No Ideas for Christmas & Got an Interview

by Hope

I am wracking my brain on how to make Christmas special without presents. Don’t get me wrong, I know presents are not the reason for the season. But giving gifts is definitely one of my main ways of expressing love. I’ve been considering using one of those scrapbook sites and creating some sort of family/recipe book for each of the kids. The one my mom gave all us kids in our adulthood has been something I have used often. Anyone done this? Have recommendation for a site? I figure if I make all the books the same, then it will save me in time and cost.

Does anyone else have any ideas? I’m really struggling with this. I am focused on spending the money I do have on something meaningful or nothing at all.

But also stockings…I think that’s one of our favorite traditions. What can I put in stockings that is meaningful, cost effective, and fun?

I have come up with an agenda for the 36 hours that all the kids are here. And a menu for the 6ish days at least one or two kids are here. The kids are all excited some homecooked meals and have all put in requests for favorites they’ve been missing…from mac n cheese to Zuppa Toscana soup, roast to ham. It’s been so nice to hear their excitement when we talk and hear what they have missed about home. Fill’s this mama heart up!

Holiday Plan

We are going to do a full almost traditional holiday meal for Christmas Eve along with our traditional game night. Game night is everyone’s favorite. We play fun games, different ones every year, and the kids are welcome to invite friends. In the past, we’ve done a charcuterie board and snack foods. But since we haven’t been together is so long, I thought a real home cooked meal was the way to go. (And I don’t want to cook on my birthday 🙂 We will wrap up Christmas Eve with a birthday celebration for the four of us that are fall/winter babies.

Christmas Day will just be the family and a couple of their significant others. I do cook breakfast, but the rest of the day will be left overs and a couple of snack food type things that I will prepare in advance. Over the last couple of years, we’ve been doing Chinese, but leftovers and finger foods seems to be the right fit for our time together and our budget this year. I’ve already begun comparison shopping for my grocery items.

We will do presents on Christmas, and then we typically chill out in the afternoon with the kids catering to me for my birthday. This year will be different because we have to get History Buff to the airport to fly out that evening, a two hour drive. We’ve talked about going to a movie down toward Atlanta in the afternoon and then someone finishing the drive to take History Buff. It would allow us all to be together longer and prevent anyone from having to spend 4 hours driving to and from the airport. It’s still a plan in progress.

Part Time Job Interview

And the good news…I’ve got an interview next week. A local fast food restaurant, part time, and $13 per hour. I had to submit a video interview where I disclosed my other part time jobs and that my schedule was flexible. I’m hopeful.

Hope is a digital marketing manager and foster/adoptive single mom to five kids. She has run her own consulting company for over 15 years and took a leap of faith returning to the corporate world in 2021 to a job and team she loves! Hope began sharing her journey with the BAD community in the Spring of 2015 and feels like she has finally mastered the balance between family first and wise financial decisions.