I was doing a show this past weekend and we were talking about celebrating Christmas with family. Now many families have a "grab bag" of names for gift giving. Well, the exhibitor next to us said her family not only has the grab bag, but each gift MUST BE HANDMADE! No exceptions! She said at first there was resistance, but as time went on everybody got into it. You have a whole year to make your gift. Now a 4 year old may only have the talent to write "I love Grandma" on a piece of wood, but will Grandma EVER throw that piece of wood away? Or would she rather have a set of hankies that mom bought?

She said she and her brother never really got along but one time he got her name. He spent a year making a leather coat for her. That was 20 years ago and she still has that coat.

She said her family found out it isn't the gift, but the thought behind it that counted. The REAL meaning of Christmas.

Now my family is scattered throughout the country except for my wife's sister. So this year we are going to get the book "The night Before Christmas" and use it as the basis for our gift. It was done for us once and we found it to be a lot of fun.

You find words in the story and if you can find an appropriate gift for that word, you use it.

"Twas the night before Christmas

And all through the HOUSE,

Not a creature was STIRRING, not even a MOUSE."

There were three words that you could find a gift for. Nothing special, more of a gag gift. For "HOUSE" maybe something for a little girl's doll house. For "STIRRING" a wooden spoon set for the cook in the family. For MOUSE", a mouse pad for the teenager. See? You put a number next to the word, and a corresponding number on the package and who it's for. You can get a lot of small gifts for not a lot of money. And the funnier, the better!

At the end of the poem, when he says "Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night" you put a nice gift for everybody. Something the couple or family can use.

Put everything in one big box and wrap it.

I guarantee if anybody uses these ideas, Christmas will never be the same.