hey everyone. i dont know about you but i am finding this holiday season very depressing. i am sad all the time and even doing a RAK isnt making me smile. i have been working so hard and not getting ahead at all. there will be no christmas in my house this year, i dont look forward to the disappointed looks on my kids faces this year again. i just want to sleep through the whole season. thanks for letting me vent. sorry if i depressed anyone .
No, I think there is a lot going on in everybody's life, (I know ours is crazy) and sometimes it is hard to get that feeling....I put Christmas carols on the stereo...especially Dolly and Kenny's Christmas, seems to get me out of a funk!
you are NOT alone trust me! I am digging as much as I can to at least put a facade on that I'm not depressed (don't want the kids to see) BUT I live in SHEAR panic that today is the day my hubby is going to get layed off. His job has already done 2 layoffs and I know more are to come.
This is just very frightening for everyone and w/ how the world is right now kinda difficult to be excited about christmas! BUT maybe this will just let us be grateful for what we do have and appreciate our families even more....
You are definitely not alone! I haven't even decorated yet, not even a tree! AND I have 5 kids! The will be getting alot less this year, but I have talked to them about it. I tried to tell them that is is bad for most families right now, but you don't have to look very far to always find those who have less than us.
We have a roof over our heads, food, clothes and our health.......we are blessed.
I get depressed thinking how we have missed the mark on the real meaning of the season.
It will be hard hearing about all the cool things their friends got when they return to school!
I understand how you feel. I dont have a lot either but I'm lucky that my kids are young. They really dont know too much about what is going on. My daughter wrote a letter to santa and I was so glad that she just had a yo yo a bouncy ball and a barbie doll on there. She also had a bike. I know for sure that we can get the ball and yo yo so that will brighten her day. I am trying to find a nice barbie for cheep and my aunt is buying her a cabbage patch doll. As for the bike she is going to have to wait until her birthday. My son is 2 so he doesnt have a clue. I have to take this lean season as a lesson for my children. I have to teach them the real meaning of christmas and maybe we will make a gift for Jesus. I'm just thankfull that we have a roof over our head and that the gas company just sent us our bill and they pushed the date to Dec. 31. I'm thankful for the little things. And buying things isnt what christmas is all about. I hope you feel better.
We're "okay", but the hard times in the economy have hurt us, too. My dh is an executive recruiter, and his job is to find people jobs, then the co. pays him 25% of their first yr's salary. Last month he had 2 different people hired at companies, then the co withdrew their offers because the employees had bad credit.
Then, he totaled his car.
Then, he broke his laptop, which is an absolute necessity for his job.
If I hadn't done all my shopping in October, nobody would get anything.
You are not alone!!! I don't have the Christmas tree up either. We did put up the outside decorations, but have not done the lights yet. My husband is self-employeed (concrete finisher) and not many people have wanted or could afford concrete in about 4 months. I do work full time and was extremely thankful my boss gave us our Christmas bonus early...I was able to pay the oral surgeon yesterday to extract my dd tooth (no insurance) cause a big portion of my check went to my doctor on Sunday for my UTI. This year, on my inlaw side of the family, we are just getting together for a pot-luck dinner. But I think I am more excited with the idea of just getting all of my inlaws together. My daughters have been told this will not be a big Christmas and luckily, my grandson is only 2 so he will be happy with a little something. And there is no way we can travel to my oldest sister's this year so guess I will need to just be happy to talk to them on the phone. With all that said, for some reason, I am excited instead of stressed out this year.
Hubby and I are not buying for each other (something I usually try to get him to do every year anyway). Pretty much we are buying for my 16 year old daughter and our 2 grandchildren (6-1/2 and 18 months). I will get token gifts for my 2 older children and son-in-law .... gloves, socks, stuff like that. No big gifts for anyone.
And all of us .... hubby&me, and our grown kids.... are all on board with this. We believe folks overdo Christmas anyway and kids are getting too spoiled with all the "spoils" of the season. So we are celebrating the good this year and not stressing over the diminished incomes, the economy, and whatever "might" be bad.
My grandchildren are healthy ... my son isn't in Iraq this year .... hubby works in the auto industry and still has a job .... God bless us, every one!
You're not alone! I don't even have a christmas tree yet or any decorations. I'm not even sure if I can buy presents for my 3 daughters this year...they're too young to know anyways, a 3 1/2, 2 year old, and 4 month. I'm just thankful that we are able to pay our bills, have foods on the table, and are in good health.
Ok, so we are all on the same boat this year. Last year was tough too because one of my kids flushed a bunch of washcloths down the toilet and we ended up having to use the Christmas $ to pay a plumber.
