Taking Commercialism Out of Christmas

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Big Box stores started to sell Christmas items in early October this year; this seems earlier every year. We are constantly bombarded with buy me messages. Ads are everywhere—YouTube, Facebook, television, radio, mail, magazines, newspapers, websites, billboards. Even our web browsing is tracked to bring us personalized ads.

When my kiddos were little, my goal was to keep Christmas as free of commercialism as possible and instead to make memories with simple, inexpensive family activities.  I was determined to keep the I wants at bay in our home and to make Christmas more about giving rather than getting. Here are five things I did to limit commercialism from invading our Christmas celebrations.

  1. Be other-centered. One of the best ways to combat the me-centeredness of commercialism in Christmas is to purposely look for ways to give and to serve others. Some of the things my family did annually included: ringing the Salvation Army bell, singing Christmas carols to nursing home residents, visiting neighbors as a family, making good tidings baskets for friends and neighbors, and sending shoe boxes full of gifts to  needy children. With the shoe boxes, each of my kiddos filled a box, including some items purchased with their own money.                            Photo of Christmas wrapped shoe box presents
  2. Limit screen time. What does this have to do with Christmas? Many children’s programming is not only meant to entertain our children, but to sell related merchandise–through their parents of course. Has your kiddo ever asked you repeatedly for that special toy they saw in an ad? Think Disney. There are entire Disney stores. No Disney-bashing here, but if you want to limit commercialism in your Christmas seasons, limiting screen time may be something to think about. But limiting screen time can seem daunting. What in the world would I do all day with my kiddos? Once they get over the I’m bored phase (which, granted, can be challenging), opportunities for creativity kick in. My adult kiddos’ best memories resulted from creativity that filled the screen void. It will require more of you but, I promise, their fondest memories won’t be of sitting in front of a screen.
  3. Limit gifts. My kiddos got one major gift from their Dad and I plus small stocking stuffers. That’s right, one. They were thrilled with the gift they received. Limiting and downplaying screen time were major contributors to this end. My kiddos didn’t know what they were supposed to want. They were happy with what they had and with what they received. My kiddos did receive generous gift from their grandparents and other family members. For these, they were encouraged to express thankfulness–a hug, verbal thank you, phone call, or a written note.Sticky note with "Thank you!"I repeatedly reminded my children something about the gift giver. The gift giver could have done anything with the time and money they spent on your gift, but they chose to give it to you.
  4. Make it homemade. Homemade makes some of the best memories. I had a file of homemade recipes and ideas specific for Christmas. We started right after Thanksgiving and made something homemade most days. Cookies galore, baklava, fudge, caramel corn, popcorn balls, lollipops, taffy, chocolate covered pretzels, spiced nuts, gingerbread Star-shaped cutout cookie with multi-colored sprinkleshouses, and breads were some of the things we made over the years. These items were not just for our family, though we enjoyed them too. We made our own good tidings baskets for our friends and neighbors and delivered them as a family to each one. The visit wasn’t long and was often at their front door but long enough to wish them a Merry Christmas and to let them know they were special to us.    

Our Christmas tree was full of homemade decorations–popcorn strings, cinnamon ornaments, bread ornaments, hand painted wooden ornaments, and hand-print ornaments. Every year since my kiddos were babies, I outlined their little hands on construction paper. We cut them out, decorated them, and hung them on the tree. They loved seeing how much their hands grew year after year. We also made advent paper chains and decorated our windows with stencils and spray snow.

Going homemade can be messy for sure but my motto was: Everyone makes the mess. Everyone helps to clean up the mess. You might find flour in places you didn’t know flour could go! For weeks afterward. Flour is one thing but glitter…oh my goodness. That stuff is nasty to clean up. I found glitter on my floors through July! Glitter was a no-go at my house after using it once. Use at your own discretion. Just sayin’.

5. Budget. Teach your children to budget their money to purchase Christmas gifts for each other and loved ones. This could be an allowance, pay for chores (if you’re so inclined), or gift money they received. I chose to give my children a meager allowance so they could learn to budget and appreciate the value of money. They had regular chores but could earn additional money by doing extra unsolicited chores. You might have your own ideas, but this worked for us. To help them to save and budget money, I used the envelope system with my kiddos. This was a concrete way for them to learn to budget. One of the budget categories was gifts. When Christmas approached, the kiddos took their envelopes, full of a year’s worth of savings (a few dollars at most), and we went shopping. They had something of their very own to give others. We’re talking Dollar Store or Walmart- nothing expensive. My kiddos learned the value of money and several other important lessons–the fruit of their labors, planning, and spending within their means, to mention a few.

Other-centered. Family time. Homemade. Giving. That’s what Christmas is all about. We give out of the goodness that has been given to us. Blessing others blesses us. No matter how you choose to celebrate Christmas, have fun making memories that will last a lifetime!

Merry Christmas

 

 

 

 

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Eileen Pehanich
Eileen is originally from Pennsylvania but raised her children in the Finger Lakes region of western New York. Auburn is Eileen’s new home after relocating recently from South Florida. Eileen holds a Master’s degree in Psychology and was Assistant Professor of Psychology and Human Relations at Genesee Community College in western New York and, most recently, Associate Director of Student Accessibility Services at Florida Atlantic University. She also has many years of experience as a social service professional in the criminal justice and substance abuse fields. Eileen has three adult children (plus one like a son) who are the joys of her life. Three of the four reside in the Auburn area with one holdout in the Finger Lakes. Eileen homeschooled her children for 12 years and is the self-proclaimed queen of home canning, freezing, gardening and frugal living. She was also a 4-H leader for 10 years. Eileen enjoys hanging out with her children, weight training, and the outdoors.