More thoughts about how a not-extravagant holiday celebration is not only POSSIBLE but PREFERABLE to those debt-ridden holidays of yore.
Yesterday, I mentioned shopping for Christmas gifts in your local museum shops. Today, I did. What did I find?
At the Art Center:
- Handmade greeting cards, both holiday and non-specific (perfect for that mother-in-law who never misses a friend’s birthday: a dozen beautiful cards wrapped with raffia, pen tucked into bow.)
- Tiny pine-needle basket for BFF: to hold her diamonds (do I sound jealous?) by her country-kitchen sink.
The History Museum offered:
- An historic cookbook of this area: My newest neighbor will get this.
- Traditional wooden puzzles, stocking stuffers for the nieces and nephews.
- Yearly membership: Not only will my lawn guy’s family have free admission (the museum is outdoors and has spectacular “secret” picnic areas, but also, being a member gets him a discount on summer camp for his kids.
The Children’s Museum:
- Fun, educational playthings and books for my (grown!) brothers and b-in-laws. Who else would remember that Rick had a thing for Indians when he was 11?
- For myself: The treat of helping with a school’s field trip to the museum. School budgets don’t cover these anymore; I donated 10 “seats on the bus” to an elementary school. I hope some other folks step up for the other 30 seats, so one more class of kids can have a hair-raising experience.
In addition to helping the museums’ budgets by purchasing gifts and memberships in their shops, I have planned several holiday outings to them. The History Museum has “Trees of Yesteryear” to get us in the mood, while the Art Center will, I hope, kick-start my sister back into creative mode. She used to love creating art and has gotten a bit stressed out lately. My gift, I hope, to her is: Enjoy.
And to my viewers as well: Enjoy. It doesn’t cost money to have a personal, joyous holiday.
Read the whole series:
Holidays: Make them special for kids
Holidays: Make them special for your relatives
Auntie Kate The Resale Expert 
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