This year is just downright bad. I had to explain to my kids about this Christmas being a difficult one. I think they understood. I have to say, dollar stores have been such a blessing.
Speaking of Dollar Stores-when my son wanted something and I told him we didn't have any money, he asked if we could go to the Dollar Store and buy some dollars. If only it were that easy. 
There is much joy to be found, even if you don't have any money to spend. The meaning of Christmas brings me more joy than any "thing" ever could.
I like to make Christmas special in many fun ways that don't cost too much. Candles are special and don't cost much to burn. A friend of mine on a tight budget used a single taper as an advent candle. She painted stripes on it as a count down to Christmas and they burned it each night, just down to the next stripe.
Have you discovered www.pandora.com ? Free Christmas music!
Christmas traditions have always been one of my favorite parts of the season. Now that gas prices have come down, a short trip around the neighborhood to look at the lights while singing favorite carols is a great thing!! And then maybe a mug of hot chocolate.
Another friend has the tradition of wrapping up the family Bible and putting it under the tree. On Christmas morning, they unwrap it and read the Christmas story.
A favorite meal served on special dishes can be very special.
If you can't afford a tree, if you already have some decorations, you can use those, maybe in extra special ways. Can you cut some cedar branches or nandina twigs or some boxwood and tie a ribbon around it?
Can you make an edible wreath?
You can have special movie nights and watch your favorite Christmas movies or even old TV shows (remember the Walton Christmas episode that was the pilot for the series? I think they string popcorn to decorate their tree...you could imitate them!). Dim the lights, snuggle up in blankets, and maybe pop some pop corn.
Do you have old Christmas cards you could use to make some decorations or recycle into your own notes?
Spend some special time with your kids doing things they really enjoy...a walk around the block, a trip to the park or an indoor playground, coloring together, playing "house", playing dress up, etc. Fun times!
Bring in the special smells of the season! Scented candles. Hot cider with mulling spices. Just a pot of water with some cinnamon and cloves will do.
One of the best presents I can receive are beautiful photographs. Do you have some really nice pictures suitable for enlarging and gift giving? Ritz Camera, for example, does beautiful work. I believe a 5 x 7 is $1.00. Or do you have some old pictures you could scan and copy? Do you have a photoshop type program where you could revive an old picture? I think you could make a lot of people smile for a dollar a piece. Or, you could take nice 4x6 photographs and glue them with rubber cement on the front of plain large notecards. Beautiful handmade stationery!
Write letters. Send notes of encouragement or thankfulness or memories. Embellish them or put them on beautiful stationery, or...whatever you wish! Many people could use and would like nothing better!
We are blessed that this isn't our leanest Christmas. There have been years when we have made do with much less. But remembering the real joy of the season, creating special traditions, creating something beautiful or tasty or great smelling, and finding ways to give to others means a lot.
Sending you a little encouragement, I hope.
One thing you can do for next year is start saving a dollar a day in a wallet, jar or whatever. You have to be dilligent in doing this. Make sure you save the money everyday at the same time. Don't try to do it weekly, you won't want to part with $7 at shot if you are strapped for cash.
I like the other ideas that the OP suggested. Also try to get together with some of your friends, kids friends or neighbors to share in the holiday. I am sure you are not the only one in this boat called "bad economy".
This can become your new tradition. If you start something new now the kids will always come to expect it and not remember the old days.
Enjoy your holiday and believe good things are in store for you and your family.
Remember you have your family and your kids think that you can do anything. Use this as your strength to get thru the holidays.
Happy, Healthy and Prosperous New Year to you and your family.
I think a lot of families are going thru such hardship right now. I almost didn't put up the Christmas tree because I got soo down about it. I explained to my kids how tight things are right now. I also let my extended family know I would not be handing out gifts this year. We're all still getting together for Christmas and right now I'm thankful for that.
I really wasnt planning on celebrating Christmas this year but I have so much to be thankful for. My brother is out here with us, my family from up North is heading down as well. I have my precious goddaughter/niece with me.
I was a little down and out because of the economy but it was worse because I found out that my husband is getting recalled and deployed to Iraq in April for a year and a half so I was very sad. Then I closed my eyes and prayed and even though im still sad, I am happy that at least he gets to spend the holiday season with me. I bought a couple of gifts earlier this year and money is extremly tight but I am healthy and I am with my family and that is the most important thing to me right now. As for christmas, there is much more involved than gift giving in my house.
