Christmas Self-Shopping
 

LabRat made a comment about how she bought a bicycle seat but theoretically can't use it until after Christmas... and I had an epiphany that maybe I'm not the only spouse out there who pretty much has to buy (and wrap!) all her own Christmas presents every year.

So what level of surprise do you and your spouse maintain?

Do you tell your spouse several things you want, and let them pick from the list? Do you clearly pick out your own presents, and then let them go buy them? Do you buy things for yourself while you're Christmas shopping and then inform your spouse that this is what they got you? Do you go so far as to wrap your own presents? What about stockings?

Do you regret the loss of surprise, or prefer the fact that you know you'll be getting things you really want?

I volunteer to sniff the bicycle seat on Xmas morning, to check whether she has rested her sweet, sweet, hindquarters on it, during a sneaky midnight "ride" . . . And if she's been naughty, somebody will need to give her the spanking she deserves. This is what I want for Xmas.

Hubby and I give hints and make lists, but usually let each other make the purchases and do our own wrapping of gifts.

However, when I was in High School...
My sister and I had a Master Plan to make sure we got what we wanted: Sis would buy a sweater for herself, wrap it and put my name on the gift. I would buy a sweater for myself, wrap it and put her name on the gift. We would upwrap our gifts on xmas morning, smile at what we had bought for ourselves and exchange so we each got what we wanted.
hh

that sounds painful.

We have evolved to virtually no secrets left by Yule (we celebrate Yule instead of Xmas, so we're usually doing our gift thing on the 22nd or so). That is especially true this year.

We did the list thing in my family as I grew up - it evolved from the "letter to Santa". We still do it and I am encouraging Best Beloved to join in. You don't have to get something off the list, but it can be a great help.

These days Mrs. Dallas and I usually provide each other with some gift suggestions and go from there. There have been exceptions though--she once wanted to get me a scanner (the police radio kind) and had no clue what to get, so she just took me shopping with her.

My mom once took me out to buy some pants and shirts and then made me wrap them as my own Christmas gifts!

Oh, woops! Hanukkah starts tonite (Monkeyboy is Jewish, but he never reminds me when any of the holidays start)!

We never really think to make requests, they just kind of happen in some form.

I'm hard to shop for, so I give detailed lists of what I want. I try to put a lot of things on it to give many options to the giver. The problem is that my hobbies have very specific needs. For example, I like to do woodworking. There are a lot of crappy worthless gadget tools out there that an unknowledgeable gift giver might think is a good gift. I don't want them. If I want a drawknife for example, you can't just walk into Home Depot or Sears and buy one. You need to know what that is and where to order one. So I'll often have gift lists with links to places you can buy them.

There are some people who refuse to buy me things on my list, and they buy me other stuff. It sounds harsh and ungrateful, but they usually get me something I don't want, and I put it in a box in the basement, and after a few years donate it to a charity. I feel bad about this, because they are wasting their money and I'm not getting what I want, but at least Salvation Army is making a buck or two off the re-sale.

Lists are good.