Christmas Memories

Too many times we find ourselves getting caught up in the Christmas spirit of shopping, shopping, and more shopping. Finding the gifts becomes our ultimate goal of the season – so much so that going into debt to buy the perfect present has almost become a norm in today’s society. We could focus our blog this week on how to avoid overspending or how to make inexpensive gifts from scratch, but there is an abundance of information already out there for that.

In our blog this week, we want to focus on what the holidays mean to us – family, friends, faith, and fun! We, as a society, need to realize that gifts aren’t the only important thing over the holiday season. We recently heard a study on the radio this week about how people who spend money on “experience” are happier than those who spend money on “material” products. We believe this to be true, which is why we value family and fun and continue to carry on family traditions over the generations. One of Scott's favourite family tradition is the annual Christmas Eve walk around the neighbourhood. Last year, we wore ugly sweater plastic bags and got a laugh out of some people we walked past. One family asked if we were carolling (we weren't) but we thought, "Why not?" and proceeded to seranade family as we walked the streets. That memory will last forever. Can you remember what, where, and who you celebrated Christmas with last year? Of course you can! Can you name every gift you got? Not likely.

Obviously gifts add to the fun, but keep in mind, this time of year is about who you make the memories with, not who you spend your dollars on.