Candy, candy, candy… I can’t let you go.

November 10, 2008 at 7:35 pm · Filed under Uncategorized

I think I’m going to buy our dentist a boat.  Or a hot rod.  Or a month in Aruba.

Not by choice.  It’s just that we’ve got a constant candy parade through our collective lives from October first through New Year’s eve.  Ugh.  My stomach hurts already- and Halloween has barely passed into memory!

We started the month well enough.  Just the requisite garbage snack after soccer games.  By mid-October we had goody bags from multiple birthday parties stacking up.  Then the Fall Fair at the elementary school.  (Exactly how many times should one child be allowed to participate in the cake walk and lollipop pull?)

Now we have the great candy free-for-all, Halloween.  I LOVE Halloween.  Spooky decorations, costumes pumpkin carving… I love it all.  I even enjoy hearing “Monster Mash” endlessly repeated on our Boom Box.  BUT, I already had to find a second hiding spot for the candy. 

And I can’t blame the kids.  It’s my dear husband, and his complete lack of willpower in the face of refined sugar.  He is physically drawn to big bags of candy like a moth to a flame.  He searches the house, banging through cabinets and even delving into the garage in the hopes of stumbling on to gargantuan plastic bags full of bite-sized treats.

But I digress.  The economy is in the dumps, prices for everything are sky high, and I’ve got the holidays ahead, full of sugarplum fairies and a freezer full of cookies from the elementary school fundraiser. 

My youngest had the nerve to ask me why she doesn’t get to eat candy canes all year long.  I think I hear the pediatric dentist laughing across town.

Oh well.  I think I’ll go drown my sorrows in some mint chip ice cream… with mini snicker bars on top.  (Of course.)

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The name game. It’s personal.

October 23, 2008 at 10:48 am · Filed under Uncategorized ·Tagged

Whatever your kids age, chances are their favorite word is their own name.  (Are grown-ups any different?)  Kids love anything personalized.  Give little Johnny a T-shirt with his name on it and he will wear it like a suit of armour.  Samantha gets a boring pillow case?  Add her name and she will hug her pillow like a new puppy.  Standard stuff becomes treasure.

Maybe it’s because seeing our own name in print- on anything- gives it importance.  Maybe it’s because our name is our identity.  Maybe it’s knowing someone took the time to personalize a gift that makes it special.  All I know is that a pancake in the shape of a “G” makes breakfast better.  Every time. 

So personalize.

Need more convincing?

Personalized stuff has a clear owner.  And it’s not me.  I can holler “Samantha, pick up your pillow and put it away.”  Can she argue that it’s not hers?  No way.  One less thing for Mom to pick up.  It’s like magic.   

Knowing this “magic” to making ordinary stuff special, I can’t help thinking of the upcoming holidays.  Budgets are tighter, parents are stressed, gifts will probably be smaller and fewer.  But that doesn’t mean they have to be less special or less exciting.   I think the investment in a few paint brushes and paints, or even a package of colorful Sharpie pens can save my pocketbook AND make the small pile of presents shine.  I’ll just add a name to the backpack, the pajamas, and the new comforter.

Now I know that the spirit of the holiday season is what’s important.  Yes, family time will be the focus.  And blah, blah, blah.  But I have to admit I love watching my kids open presents.  And I get a kick out of watching them enjoy the things I’ve been able to give them.  So sue me for my shameless consumerism.  (I like to think of it as keeping the economy moving.  Up… hopefully.)

So I think I’ll go get a few pillowcases, a package of T-shirts, and a Sharpie pen… And start making some treasures for the holidays.

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