As my daughter said

I too think that enough time has been given for discussion and that we move forward.
Tony and I are in.
I also love the hippopotamus song!!!!!! It makes me smile!!!! I can remember singing it with Eric and Julie and laughing away.
Love you all and make it a GREAT day.
Chrissie

By the way we (the Helds and us) are working hard on the new salon and it is looking beautiful. With the help of the Strackeljahns this coming weekend we will be moving in all the equipment. Opening day is set for December 2. Keep your fingers crossed on that one. We will not have a Grand Opening until Jan or Feb. It does seem the neighborhood is anxious for us to be there. We've gotten calls, people stopping in and drivers slowing down as they pass to have a look. Eric Held took pictures this weekend, maybe Leslie can post them since I am not experienced in that.

Christmas Decision

Well, many people have weighed in on this, so props to us all for being communicative. I don't like unresolved issues though, so I'm calling for a decision. I really do want to start my shopping this week, and I need to know what all I'm looking for. So I, along with my parental units, believe we need to agree to something quickly. I'm saying this: You have the choice to opt-out of the gifts this year, if need be. At Thanksgiving we will redraw names with the people who are gift-giving. You can post in the comments whether you want to opt in/out, or if you want, you can email me, and I'll keep a running tally of who is in/out (friendofmusic@gmail.com). I'll be at Thanksgiving, so I can put the names of anyone who emailed me in the pot. This seems to be a good plan for everyone and is completely understandable.

If anyone has a problem with this, you can let me know; I have tough skin. I think everyone seems amenable to this arrangement, though. I hope it's Ok that I'm calling this decision now, but as I said, I really want to know what's happening so I can plan accordingly, and I bet others do as well. If there is a major backlash or something, I guess we can figure something else out; I just want it done quickly. I'm in, myself.

OK, I love you all!! Try not to stress! Christmas is supposed to be fun, yes? Have some chamomile tea and listen to a good song. :) I recommend that hippopotamus Christmas song; that song is hilarious.

Christmas thoughts

As the youngest (I think) on here, I feel my opinion should be heard on the matter of Christmas. And, since tensions seem to be running high, I know that I may get some flaming. 

First of all, if a person or family are feeling the economy squeeze, then I think they have a claim to back out. 

If people are opting out, we should prioritize who gets gifts. I think that the littlest kids (Ty through Mackenzie) and the young families should get the priority. 

Christmas

It's difficult to understand why exactly this is such a touchy subject. If someone says money is tight and times are tough, how would telling that person they should have budgeted better really fit in the Christmas spirit?

We've talked about this Christmas quite a bit and to be honest, times are tough for us, too, as our income is directly affected by the nation's economic situation. If we had extra in tough times, we'd most like to give to those who have literally nothing. I know people who have lost their jobs already and it is not something to scoff at.

We don't have much extra, and I can't help but agree with Leslie that whatever we can save as a family will be a necessity—not a luxury.

Unfortunately, this year we don't have much extra. We're paying the bills, saving for a home, and mostly getting all the stuff first-time parents need to get.

Personally, I think it'd be nice if putting a bit extra away for a future home or months without pay wasn't considered selfish and inconsiderate. It's not, and having kids really changes everything. If someone doesn't have a lot and wants to put what little they have into their family for a time, it's not a bad thing.

For some, Christmas can really add up: X for each extended family, X for each parent, X for siblings, X for kids, X for godchildren. Sheesh. Is it a horrible thing to say someone'd like to give a bit of that to their kids?

If someone not spending money on us meant more payed off on a credit card, more toward their own kids, or more saved, I say go ahead and spend it elsewhere.

Also, I don't think it's right to ever define the right amount for someone else to give.

Ok, so I'm going to throw my thoughts out here, a little late I know, but here it goes....oh and this will ramble and this is like Leslie not just for me but in mind of others....I would agree money is tight. However, I am still torn on this issue. As for budgeting for Christmas...well we had to budget for the big Branson trip, then for an impromptu trip to AR to TN and back in a not very gas friendly truck pulling a U-haul (though we really appreciated being able to use it!) Various car parts and sewer problems have swarmed us with unexpected charges, we are trying our best to insulate the house as much as possible for winter to help with our ridiculous CIPS bills, I made another trip to TN, we are currently budgeting for another TN trip at the end of the month complete with a ridiculous dog hotel bill, there was an emergency vet trip, there will be another trip to TN in December complete with a week of unpaid shutdown for Rocky. And all this on top of the far too many monthly bills we seem to have accumulated. Now I'm not saying this to make anyone feel bad for us or say we are without any money at all, but I'm just being upfront and honest about a good example of how things can be. Budgeting can't always fit it all in when there is not a large enough sum to work with! I would agree that at least a $20 limit would help. That can still add up quickly for families however. And I know there may be some in the family who are having a very rough time right now but don't want to speak up and come forward for whatever their reason may be, maybe I am wrong, I'm not trying to speak for anyone. This is a very sensitive subject I know. Part of me says to buy a gift for everyone I always have before. Part of me looks at the numbers and the other things pulling for pieces of the budget and think, wow, this is really hard. I truly enjoy Christmas and I LOVE giving gifts, more than receiving believe it or not. Actually, there is no material gift that I can think of that I really need this year and I would like to say if it would help someone in our family not to spend even just $20 on me than please don't! I like Leslie's saying about going into 2009 with less debt, to me that is the greatest gift of all at this point in my life! BUT I also see the other side of people who can afford it easily, whether it be because things are just going well for them or they just mananged to save money here and there to prepare for it, wanting to buy gifts for their loved ones. And I see the point that some have begun shopping already so it's somewhat late. But I'll let you in on a secret, and I'm sure I'm not the only one (or maybe I am, who knows!)...I have not bought one single gift yet. So now is the time when I'm preparing to start (honestly not for another month still though) as I'm running out of time and now is the time that it's hitting me what all I need money for and what all I have to put towards those things, as I stated earlier, it's not a lack of budgeting, it's that I could not budget for everything at once. And I will also let you know, writing this is even hard. I want to voice my personal experience on behalf of myself but also for others that may be struggling even more, because I know with us at least it's just Rocky and I and it's hard enough and we haven't even added any child factors in, but on the other hand I feel guilty even talking about not buying gifts. So I have stated at least some of my rambling thoughts but don't really have a clear answer. But I will say we will find a way to go with whatever decision is made.

Christmas Plan

Since we already have drawn names for the holiday here's my proposal: Leave the drawn names as they are for this year with a Max spend limit of $20. The Godchildren/Godparent gifting should be for those that have Godchildren below the age of 21 (unless you choose to give a gift to your godchild/godparent, but not at the family present exchange. Thoughts. Remember shopping is starting and we really need to decide this like today...

Well, it's a bit late in the year to try to rearrange how things are organized for Christmas at least in 2008 - that said, I agree that godchildren/parents being cut at 21 makes sense, and if anyone just can't afford to get a gift for someone I think everyone would understand - there shouldn't be feelings of guilt about gifts, recieving or giving.