<p>did you guys get your kids anything great for christmas? i bought myself a new car for christmas (haha). i also bought my mom a digital camera (split it with my sister), my dad a video game, and a bunch of other stuff for my family and friends.. definately was an expensive christmas for me :) i got an SLR camera, a leather jacket, and a wireless mouse so far for christmas (oh how i love early presents).. i don't know what i'll actually get on christmas... probably nothing ;)</p>
<p>Fendergirl, for some, paying college tuition doesn't leave a lot of room for lavish presents. The love is there regardless, and the happiness of being together with people who just enjoy hanging out together--friends and family.</p>
<p>Fendergirl, we do not celebrate Christmas. We celebrate Hanukah which is nothing like Christmas and we are not inundated with lots of gift spending. Only the children get gifts, nobody else. It is not overly excessive either. </p>
<p>Frankly, my college freshman daughter got kinda "part" of a gift. She is a ski racer and last year had gotten all new equipment (must have at least two pairs of racing skis) which is costly and the intent was that she would use all her equipment again this year at college. When she got to college, she found out that the NCAA rules stated that one of her pair of skis, her slaloms, are five CM too long (that's right 5 centimeters!) and she did not want it to cause any problems and thus this meant an UNEXPECTED expense that we were not prepared to pay, on top of numerous other associated expenses, plus college stuff. She had to get another new pair of slalom racing skis. They cost $550 and we are giving her $200 as a Hanukah gift to pay for what I guess is "almost" one ski. We tried to sell her skis which are in excellent shape and just did for $180 (a steal but that girl is happy and my D is happy that someone like her got them) and so my D must make up the difference now with her own earnings. She got money from grandparents for the holiday and bought herself a new ski helmet as she has had the same one since seventh grade. So, that's it. We (parents) do not get gifts, nor do we give to anyone but our two children, and nieces/nephews, which is pretty much the way it is with Hanukah. Definitely not as commercial and we are not in a buying frenzy right now as many are.</p>
<p>Susan</p>
<p>Patient,</p>
<p>I am with you. We got the winter term tution bill Thanksgiving week. It is paid and we will give book money. So there will be no lavish presents at our house because she got her gift already.</p>
<p>But seriously, I raised my child that christmas was not about getting a a "whole lot of stuff" so we never had christmas with a lot of presents (basically she got one item within reason that she really wanted) , but more of an emphasis of the reason for the season. I also found it contrary to the season that one would take on massive amounts of debt getting stuff when the greatest gift was given freely. We also look at it as a time to reflect on all of the blessings that we have been given through out the year and thoughts about what could you do better in the new year.</p>
<p>My youngest can't think of anything he wants, so I'll find him something to unwrap. Unfortunately for him it will probably be clothes, as he has grown a lot recently, and maybe a new bike (again the growing issue). Older son (college freshman) said he wants tuition for next semester and a plane ticket back to Boston.</p>
<p>Since they got past the Lego and sports video games phases, they haven't really wanted much. With mine it's mostly computer stuff. We've never spent a lot on presents.</p>
<p>Tracking my son right now: Plane approaching LAX. Only two more flights and then he is home. Not that I am anxious or anything.</p>
<p>Concerneddad, this reminds me of the weather forecaster tracking Santa on radar Christmas Eve. Four more days for me. It is hard to wait.</p>
<p>Concerneddad and over30: best wishes for a joyous reunion! I've been through that flight tracking and it is so exciting! And seeing them emerge from the airport (oh, for the days of meeting people at the gate) is so wonderful.</p>
<p>Sybbie...I am in complete agreement. My mother, who was Dutch, detested the American way of celebrating Christmas--the too-early decorations, the materialism, etc.--and never failed to remind us that in other countries, Christmas is a quiet, family time. Of course, in Holland, there is St. Nicholas Day on December 6th which is a funny, happy celebratory time where St. Nicholas arrives with great to-do via boat, and presents are wrapped in such things as sausages and presented with funny poems, etc. For a while I tried to follow suit at our house. We still celebrate it a little, with the chocolate and little things stuffed in the wooden shoes. Someday, perhaps, it would be fun to see the real thing in Holland!</p>
<p>In our house we track "Hanukah Harry" LOL</p>
<p>ConcernedDad:
"Not that I'm concerned or anything."</p>
<p>Riiiiiiight.</p>
<p>(but try telling that to D or S. I'm sure we <em>all</em> get the eye<em>rolling, Jeez</em>Dad/Mom<em>I'm</em>not<em>a</em>CHILD<em>any</em>more routine, complete with threats to move out of the house permanently if we don't stop this nonsense...)</p>
<p>Sigh. But they still look so innocent & peaceful when they're asleep.</p>
<p>not even when they are asleep anymore I am afraid, optimierdad. Sometimes "innocent and peaceful" is "guilty and passed out," if the stories of college life I am hearing are true.</p>
<p>concerneddad - LOL - you gave me a needed laugh!
