I don't have much in the way of dispensable income. I don't want to give plasticrap gifts that will be thrown away in 6 months. I had a list of more than 25 people to give to. I couldn't sell out on Christmas altogether, primarily because I love giving. This year, my solution was to make the gifts. All of them.
My husband and I took turns making fudge and cookies and breads. I put together some tunes from our CDs or borrowed ones from the library, and he made a personalized CD insert, which we then distributed to the adorable young kids on our list ... including my niece and nephew, children of my sister-in-law, the one who doesn't send a thank-you card unless the item she received was on her list (she didn't send one this year, obviously).
In the end, it was a lot of work. We spent hours baking. I worried family and friends would think our gesture lame, not enough, cheap. Or maybe they'd be allergic to nuts. We might not have even saved that much money, since the ingredients were plenty and organic and mostly local. But it was a labor of love, and the warmth from the oven filled the house, my daughter saw us give our time to those we loved, I learned how to make fudge for the first time in my life. Despite the work and time it took, it was probably the least stressful holiday season I have had.
Posts
7 comments:
It was a wonderful and sweet gift from you guys. I loved it, too much on fact, I ate nearly every bite of fudge myself. I think you should have included the fudge recipe in this post. You and he and little she rock. You are caring and giving people and do kind things straight from your heart. It is sad that so many people are so shallow and materialistic. I want to believe that people give what they can when they can and that evolves through life, not only what you give but to whom. Don't think twice about your creative generosity, we love this about you. Thank God you are not out there charging a bunch of crap for everybody just to please greedy people. That is also not what Christmas is about. That has gotten lost over time and is something that we should all be returning to.
It sounds like a lovely time. We gave mostly homemade gifts this year as well. Cookies in a jar to the nieces and nephews and home canned preserves for my siblings and a few close friends. I truly think that (for most people) the thoughtfulness and the gift of time are more valuable than the plasticrap that we so often get.
Judy
It sounds wonderful! You at least got the gift and I bet more people appreciated it than you think.
I think it's awesome that you guys put so much time and thought into your gifts.
It sounds like a huge success to me! I've never made fudge, but I remember my Mom struggling with it when I was a kid. Glad you saved on stress at least.
To me, those are the best gifts to get. I flat don't have time to do that kind of baking, but I do always give foods - wine/beer, chocolate, local jams and honey, that sort of thing. I know people will actually use them and they don't just add to the clutte rof the world.
That sounds like a wonderful thing to do, a perfect solution to the problem of scarce funds.
I prefer homemade things anyway, and your family really ought to be understanding of your situation.
It's so petulant to demand gifts and then be offended if they're not given to you.
You did the right thing.
Post a Comment