Fighting Back

It's kind of funny how every year we see the holiday commercials creeping up earlier and earlier and this year they were being played about a week before halloween. I also noticed that a couple of stores had their Christmas decorations stored on the shelf above their halloween decorations this year.

For the past three years or so, I have been a decided curmudgeon. When my kids were little, we did the mall santa route and baked cookies and went to holiday concerts but either I am getting older and far more bitchier (always a possibility) or the holiday marketing has just gotten out of control.

I try to be a good non-materialistic Buddhist. I do not celebrate the religious aspect of the holiday. And over the past few years, I have done my best to dig in my heels and "uncelebrate Christmas". My kids have been raised to not be materialistic and very rarely ask for holiday presents. Many times when I ask what they want, they'll just shrug. This is perhaps the greatest gift any parent could ever get. Indifference to rampent consumerism.

So as the kids got older and stopped believing in the santa crap, I fought back against the marketing by gradually stopping my holiday traditions. Two years ago, my kids and husband were out of town at his relatives for Christmas. Since I had to work, I got to stay home alone and didn't raise a single finger for the holidays. Last year, my daughter put the top portion of our artificial tree in a tree stand and we displayed it on our coffee table. Among the four of us, we drew names and each made a gift for our recipient. It was really cool! My son even knit a pair of socks for my daughter.

So, here it comes again. For the first time, my husband has actually said that he will be in charge of getting actual presents this year if I will do the stockings. Hey, after getting 200 stockings stuffed for Charitable Crafters, I am the stocking QUEEN.

So, I am putting together two stockings for my kids this year. I'm sure my daughter will do the mini tree. And I'm sure the rest of the holiday that is already being stuffed down my throat can go to hell.

Happy Holidays!