Christmas Procrastinators

There are two things that you should know about Christmas shopping with Michael and Katie Gaffner.

• Number One- We try to do "cash only", no credit cards. Why? Because January credit card statements give heart attacks and we prefer to start our year heart healthy.
• Number Two- We wait until the very last minute. Why? Because procrastination is cool.

Hence, our snowy shopping day extraordinaire yesterday with our equally as crazy sisters.

My sister, Jessica Lancaster on the left.
Michael's sister, Kelly Biggs on the right.

Michael warmed up the vehicle for us and went to work scrapping the windows. My husband, though a Michigander by heritage, is no fan of cold and snow. However, an afternoon with his wife and sisters shopping for almost six hours sounded like such a blast to him that he willingly accompanied. (There may be a hint of sarcasm there.)


We began our journey at 12:45pm and made a pit stop at Bojangles. One must fuel their bodies before embarking on a Christmas shopping venture. This is a Christmas shopping fact. Soon after, we stopped at Toys R Us to kick start our shopping spree. Jessica was obviously excited about our adventure beginning.

It is amazing how quickly four grown adults can become transfixed in a toy store and then utterly confused and lost in the same instance. We were armed with lists and we made our through the store at times, dumbfounded. What do you get for four little kids who really have way more than they need (or have room for)? And yet we were able to find plenty. After a shopping cart full of goodies between the four of us we left Toys R Us and headed to my favorite store in Danville, Target. I don't care how "small town" that makes me sound, I just love that place.

I am unsure how long we were in Target and did not document this part of our journey with any photographs but I can assure you that we had fun. After a dressing room trip, discussions on shoes and undergarments and finally a browse through the Christmas candy... we managed to leave with a few shopping carts full of goodies. I must admit, that a few of those shopping cart goodies were not Christmas presents but mommy finds (shhhh, don't tell Santa).

But it was K-Mart that proved to be the highlight of my shopping day, with finds so spectacular that they deserve a blog all on their own. Be on the lookout for that "tacky Christmas sweater" blog edition!

By 5:45pm our journey was coming to a close. The weather outside was certainly frightful and a roast awaited us in the crockpot at home. We were cold, broke, and shopping satisfied. For the day anyway. As the snowy shopping day journey came to a close, poor Kelly and Jessica were up to their necks in shopping bags and boxes in the backseat of the Durango, but they didn't seem to mind.

It was a day well spent with three of my favorite people in the whole world. When we arrived home and ate dinner with our crew of children, I felt so content. I said to Michael that did seem materialistic of me to feel so "Christmas-y" after shopping? He told me that of course it wasn't, and that he knew it had nothing to do with the stuff or the money. But instead that my joy was from spending an entire day thinking of someone else, shopping for our precious kids, and enjoying the company of each other.

So often we lose sight of things that are important in the midst of busy days and busy routines. Sometimes an impromptu snowy shopping day is all you need to be reminded of how blessed you are and how much you love even the "normal" mundane moments.

Christmas is about more than presents. I trust you have gathered that from several of my blogs in the last week. I hope that this last week before Christmas, you are able to find peace in your heart and joy on your lips as we approach the happiest day of the year!

And for all those wondering, no we didn't complete our shopping yesterday.
That would take all the fun out of last minute Christmas Eve shopping...duh.