Do you put up a tree? Decorate? Start shopping in July or wait till the last minute? Like shopping the day after Thanksgiving?

Here's what we're doing this year....first year we've done this and I am so excited! Actually, my son Kevin suggested it and we all agreed it would be fun.....

Instead of buying gifts for each other we are going to sponsor an elderly person or couple. We get the info from a place called The Quinn House. It's been a fixture in Lawrenceville for years and years. They sponsor families with children, too, but the elderly people often go without because people want to help the kids. So, we decided to sponsor an elderly person or couple.

The Quinn House provides shelter and food for people in transition (evicted or just needing a place to go) but they require church attendance and a job (they will help find one).They also have a food bank and a clothing store (clothes are free is you cannot afford them).

We've already started purchasing items (blankets, books, toiletries, sweaters, slippers, etc.). We just buy one or two items at a time so the financial impact isn't so great at any one time.

None of us "needs" anything and it just seems pointless to buy things just for the sake of buying them when there's people who need just the necessities that we often take for granted.

I'm so excited to be doing this! Can't wait to wrap everything and deliver to the facility.....we won't actually get to give it to the recipients (they pick it up or a family member picks it up and takes it to them) but that's okay. Just knowing that there will be someone getting things that they need on Christmas Day is such an awesome feeling.

We plan on having a big dinner and then watching movies together on Christmas Day.

We put up a tree and do a modest amount of decorating. We go see family x-mas week - this year it's her family so we're off to Michigan/Ohio unless I got a shuttle mission, which I don't think is very likely this year.

We're procrastinators - but we've already done a fair amount of gift buying this year. The only things we do from a charity standpoint - NMSS.

Tom

Depends... on whether I'm staying home for the holiday season or travelling. If home, I decorate. If not, it's just way too draining for me - to unpack and re-pack.

When the temps. start dropping in my area, I take blankets to the homeless (not provided shelter). The shelters, even the overflow ones, have ltd. capacity.

A few years ago, I stopped buying most gifts and convinced people to make and exchange them. Just seems to mean more... than tossing around gift certificates or plucking pre-made from stores.

tree lights inside and out, last year was my first year of not doing anything cause as some of you will recall, I almost lost my house, so this year we are gonna do it up right again

The kids will all be at home this Christmas-we alternate, celebrating on Christmas Day every other year. The off year, we celebrate "Christgiving"-the kids are home at Thanksgiving, so we celebrate Christmas at that time.

It's so much fun--now that they're all adults, they truly love each other, and get along so well. Lots of laughter...
But when we celebrate Christgiving, Christmas Day is too quiet without the four kids and their spouses. We have to have dinner on that day, though, because my elderly inlaws come over for dinner.
We always decorate on Thanksgiving weekend, whether or not the kids are here. My DH does most of it, and he makes the house come alive.

I love some of the ideas posted here...gives me ideas for our charity work this holiday. Thanks for sharing!

We decorate inside and out and have the family over on xmas eve. Jim and I give all year to charity but I do like the idea of sponsoring a family.

last year we did the exchange (and I was late) .. not THIS year ... gifts are in the making to be ready to mail out by turkey-day ... (hint hint)

That reminds me....are we doing the exchange again this year? Who coordinates that? If you need help I'll be happy to help with it.

um ... that was from the old site ... and I can't remember who did it!! and that wonderful person that did it was absolutely wonderful!

... aarrgghh! I can't remember who!!

Oops!!! You're right...it was from that site from my previous life!!

I wonder if we could do something like that here?

And I cannot remember who coordinated that there, either so don't feel bad. Wait...was it Sparky?