A Little House Christmas

Argh! Cursed PayPal account! Why? Why do you tempt me with this purchase and that purchase and encourage me to spend more than I planned? I'm in a dilemma. This year, as always, I promised myself we would have a simple Christmas. One with few toys and lots of love. One where the kids treasured their special gift and didn't look for the next one to unwrap. You know, like when Laura and Mary and Ma and Pa and Baby Carrie all made special gifts for each other or sold their favorite pet to get their loved ones a meaningful gift. Well that all went out the window when I made a load of money selling suitcases on eBay because now have way too much cash in my PayPal account. I know it sounds ridiculous, but it's like having a VISA gift card and I can just spend, spend, spend and buy, buy, buy without ever having to rearrange my budget. I tell you it's a curse. To be honest, I am exaggerating a bit here, but to be truthful, I did buy more than I had planned.

How about yourself? How do you do it? Do you set up a plan? Do you plan out your budget? Does every child get the same amount?

I fear when I get everything out of my closet to wrap that I will have WAY TOO much and will be hiding half of it away for birthdays and Christmas next year. What to do, what to do.

Sheena, thanks for the reminder of Good, Better, Best. Another of my Favorites is Becoming Provident Providers Temporally and Spiritually. Elder Robert D. Hales said, "I have learned that the three most loving words are “I love you,” and the four most caring words for those we love are “We can’t afford it.”" Amen to that!