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Christmas Free-dom

Cheap is good, but free is better. If you are one of the millions of Americans suffering during these tough economic times, Christmas can seem more like a curse than a gift, especially if you don’t have enough money to buy presents for all of your family members and friends. As we enter the last few hours leading up to the big day, don’t allow yourself to be sucked into the abyss of commercialism that overshadows the true meaning of Christmas. Who says holiday presents have to be shiny and expensive? Often, the most treasured gifts are the ones that … Continue reading →

Christmas is Filled With Family Heirlooms

Every family will have at least a few items that are considered to be heirlooms. Although some of those items may have financial value, most of the time they are important because of the memories and family history that they remind genealogists of. Christmas is a holiday that is filled with many heirlooms. What is an heirloom? According to the Free Online Dictionary, and heirloom is “a valued possession passed down in a family through succeeding generations”. Most families have some heirlooms that are treasured, preserved, and shared with future generations. It is possible that the heirlooms that have been … Continue reading →

Christmas Embellishments

From snowflakes to snow angels, candles to candy canes, reindeer to rhinestones, the variety of Christmas-themed scrapbook embellishments is practically limitless. What’s more, during the holiday season, finding the adorable adornments is a breeze. You can find Christmas-themed stickers, stamps, die cuts, and paper wherever scrapbooking supplies are sold. Fortunately, you don’t have to go broke decorating your seasonal layouts. There are a number of ways you can create frugal embellishments with supplies you have in your leftovers bin. For example, you can use plain computer paper or extra construction paper to make mini snowflakes to decorate your page. Other … Continue reading →

No More Color-Coordinated Christmas Trees for Me

When my kids were little, my Christmas decorating was what I would call “eclectic.” This was mostly because a lot of what I had in the way of decorations were hand-me-downs. So I made due with what I had. One of my favorite things to decorate was the Christmas tree. There were the “special” ornaments that went up every year…baby’s first Christmas ornaments, our wedding ornament and then all the homemade ones from my children. At some point, my Christmas decorating began to change. Suddenly I wanted things to match. I wanted my tree to have the same colors as … Continue reading →

Outdoor Christmas Trees

You may or may not know that I have a slight problem. Hello, my name is Carol and I’m addicted to Christmas decorations. Every year I need something new! Just one more thing will make the display perfect. For a while now I’ve been drooling over those little spiral lighted trees for the front yard. I just have a tiny little front yard and while a blow up Santa would be overkill those little trees would be perfect. The only thing I didn’t like about them was their price. Then it hit me, I can make my own! I came … Continue reading →

The Christmas Homeschool

Before you can count the twelve days of Christmas it will be time to trim the tree and count eight tiny reindeer. Christmas is a busy time for all so many homeschoolers take time off in the month of December. Some take the entire month off. I find that the more time I take off the more chaotic my home gets. The kids need something to do and some structure in their day. For me, December is busy but if I took the entire month off I would go crazy. Here are some ideas to keep Christmas the focus, get … Continue reading →

Christmas Card Coma

I received my very first Christmas video card last week and bid adieu to my electronic holiday greeting virginity. The Hallmark e-card stripped me of my seasonal innocence and now I guess I should expect my mail carrier to travel a little lighter next Christmas. Apparently, holiday e-cards are the wave of the future and soon traditional Christmas greetings, like these, will go the way of the Walkman and typewriter. Say it ain’t so. How many paper holiday cards did you receive this year? I sent out nearly 90 and have received more than half that amount as we wrap … Continue reading →

A Christmas Tableaux

With just over a month to Christmas it’s time to start thinking about Christmas decorations. I rarely buy new decorations but jets tend to recycle the same ones in different places or freshened up each year. Usually like Mary Ann I have bowls willed with pinecones as part of my table decorations. This year though I have a brand new Christmas decoration and it will on prominent display. It is a Christmas tableau. Released by Walker Books The First Noel – A Christmas Carousel by Jan Pienkowski is a delightful work of art. While closed it looks like a book, … Continue reading →

How to Choose Christmas Lights

Choosing Christmas lights used to be pretty simple. You simply went to the hardware store and purchased the number of strands that you needed to cover your tree, not exceeding the limit of how many could be plugged into one outlet. Today, things are a little more complicated. Hopefully these tips will help you choose the right lights for your holiday decorating. Let us start with incandescent versus LED lights, since you can usually choose among either of these options for most of your lighting needs (although some types of lights do tend to be one or the other). There … Continue reading →

Christmas Movie Marathon the Frugal Way

Whether you are having a snow day or just want to avoid spending money at the malls, being prepared for a Christmas movie marathon is a good idea. You can enjoy some fun family entertainment for free. Just pop the popcorn, grab an extra blanket and snuggle up on the couch with your family. ABC 25 Days of Christmas The television station, ABC, offers Christmas shows every evening during December. You usually get at least three shows back to back in any given night. They don’t seem to duplicate the shows, or at least not during the same time slots. … Continue reading →