Tag / Holiday Shopping

by clumpaday

Challenge Conquered in Cape May

Clump #279: Purchase and send gifts on husband’s list; day seven of seven-day holiday challenge … Woo-Hoo!

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Well friends, this is me crossing the finish line of a week that really tested my resolve.  I am here to say that, having stuck out the clumping and blogging of this past week, if I could do it, anyone could.  It’s been a very tough week, so while the daily grind of: what clump to do and how to write it up has often been difficult, the flip side has been my gratitude for the structure of the enterprise, which kept me on track, also gratitude for your support and encouragement.  Thank you.

Today I conquered a clump that usually gets put off to the point of painfulness.  I purchased gifts for several great people who work with my husband.  I turned it into a very pleasant activity by buying the gifts while on a day trip to Cape May, NJ with my younger sister.  We had never seen the town in the holiday season before.  The photo above was taken at The Virginia Hotel, an elegant establishment and one of the lovely examples of Victorian architecture the town is known for.  My sister and I noticed that many window boxes around town were adorned with large, shiny ball ornaments.  The ones at the bath shop below looked like soap bubbles.

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This shop window contained smaller ones, with a notice of a sale …

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make that a monster sale.

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Like this monster week … tamed and subdued.

by clumpaday

May I Have Fun Too?

Clump #278: Power through bunch of online orders; day six of seven-day holiday kick-in-the-pants challenge.

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Here’s a secret: I really don’t like spending a bunch of money all at once, which is part of what most of us have to do at this time of year. Thank goodness for this blog and challenge.  I forced myself to sit down and order some gifts I had been putting off.  In two cases the items were on back-order. Drat!  I have known I wanted them for quite a while.  Why did I wait until peak shopping time?

Don’t be like me!

And speaking of that, I’m still simmering about this advice from Martina McBride in last week’s People magazine.  You’ll notice at the bottom of the page: “Tip No. 1: Plan ahead so you can have fun too!”

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So many obnoxious comments flooded my head: “Really?”… “Thank you Captain Obvious”… “Ya Think?” … Sorry to sound snarky, and I’m sure Ms. McBride is a wonderful person and country singer and holiday hostess, but … she might as well have written: “Rewire your brain!”  It’s not so easy for some of us.  And the idea that everyone else is having fun while you are stressing and slaving away sounds sad, but often so true. Thanks for listening.

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P.S.  An astute reader of this blog correctly identified the elegant white flower in the previous post as a gardenia (not jasmine). Thank you!  I’m still thinking of (and posting photos from) Longwood, and won’t even guess at the name of the pretty puff flower pictured above.

by clumpaday

Looking Back at NaBloPoMo and the Challenge Ahead

Clump #273: Gift shopping with Giving Tuesday awareness; day one of “finish my holiday to-do list” week.

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It’s the most wonderful time of the year! (?)  How old were you the last time that song lyric felt true?

I completed the 30-day challenge of National Blog Posting Month the day before yesterday.  It was sometimes exhausting, but ultimately rewarding.  The best part about committing to writing (and for me, clumping) every day was the momentum that developed.  It became not a question of whether, but when.  I began to trust that words would come to me when I needed them.

So with the jingle jangle holiday season upon us, I’ve decided to see whether I can call on that momentum to finish my holiday preparations in a week: between now and December 9th, an artificial deadline designed to give myself some breathing room before the usual crunch time.  Is it possible?  We will see!

Today I did a bunch of shopping and made an effort to honor the spirit of Giving Tuesday.  At Barnes and Noble I looked through a box of suggested children’s books one could purchase to donate to needy children.  I really wasn’t impressed with the selection until I spotted The Phantom Tollbooth, by Norton Juster.  I was not a stellar reader as a child, but I remember having been transfixed by the creativity in this timeless (ha) tale. Sold!

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Making a list of ways I gave today seems a bit like asking for a gold star for my efforts, which is counter to true giving.  So I will close the way I opened, with another photo from my recent trip to Longwood Gardens, featuring the color blue …

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and the observation that joyful gift giving can chase the blues away.