Hosmerville

So Tom and I made an executive decision to do Christmas presents a little differently this year. (The kids' protests were quickly overruled.) In years past we have always set a specific spending limit for each person on our list and when the money was gone we were done shopping. Every year the $100 we designate for each of the kids never seems like quite enough until we put all of the presents together under the tree and then it's almost too much. Add to that the wealth of goodies they receive from the grandparents and it all gets to be a little overwhelming. So this year we are limiting the number of presents we're buying. For example, each of the kids will receive one "big" or main present, some books, a DVD, stocking stuffers, and their Christmas Eve pj's from the elves.

I thought that once the ads started coming out and we ventured into the stores it would be really hard not to overspend but so far so good. In fact, it has become a rather fun challenge to look thru the ads and plan out how our money can be best spent. I figure the kids can't read yet so it's safe to give a sneak peek into Santa's workshop. Shhh! Don't tell, it's a secret;) Here in Hosmerville the elves have been busy scoring:

* a deluxe jawbones set for Austin and a fashion friends set for Audrey from Discovery Toys, and a bitty baby outfit and a bitty piggy for Lexi as their "big" presents.

* pajama pants from a sale last January for Audrey and a nightgown for Lexi.

*books for all of the kids thru Austin's latest Scholastic book order. (I also plan to pick up the Curious George hardcover books available at Kohl's right now.)

*Shrek 1, 2, & 3 ~one for each of the kids (all on sale at Target this week).

*some miscellaneous stocking stuffers from the Target dollar spot.

So pretty much at this point aside from getting Austin some pajamas and picking up some more little stocking stuffers we've got most of the Christmas shopping already done. That was surprisingly quick and easy, now if only wrapping them was, too.