Holiday Season Is Fast Approaching, Know what your are doing yet?

[CelticRoz]

Is it too soon to discuss this?

I usually start Christmas shopping about now so I am in the mood!

I don't usually celebrate Halloween but I do love wearing my pumpkin T-shirt, setting out lighted pumpkins outside for the kids to come trick or treat and giving them candy bars. I love seeing all their costumes. I have a great time.

Thanksgiving, I am going to California to spend the four day weekend with my sister.

Christmas, my sister is coming here for 5 days to spend with me and then we will spend some of that time with hubby's family eating and gift exchanges.

What about you all?

[silverdragon]

I plan to spend the holidays cowering in a cave to recover from:

• Teaching summer school
• Taking an overload in the fall semester (i.e. 4 months of overtime)
• Taking a screenwriting class, and
• Setting up a business office.

My family can set up christmas tree, do cooking etc. I will provide Amazon.com gift certificates...

[Monarchs Own]

Well I hope that my parents are coming for a visit from Germany. But it's not yet confirmed. Otherwise I will spend christmas alone with my son and my animals. Which is also nice. Have the fire on in the fireplace and celebrate a traditional german christmas.

I think that is a pretty good time for me to also reflect on the year that passed.

[TheCarolinaScotsman]

Well, I'm scheduled to work. I expect when I get home I'll crash. Will probably get phone calls from the kids. I'll be off New Years weekend and go to my family reunion.

[oldraven]

Good heavens, Rose. This is the month that starts with 'Sept'.

We'll be here, our last Christmas in our first house, and in Edmonton. If my sister-in-law's brother gets a bigger house, we'll all be having Christmas day over there. If not, We're having it here again. And I'd love that.

We get a nice fire going in the fireplace, a huge spruce, that smells soooooo good, and top it off with a pot of scotch cider mulling on the stove. Last year we used Cider stock, 12yr Glenn, and pear apples. Oh, lots of cinnamon sticks.

Oh, Rose, look what you've done.

[scotelass]

I'm spending Christmas in Illinois where I am going to be moving to shortly....Can't wait for SNOW!!!!!!!!!!!! More info soon!

[Irish Stepper]

I'll be working through the entire Thanksgiving weekend, and my kids will be spending some time with Grandma since my husband is also working.

For Christmas, I'll be off from Christmas eve until New Years eve. I'll be working New Years Eve. It'll be nice to have a whole week off with my kids. Although, I'm sure I'll be more than ready to send their tails back to school come Jan. 3rd!

[CelticRoz]

Yes, OR! This is the month that starts to start thinking about the holidays, I am afraid! I have already started Christmas shopping. I like to get mine done as soon as possible because the longer you wait, the harder it is to find items.

Hubby is wanting me to cook a big turkey dinner for Thanksgiving and I may do that, especially if my sister is here to help me. I look so forward to her being here!

[Sekhmet]

Samhain (Halloween) will be spent playing Trick or Treat till you drop. Usually it's the parents who drop first. But we have a small gathering that night too, a nice dinner and all that goes with it.

My family starts Christmas shopping in July, don't feel bad! My husband invariably waits till Christmas eve and does a panicked run through the mall and I'm stuck wrapping gifts till the wee hours of the morning.

Thanksgiving will be spent at my grandmother's house with the family gathering there. Thanksgiving's still a little rough for me; my best friend died three days after it about four years ago and it just...has a lot of memories. ::sighs::

But in my family Christmas Eve is bigger than Christmas day. We have family going to various houses during the afternoon and evening, paying a visit, eating, socializing, then off to the next house.

New Year's is a big question mark yet.

[CelticRoz]

I forgot to mention that I usually make a Pumpkin pie on Halloween night while trick or treating the kids! Wow! smells so good and really gets you into the Holiday spirit! Yummy!

[Cailiosa]

My mom used to be done with Christmas shopping in July. Contrast that with my dad, who doesn't start until Christmas Eve . . .

Anyway, my parents are going to come see me at school over my fall break in October, which is exciting since they haven't come since my freshman year. It also means I don't have to drive seven hours to get home. This makes me very happy.
I'll be in Nashville at the Opryland hotel during Halloween for the fall retreat of the campus ministry I'm involved in.
Thanksgiving will most likely be at my parent's house, since we have the most room. It's usually a pretty big get-together since we now live in the same town as my mom's three sisters and their family and my grandpa and step-grandma live two hours away in Cincinatti.
We usually have the same situation for Christmas Eve for the afternoon meal and then we have a smaller celebration at night for just my immediate family. After that, we'll go to the 11:00 pm service at church.
New Years I'm not so sure about.

[freekenny]

O'siyo,
~ Hmmm, is it sinful to be talking about the Holidays so early?
~For Thanksgiving I always cook..I cook 2 Turkeys (13lbs each), 2 Hams (3-4lbs each), Filet Mignon and lots and lots of fixins' which include homemade egg noodles that I make, cut and hang to dry the night before I have several O'ginalli's that either have no family or can't make it to their family members homes so I always have 'open-house' for them~ My Thanksgiving begins in the early afternoon around 11am and lasts till the wee hours of the morn and I love every minute
~ Usually after Thanksgiving, for Christmas, I fly to Canada and spend tyme by myself in the city Niagra-on-the-Lake~ A charming and splendid city!
I spend a lot of tyme decorating! I just love to create 'themes' in each of the rooms in my home~ I will bake and bake and bake I don't give 'presents' so to speak instead I give baked goods~ I will give out candies, cakes, pies, cookies, breads, pumpkin rolls, etc. I put up 5 trees all decorated with a different 'theme'~
~I will donate 5-10 days out of the Holiday Season, Thanksgiving-Christmas, to volunteer down at the local church to feed the hungry~ I adopt at least 5 children off of the Angel Tree to buy presents for~ I adopt at least 7 kittens and puppies from the Animal Shelters and give them to people I know and know have been contemplating getting a pet
~ Most of all, I relax and spend my Holidays stress free!~ This is one time outta the year I refuse to get stressed~ If the presents are wrapped then fine, if they're not then put it in a paper bag with a bow and be done with it All the fixins gone already? Then make some instant potato's and mac&cheese and be thankful that our bellies are full
~~Sty-U

[oldraven]

Well, Thanksgiving was great, though not so monumentous as in the past. It was simply my brother's family, Ange and I, my sister Ivy, and Jo's (Jimmie's wife) sister with her two girls. Usually there are at least 18 people, compared to 11 this year. But the turkey was tender, the gravy was smoothe, the potatoes melted in your mouth, and the apple pie.......... well, what can you say about apple pie with marble cheese on top?

The best part was, since it wasn't our hosting, all we had to bring was a block of cheese and pickles. (Oh, and a bottle of Sauvignon Blanc and one Cabernet Sauvignon. You can't sit down to a good meal like that without a smoothe white and red.)



And I am THANKFUL.

[cori]

I am hoping for a visit from my cousin for Thanksgiving. Christmas is going to be a family time too. I love the traditions!