Tuesday, January 6, 2009

The Holiday in Review

Now that the holidays have come and gone, we'd love to hear how your gift exchanges went. What were your favorite gifts to give this year? To receive? What brilliant ideas did you have, and what bombed?

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

My best gifts to give are those that surprise people in a positive way, and the more surprise, the better. However, its difficult to select gifts for those we don't know well or see frequently. I sought a small Christmas gift for someone who is currently on the family's fringe. I went with my heart/gut/whatever you call it and saw her face light up when she saw something that she had wanted to try but had just not taken the time/energy to get for herself. Again, not a bit item, but the look of pleased surprise - I'm not sure who got the bigger gift - her or me.

Aerin said...

We kept things very simple this year. It's been the trend for some years now. With keeping it simple, we weren't able to give gifts that made people light up. We donated to food pantries, etc. Sometimes it's hard to get into gift giving when there are so many in need.

With that said - also got into a discussion about placing donations in another person's name (think aunt/uncle) for the charity of your choice. Particularly if you disagree with the original charity (or would prefer another charity to the one selected). I think this can be stressful for people/families. In the end, I think it goes back to the rule - if it really bothers you, say something - otherwise attempt to ignore it.