S is still in HS, but has been known to fall asleep in front of the PS2 and sleep all night with his glasses on!!</p>
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<p>I came home this weekend to visit - and to my suprise I seem to have lost my parking spot!</p>
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<p>8v) ... when I came home from college the first time I was surprised to find my bedroom was gone ... it had turned into the new study ... my parents had also bought a new car ... somehow it felt like they couldn't wait for me (the youngest) to scram!</p>
<p>D comes home to Anchorage Sat am from Boston. She'll be here 3 weeks.I am certain she'll be bored out of her mind after a week. I have been decorating and baking. Will dust her room and change her sheets(not changed since she left in Aug) on Fri, put flowers in her room (she has a beautiful blown glass vase she bought with her own money many years ago), you would think I was expecting a house guest.......She wants to be fed all of her favorite foods. I have bets with husband when the first fight over the shared bathroom happens, D2 has been happy to not share.
Christmas/Hanukkah/Birthday (her birthday is Dec16) is a "heritage bear" that my good friend made from my parents, (now gone), old linen napkins, my Dad's shirt and his baby quilt. I wanted my girls to have something from my parents with them that they could take with them always. Something that will remind them of family history, , a grounding. Our daughters are starting their lives away from us, it is our hope that as our girls create their own traditions they stay in touch with their spirit.We have been blessed with the past and embrace the adventure of future.
I can't wait to get my arms around her!!!!</p>
<p>I will meet our daughter's plane on Saturday. Wellesley is out the entire month of January, so this will be a long break. Her Mom will be out of town this weekend visiting our son and his new wife in Washington,DC. We have purchased and will have in place a huge "Welcome Home (name)!" sign that will be hanging above the garage door when she arrives. We are looking forward to an afternoon of daughter and Dad rebonding (much to the disappointment of a male friend of hers) where we will go to lunch and take in a movie (Alexander) that her Mom won't see with me ("too much blood and guts!").
Our church Minister of Music has asked daughter to play her flute for the candlelite Christmas Eve service, an event that we all really love. The house is decorated and ready, and we are so looking forward to having her back in the "nest", if only for a little while.</p>
<p>Talk about concerned - my S is driving by himself from LA a 7-8 hr cartrip. He is very nonchalant about the whole thing-got a book on tape, says he'll stop for coffee if he gets tired. I'll be a wreck until he gets here!</p>
<p>" I know they like to recharge their emotional and sleep batteries by hanging out with sibs, sleeping in their own bed. . ."</p>
<p>OOPS--we gave her room to her sister already!</p>
<p>Crabbylady--what a lovely post and homecoming. My mom used to do such things for me, too, and I guess I never realized that our parents got excited about our returns too (and then were probably glad to wave goodbye, too :) ). I put a small lighted Christmas tree in my son's room to welcome him home too, with a special ornament on it from his college (for cognoscenti, it is a glass Hoover Tower with "Beat Cal" in tiny letters on it!). And it is very clean and orderly, with me having had 2 1/2 months to work on it in peace :). Beautiful, in fact, and much happier now that he and all his stuff are in it!</p>
<p>Arizonamom: hope all goes well. I have the challenge of figuring out what to do about a car for son on the East Coast this summer, as he will need one because there is no public transportation to speak of in the area he will be (a rural one). I would let him drive across with a friend, but not alone (although for the distance your son is traveling, I am sure he will be just fine)....Looks like I may have a long drive in my future.....</p>
<p>Sounds like everyone is anxiously awaiting the BIG arrival. D will be flying into LAX at 7 pm on Friday evening. We will head straight to In N Out Burger! ;) Besides the holiday celebration, we have a couple of food fests lined up. Xmas Day will be an all day party watching the Kobe/Shaq game. And, just online with family friends...we're meeting at El Tepeyac---REAL mexcian food---on the 9th for lunch. God knows what else in between...she's here until at least the 15th of Jan!!! :)</p>
<p>My daughter won't be coming home until December 24th. Christmas Day at home, hang out, visit her friends then back to NYC January 10th as she starts an internship with a costume designer before classes actually begin. I'm counting the days until she's home:)</p>