Been thinking about this lately...

We've had the joy of having my brother in law, Kevin visit with us for the weekend, and he is headed off to a training about an hour from here for the week and then we'll see him again on Friday. It's been a year since we saw him and it's been so fun. He is about the most generous person on the planet and the kids--no, not just the kids-- we have all been spoiled rotten.

It was hilarious yesterday because he was telecomuting from my couch while I went about my usual ebay operation. Since only a few of you know what that actually looks like, it was kind of funny letting him in on my little tricks...like the fact that since I don't have much zoom on my digital camera, I get detail shots by putting a magnifying glass in front of it. Meanwhile, he strode about making calls with earpiece in place and blackberry in hand. "Oh, I love technology...."

When Robb came home for lunch, we all fiddled a bit with a Christmas present we're hoping to pull off for Vin. He is such a techie little guy that we are trying to refurbish Robb's old broken-down notebook for Vin to have and play games on....and of course, to update his blog. Part of me thinks it's a little crazy to give a five year old a laptop and part of me thinks it's pure genius. Computers will always be with us, so why not give him a headstart on learning to use them? Not to mention the fact that then Robb and I won't have to share ours with him! And also, it's a PC, so maybe he'll be "bilingual." It is something he loves to do and he is very good at it.

Anyway, I've been thinking and reading a lot about gifts this year. I've stumbled across some things like "buy nothing for Christmas" and the like. I've also read that unless you are seven, it is not okay to make presents. And of course, we have no desire to be consumers for no other reason than greed, especially with the poor of the world at the front of our minds.

Our Santa asked us to please "wow the kids" with gifts this year, and I must say that I love the idea. They've been such little troopers this year, adjusting to our new constraints and being happy inspite of them. And they are great helpers at Vintage and do lots of little jobs whenever we ask them. We seldom, if ever really, buy them toys throughout the year (except for their birthdays). So, after lots of consideration, I am really looking forward to lavishing my kids with presents this year. God gave us such a lavish gift, I've decided that trying to give them gifts that wow them is a wonderful way to show love to my kids. I'm also looking forward to putting my heart into making some things for my family. I am stingy with my time because it is my most precious resource, but I hope that using it to make gifts is a clear communication of how important they are to me. I hear all the voices...all the opinions about what is the right thing to do when it comes to Christmas, but I've thought it over and this is where I landed.

I can't wait...