I just finished Hundred Dollar Holiday: the case for a more joyful Christmas by Bill McKibben. What a great book! Kirk and I are constantly looking for ways to make life better while also staying within our means. We probably aren't going to get down to $100, but it gave us ideas for buying happier and better for the world. This has been a long time struggle of mine - to make life simpler, less expensive, and less wasteful while still making life good. I don't want to be cheap or selfish. I want to live my values AND have fun. McKibben has some great ideas for achieving this, talking about how all that commercialism really gets in the way of having a great Christmas.
We're celebrating Christmas with Kirk's family this year. These people have it together. For one thing, the main feature is the meal. Everyone likes to cook and everyone likes to eat so there is always new recipes and great food. The gift exchange is almost a side show after the meal. They also draw names among the adults so that really cuts down on spending. They also like playing games, are actually quite competitive about it.
We picked up some gifts today at our annual church fundraiser. Along with the wonderful German Mennonite meal, they also sell crafts from Ten Thousand Villages and Equal Exchange coffee, tea, and chocolate. I love this stuff. This is the one time of year that we let ourselves go a little crazy with the checkbook. I can't give away details because some of my recipients read this blog!
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