How do you plan to handle the cruise and the holidays?

[disneym2m]

This year WILL be interesting for us.

I usually put up the inside and outside Christmas decor the week of Thanksgiving and turn everything on Thanksgiving day/night, so I will probably do that again this year.

However, I leave for WDW Dec. 4 and return on the 18th so I will miss seeing the decor for two weeks. I think this year I will decorate less and just enjoy the Christmas decor at WDW and on the cruise ship.

All presents will be purchased before Thanksgiving with the exception of the Disney items I need to purchase.

It will be crazy and also feel a little weird to me that I celebrate Thanksgiving, a week later be at WDW, return home and then a week later celebrate Christmas. It WILL be interesting this year.... But a lot of fun and something different for the holiday season (which can be good...I hope).

 

[mnra]

I am one of those folks that put up way to much for xmas. I have scaled back in the past few years to only 5000 lights and 70 snowmen on the lawn. I start the week before thanksgiving and it is ready by thanksgiving weekend. So no real change for me. Everything contorlled by timers and the electric company loves me.

 

[Dodie]

I usually decorate every room and put up 2 or 3 trees (and it's just Phillip and me in the house)! Last year, when we put all of the decorations up in the attic in the garage, we consciously made the decision to put only the simplest of decorations in the front of the storage area - our 1960s aluminum tree with the color wheel and shiny ornaments and the stockings and such. Nothing else is coming down or getting put up this year.

All of the shopping has to be done before the cruise and everything will need to be wrapped before we go.

 

[klam_chowder]

I am one of those folks that put up way to much for xmas. I have scaled back in the past few years to only 5000 lights and 70 snowmen on the lawn. I start the week before thanksgiving and it is ready by thanksgiving weekend. So no real change for me. Everything contorlled by timers and the electric company loves me.

I those kinda houses!

If we're home for the holidays, we get a cut tree (well, I drag DH to a tree lot to find the perfect tree and he can't wait to get out of the cold. At least I'm willing to go to a local tree lot instead of a treefarm now .

But we'll away for Christmas this year again so I'll just hang a wreath on our front door and put out the Christmas welcome mat. Probably won't bother with in/outdoor lights. Stopped baking Christmas goodies and shipping them every which way a few years ago. Wow, sounds like I'm getting to be a bah humbugger!

The Christmas letter and handwritten cards, and gifts for our parents, all my siblings & their families and a few friends will be bought, wrapped and shipped before we head off. I'm really loving on-line shopping with the gift-receipt and wrapping options - saves me a lot of time and I think shipping is usually cheaper than what'd I'd pay at the post office too.

It doesn't come across in this post but I actually Christmas season!

cheers,

 

[kab407]

Shopping and delivery of gifts will be done well before I leave for the cruise.

As far as decorating, I don't. Single, live alone, no kids why bother? I keep it low key, no fuss.

 

[georgemoe]

Shopping and delivery of gifts will be done well before I leave for the cruise.

As far as decorating, I don't. Single, live alone, no kids why bother? I keep it low key, no fuss.

What a woman!

 

[wdwscout]

Our kids are grown (and 1 of them will actually be away this Christmas- in WDW )- but I will still decorate. I do it for ME!

We will still put up a live tree (DS#1 will be home to watch the water level).
We don't do outdoor decorations, but I do put lights in all the windows and hang (fake) pine boughs from the upstairs windows.
I have a tons of Christmas tchotchkes set all over the house- an ever growing nutcracker collection, a small snowman collection, stockings on the mantle- and of course our Epcot tree on the hearth (about 3 ft tall and decorated with an ornament from every country in World Showcase!)
May I will scale back a bit- we'll see....

I mail a good number of gifts to family far away- so that will all get done before we leave. Same with the cards.
Gifts for my Cast Member son will come with us on the plane- and some cookies, etc. for him and his roommates.

Gifts for the rest of my family will most likely be partially done- even though I will plan to complete everything before I leave- I know me

Most of all I want to be relaxed on the cruise and at WDW- that will be the BEST Christmas gift of all.
And

 

[parrotheadlois]

We will skip the cut down our own tree this year and put up our small artificial tree. We'll put up the outside lights before we leave. With the exception of our new "grand-nieces and nephew" and my Mom and Greg's Dad, everyone prefers gift cards, which we could start purchasing now and already have some. The babies - easy - we love buying toys - and the parents - well, they claim to like whatever we give them. Our goal is to have all gift buying and wrapping done before the cruise (it's a goal anyway).