little money in the process. All you have to do is a few simple things.

Halloween is still a couple of weeks away. We have over six weeks until Thanksgiving. Why am I writing about Christmas? It is bad enough for store to put out their stuff earlier and earlier each year. The traditionalist don’t want to see any Christmas decoration in stores until the day after Thanksgiving.

I am part of those traditionalist who don’t want to see Christmas ads until after Thanksgiving Day. However, I am planning and maybe some Christmas well before the holiday season. This makes it easier to give what you want when you want it.

I remember some of the best Christmas gifts that our family was given when growing up. We looked forward to those boxes of mixed nuts, canned jams and jellies. They were canned the old fashion way in Mason jar at the end of summer. Breads and cakes were other treats that made the holidays even more special.

As time passed we all got busier. There was less time to make fruit cakes, knitted caps. Christmas gifts went from the homemade artsy crafty to store bought.