Christmas Shopping

Musings...

I heard a story of a couple spending hours shopping for a purchase recently.  It reminded me of a frustration my husband and I frequently experience around Christmastime.  You want to find the "perfect" or "right" gift. So, you start looking (if you're like me) and sometimes you find it quickly and sometimes you don't!  

I think the thing I often forget is that the extra time I take shopping takes time away from other things I should or could be doing.  And it makes an interesting comment about what I value.  Specifically, the value I put on "things" and pleasing others.  

Yesterday morning, I had one last gift to purchase for my mom for Christmas.  It's actually her only gift because it's a big gift.  I looked for about fifteen minutes and then went to check with my husband about whether what I'd found was okay.  He had a suggestion about what might be a better choice, so I went back to the drawing board and started looking around at three other websites.  I found about ten options and started narrowing them down.  After about thirty minutes, I settled on my choice and picked it.  I picked one that was guaranteed to arrive by Christmas (with free shipping) at a store that had a better and easier to deal with return policy in case she doesn't like it.

I'm thankful for internet shopping because of my kids.  It's easier to shop online for a few minutes than get in and out of the store (which I did six times with my kids yesterday in the span of three hours) for a single gift especially when I'm trying to think about it and don't know exactly what I'm getting.  But, I do hate how the time adds up!  

I think it all comes down to something a friend of ours said--that with more choices comes more unhappiness.  If you have a lot of choices, it's harder to choose because you think you might be happier with something else--even after you've chosen.  I think that unhappiness is a potential consequence whether you're purchasing something for yourself or someone else.  

I think my Christmas shopping is almost done.  I have one gift that I need to buy on Friday without my children, one gift card to mail, and one more gift for a family member.  Yay!