This year i'm making cookies with my nephew and we will be celebrating with hot chocolate and cookies. I think it is going to be more emotional this year for everyone and although times are hard, it's really nice to see people being a little more understanding because everyone is having a hard time. I believe that we will all be able to appreciate the more important things in life and that would be ourselves and our families.
Hugs to all who are having a hard time and I really hope that things do get better, not just finances, but everything else. I love you all and I think that being able to come on cc and share all of our thoughts and feelings at this time is the best gift ever. Happy holidays!!!
We too have tightened our belts dramatically this year. A lot of sadness around too, my brother-in-law is waiting for results of tests for the extent of damage to his lungs from a turmour. My son and daughter-in-law have been trying for a family for 13 years, thought they had cracked it but she has just lost the baby at 3 months into the pregnancy, my daughter lost a baby in really bad circumstances at this time some years ago so we always have a sad edge to the build up to christmas. Despite all the worry and sadness it makes you appreciate your health and your family. As long as there is a roof over our heads and food on the table we have cause to celebrate. Family and sharing what we have is what Christmas is about, and within our own family I feel we had somehow lost track of that as Christmas has become more and more commercial. This Christmas might be more frugal for us and with a lot of underlying worries but I hope it makes us more appreciative of what we have got. For every downside there is an upside
I am trying very hard this season not to get so "busy" that I forget to enjoy the real meaning of the season. I am trying not to be sad as well. My husband did lose his job the first week of November. We will be ok, I know we will. God has always met our needs and then exceeded them! My human self though, gets a little sad.
I enjoy the sounds, smells and decorations of Christmas so much. So that is where my focus has been. I already had the decorations, and all it costs me is my time to put them out. I had stocked up on my baking supplies, so I will still make cookies and fudge. Not as much as I usually do, but that's ok!
Ziggytarheel gave some great ideas of things to do at low cost or for free.
Christmas Hugs for all 
It is going to be lean at my home also but the saddest part is this will be the first year BIL is not there. He's now in nursing home but in a coma. We fixed him a pretty tree though and that made us feel better and we will go see him often. I guess we should just be glad that everyone else is healthy and doing good. God Bless you all. 
Hey guys, I wanted to mention an easy and cheap little Christmas gift, if you are crafty at all. This weekend, I made hand warmers, a "bed buddy" and a "back buddy".
I made 4 pairs of handwarmers out of a 1/4 yard of team mascot fabric from Walmart. I filled them with a bag of flaxseed I'd forgotten about in the back of my pantry. Total cost was about $4. I'm not much of a seamstress, so my mom cut them out and sewed them and I stuffed them.. It took me longer to stuff them than for my mom to cut and sew.
My daughter had acutally asked for an "herbal bed buddy for my back." So, again, a small amount of fabric and this time rice. I didn't like the smell of the cooking lavender I had in my pantry and I didn't want to pay for some dried lemon or orange peel. So, I took some peppermint oil, dabbed it on a cotton ball, let the cotton ball dry. And then to be extra safe, I surrounded that cotton ball with other cotton balls and put it in the rice for a period of time. Removed and stitched the rice up in the fabric. I just wanted to be certain that no moisture got in the rice, since cooked rice would not do!
My grandmother lives with severe and chronic pain. I made her a bed buddy with rice to drape across her knees.
Just thought I would share a very inexpensive and easy idea. It was fun too! If you've never used a "bed buddy", you generally microwave it for 2 minutes at the most, depending on your microwave. I need to experiment with the handwarmers to see how long they take. Just like anything else, if it gets too hot, it could catch on fire, so use with care!
Maybe this site could give you some ideas for things you could make as gifts. I get this magazine and they always have lots of cute ideas.
http://familyfun.go.com/
My husband has been laid off from Chrysler since last spring; thankfully, at least for the moment, he's in the jobs' bank, so he still gets more than he would on straight unemployment, but still less than we're used to living on. We're very nervous about the jobs banks being eliminated though, as we have five children of our own.....
It's too bad someone didn't know of your circumstances earlier and could have included you on an Angel tree. Just yesterday my sweetheart 9 yr. old son took his $25 birthday money from his grandparents and bought gifts for a 10 yr. old little boy on our church's Angel tree. We don't know who the family is, or if they even go to our church, it's all kept very private, but the families are able to list both "wants" and "needs". I'm sure it's too late now to be added, but at least for next year if things don't improve for you maybe you could look into it? At least that way your kids will get something. It may not be a toy that they want, but it could be new jammies, underwear, clothing, etc. And I think they're less inclined to care WHAT they get as long as they get to open something. At least mine are!
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