Christmas???

I have been reading blogs this evening and 3 of them have mentioned Christmas!! I am just now getting out the fall decorations and looking forward to "sweater weather" and everyone else is thinking Christmas. I have to admit that by Labor Day I usually have all my shopping done and have started wrapping. This year is going to be harder. Every year the children and their families come for our "Christmas Weekend" (usually the first weekend in Dec) and its always a different theme. One year it was gifts from our past. I spent a lot of time on eBay finding toys that the girls played with when they were young. It was a blast! Last year was Family Togetherness. I emailed a schedule to each family for the whole weekend. They even had time scheduled to shop but every minute was planned. We had an old fashioned hayride around the neighborhood singing Christmas carols for almost 3 hrs because no one wanted to go back home. We then sat around the fireplace drinking hot chocolate and watching Christmas Vacation. Breakfast was green and red pancakes. I go overboard on decorating so there are trees in every room including the bathrooms. One year we took a limo ride to Friends In Need Animal Rescue and delivered bags of dog and cat food. This year our theme is "Old Fashion Christmas". Gifts have to either be homemade or from second hand store. We will be doing our hayride again but since we have moved we will get to entertain different neighbors (sorry old neighbors) There will be trees in every room again but they will be decorated old fashioned. The stockings will be hung again (all 20) but will be filled with candies and trinkets from olden days. The meals will be cooked on the wood cookstove and will be a menu from Little House in the Prairie times. I am very excited about this theme but must get busy making my gifts! I had told my friend Robyn about a tea party tree I have. It has a teapot on top for tree topper and old cups glued to saucers and tied on the tree with ribbon thru the handles. I made it for a antique shoppe I worked for at the time and now have it at home. It will be in my dining room this year with some silk tea roses stuck among the branches. Gee, now everyone has me thinking Christmas and I really must get back to thinking FALL.. You know Halloween, thanksgiving, scarecrows and pumpkins!!!