Five more days till Christmas D-Day, and I’m starting to lose my hold on Zen tranquility.

Until this week, I was doing quite well getting ready for the holidays.  Then, on Monday, I started receiving emails from my friends at LL Bean, Nordstrom, and Co. reminding me that I only had a few days left for purchases to reach their destination by December 24.  Awk!

I wasn’t going to do any shopping this year.  My sisters and close friends supported my plan to not exchange gifts, mostly.  (I’m ignoring the box that arrived yesterday.)  The real challenge are my kids.  I really worked on the kids to convince them that this should be their year of giving, not getting.  Unfortunately, subliminal messages, hypnosis, and bribery didn’t work.  I’m stuck playing the same role that I have played as a big sister and a mother - Sandra Claus. 

Thank goodness for modern technology!  Amazon.com has saved my sanity once again.  I’m using their Two-Day 1-Click button to receive my items by December 21.  There are no shipping costs, no crowds, and no budget-breaking point-of-purchase expenses.

I’ve even figured out how to get the advice I need to decide what games to get.  Usually, I go to Target and ask the teen working in the electronics section about the hot video games.  These kids are very helpful, but the popular games are almost impossible to find on the shelves.  Then, I end up buying stuff that looks great or is on sale, but that I never would have purchased if I hadn’t walked in the store.

Now, I’m visiting Metacritic.comwhere I can use the All-Time High Scores list to find the best games for our Wii console.

Ahh!  I’m starting to feel more relaxed about the holidays.  And, when I feel a little crazy, I’m going to pull out this Hallmark e-card, A Screaming Banshee Holiday!

More Holiday Shopping Suggestions:

Avoid One-Use Wonders This Holiday Season!

Wired On The Road

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