Santa Claus is Coming to Town...

I have to admit that, as much as I love Christmas, I hate the fact that stores start advertising and putting out their holiday displays in July at this point.  Retailers are interrupting people's Thanksgiving dinners by enticing them into ever earlier Black Friday sales.  That name alone-- Black Friday-- should be enough to ward people off, but nooooo... the stores are packed with people sacrificing their Thanksgiving family time for a matched set of luggage at prices that can't be beat... until the next sale. 

I also have to admit that I'm a last minute holiday shopper.  Not because I don't care but because I always want to find the perfect gift for everyone on my list, but if I find it too soon, I can't resist giving it to the recipient long before Christmas... only to have to start over again so they will still have a surprise on Christmas day.

All this is to say... I'm really trying hard not to think too much about Christmas just yet.  It's sort of my own, unwritten rule not to do any shopping until after Thanksgiving weekend (that's right, you won't catch me out there on Black Friday... the whole weekend has to pass before I'll delve into the stores. 

And, perhaps it is awful for me to mention this but I am a hater.  A mall hater, that is.  I hate all those stores filled with the same old/same old junk.  In recent years, I've found most of my favorite gifts online or in tiny, unexpected, one-of-a-kind boutiques.  I try to find things that will have a special significance-- a leather bag reminiscent of a trip my sister and I took to Florence one year.  Beautiful art work from the galleries in one of the cities my sweetie and I love to travel to. 

Handmade books for my neices and nephews, personalized by the events and people in their lives. Of course, there are also Lego sets and plasma cars and animatronic dinosaurs that my sister stands there shaking her head about.  She's just jealous because I'm the cool aunt!

Anyway, sweet Jenn from Just Add Water Silly invited me to take part in her Artist's Playland linky and the theme is Christmas... so I am throwing away my rules and diving right in so that I might participate this week.  I thought I would be doing it with something of a grouchy spirit, but it turns out, I had some fun with it and I am getting closer and closer to being all over that Christmas spirit... so deck the freakin' halls, baby! 

Also linking to AEDM #17 and Show and Tell Saturday at Artists in Blogland!