Build Up

I LOVE the holiday season. I don't care that the Halloween clearance is immediately replaced with Christmas items. Bring it on. I loved themed party items, Christmas candy, silly Christmas socks, and you can pretty much count on finding Christmas music playing in my house from Thanksgiving on. We typically get our Christmas tree on Thanksgiving weekend so we can enjoy it all the way through the build up to Christmas. I am working my way through my Christmas shopping list, taking advantage of early bargains and getting immense satisfaction ticking things off my list.

On the flip side, however, as of the day after Christmas I am DUNN. I want the decorations gone, the presents put away and all that leftover bad-for-you food either eaten or tossed. One of the best gifts my husband ever gave me was the year Pacey was in the NICU. Christmas sort of sucked anyway because he wasn't home, and although we did our best it was a bit like just going through the motions. Anyhow, the day after Christmas I went to spend some time with him in the hospital and when I returned home a couple of hours later, Chris had completely undressed the tree, put away the ornaments and dragged the tree out of the house. It was awesome.

One of my pet peeves is seeing Christmas wreaths still hung up in February and March. I don't know why, but there were a significant number around our neighborhood last year and I was really tempted to go around Grinch-style and take them all down (I didn't).

Anyway, in the spirit of early-bird celebration, I wanted to share two websites that I have found useful in getting good deals. I really love the process of selecting gifts for people. Getting something for someone you know is exactly what they want is great, but there is also something to be said for knowing someone well enough to pick something that is completely unexpected and yet perfect.

Want Not is my go-to site for limited time online deals. She basically trolls the internet for hot deals each day and posts links to them with the relevant coupon codes if necessary. I have gotten some truly ridiculous deals this way, and she is great about explaining to how stack coupon codes to get the most out of various deals.

This Holiday Gift Guide is a great source for ideas - it's a list of 100 different gifts all under $25. There are ideas for all different types of people, so there is truly something for everyone. Check it out!

What about you? Do you revel in the Christmas carols in November or do you shop with earplugs until December 15th? Do you love Christmas shopping or hate it?