Gift Giving

As we all know Christmas is right around the corner. Just a couple days away from Thanksgiving, and once that's over it's full swing into the holiday season. There's only 31 days left until Christmas! I've seemed to get a good jump start on getting things for the kids so I'm feeling good about that. I really want to be ahead of the game and not be wrapping presents a couple days before Christmas. Keep your fingers crossed for me! Greg and I don't really exchange Christmas presents. We haven't for a few years now. There's always things that come up during the year that we need to spend money on so we just bypass the gifts at Christmas. One year I surprised him with a couple small things that were from the kids, but as far as anything from me those days are over for right now. We've got children to support. Once we had kids it was more about them than us anyway. As a parent, I feel that Christmas gift giving should be more for your children/grandchildren.

Another reason especially this year we're not exchanging gifts is we're planning a trip out west. My cousin Matt in Arizona is getting married in June so we'll be heading out there for the wedding. Greg is going to be the photographer for the wedding and we feel very honored that they asked him. We'll be driving (yes with two kids, I know) so we're going to try to make it into our first big family trip and try to do some sightseeing along the way and back. So needless to say we're trying to save money for our trip.

While it would be nice to get Christmas presents from my hubby, since I do have a "wish list," I know I have a great trip to look forward to next summer. For those of you who do exchange gifts with your spouse, significant other, or whomever is on your gift buying list, here are some things from my "wish list" that you may think are good ideas for someone on your list if you're stumped on what to buy. Here's my top 10.

Item #1- new phones. Our phone isn't that old, but for some reason the caller id doesn't work on it anymore. I hate it! So usually I try to remember to bring the phone from our bedroom down so if someone calls I can see the caller id. That phone though is about seven years old and the battery dies quickly once it's off the charger, and the keys stick so you really can't use it to dial. So while it would be nice to have a couple new phones, we can put up with these a little bit longer.
Item #2- Flip video camcorder - If you click on that link it takes you to Flip camcorders listed on Target.com. There's a lot of different kinds, and I'm not a know it all on cameras of any kind, but Greg would know which one is a good one. Our much bigger video camcorder stopped working about two years ago so we don't have a video camera to take videos of the kids besides the one on my regular camera which isn't the greatest.
Item #3- new set of knives. We got a nice knife set when we got married. They're J.A. Henckels knives and are supposed to be good knives. They just don't seem to be living up to that though after eight years. A handle broke on one, we lost a steak knife somewhere along the way, and it really doesn't have what I call a good everyday cutting knife. I would really like this cutlery set. Martha Stewart 20 piece cutlery set. My dad has them and they seem like pretty nice knives. They're regularly $149.99 at Macy's, but right now they're on sale for $88.99 which is a pretty good price.
Item #4- Pink's newest album. Funhouse. While the first couple items are a little pricey, I also wouldn't mind the Pink CD. The kids and I both love some of her songs. Emmaline even knows when "Funhouse" comes on the radio it's Pink. She'll say Pink, Pink, Pink! It's so cute.
Item #5- A new camera. My camera isn't all that old, but it's slow at snapping the picture at times. I've missed some good shots because of it. I don't need a fancy camera. I have an Olympus point and shoot camera right now and I tend to stick to that brand since my memory cards are Olympus. So I recommend that brand for someone on your list in need of a camera.
Item #6- Gift Cards- Who doesn't love gift cards? Whether they're to a restaurant, stores, iTunes, or the movies, I think gift cards are a great gift. You can get what you want, when you want. Great item for that hard to buy shopper on your Christmas list.
Item #7- Sheets. We could use some new king size sheets for our bed. We only have two sets and the one set is pretty faded and not the best quality so some nice soft sheets would be nice.
Item #8- Cash. Who doesn't like cold hard cash. While it's similar to gift cards in you can buy what you want, with cash you're not limited to a certain store.

The last two items on my list are my dream items and probably aren't for anyone on your shopping list, but I thought they'd be fun to share. Hey I can dream right?
Item #9- A new couch. I'd love to have a new leather couch and put our old couch downstairs.
Item#10- Diamond earrings. What girl doesn't like a nice pair of diamond earrings. Enough said!

While some of my items are a little pricey, they're not as much as what Greg wants. He'd like a new mountain bike or bike parts to make his old bike lighter. Also a new camera for him would be nice. Since none of these items are in the budget right now, we'll just enjoy buying the smaller things for the kids and see the joy on their faces Christmas morning! Good luck with all your holiday shopping!