These Are My Confessions #2 (Christmas Edition)

+ I got a little salty this year toward people decorating for Christmas before Thanksgiving even happened. I know it's a commercial thing for stores, so they get a half-hearted pass, but people...what's so wrong with Thanksgiving that we have to completely overlook it and skip straight to Christmas? Maybe I'm just annoyed with this giant effort on the part of half of America to get rid of any holiday that they consider even slightly offensive (Columbus Day, anyone?). It makes me want to celebrate those holidays even harder, so there.

+ I think gift guides are useless and I have never once been inspired by one. First of all, they're so stereotypical. Wives want makeup, purses, cashmere scarves and fluffy bathrobes. Husbands want flasks, ties, socks, and some sort of electronics gadget. Except not. Second, what are with these "stocking stuffer" gift guides where nothing is under $50? I'm sorry, but $500 watches and iPhones are not stocking stuffers.

+ Get your pitchforks ready...I think that the Elf on a Shelf is ridiculous, and kind of wrong. Maybe I'm a little too opinionated on this, but I think I would just feel so extremely weird flat out lying to Imogen and telling her an elf doll is alive, watching her (um, creepy), and reporting back to Santa. I know people who go all out with the elf and that's fine, whatever, but I will forever hate it. We also don't do Santa (cue the collective gasps and "you're ruining your daughter's childhood" comments).

+ I don't really like "new" Christmas songs very much. There are some artists who do newer songs that I would consider more of a winter song than a Christmas song (for instance, look up The Sweeplings...bomb!) and those are okay, but overall, just give me the classics. Remixed, just fine! But entirely new songs tend to be cheesy, and I don't love cheesy Christmas songs. Unless it's "Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer," in which case bring on the cheese.

+ I don't think I'm going to do my annual Christmas craft this year. Maybe I will. We'll see. But I kind of don't think I will. There's enough going on with remodeling bathrooms and keeping a 5 month old alive and making travel plans, busting out the hot glue gun and paint and whatever else just isn't at the top of my priority list. Again, we'll see...on a related note, I can't even believe it's been an entire year since we announced we were having a baby.