Social Anxiety Disorder: Holiday Spoiler

The scent of crisp pine and the cold December breeze are unmistakable signs that the holidays are just around the bend. And while the season of merriment is fast-approaching, various social activities are looming, which most shy people are dreading to avoid. Worse, the holiday season is a time of year when feelings of love, joy, grief, and anxiety tend to be exaggerated.

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Shy people are preoccupied with thoughts of self-consciousness and insecurity. They always feel that others are looking at them with scrutiny. A feeling of falling short of expectations. What shy people don't realize is that other people can feel just as uncomfortable at social events as they are.
Shyness is characterized by a feeling of discomfort or inhibition at social situations that interferes with our ability to enjoy, to perform at the level we are capable of, or causes us to avoid social situations altogether. It is a form of excessive self-focus, a preoccupation with one's thoughts, feelings, and physical reactions. Shyness may range from mild social awkwardness to totally inhibiting social phobia, more commonly known as Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD).
Social phobia is a form of anxiety disorder characterized by an unreasonably overwhelming anxiety and excessive self-consciousness in everyday social situations. Social anxiety disorder can be limited to only one type of situation, such as a fear of speaking in formal or informal situations; or eating and drinking in front of others.  In its most severe form, a person may experience symptoms almost every time they are around other people. Physical symptoms include blushing, sweating, trembling, nausea, rapid heartbeat, dizziness, and headaches.
Social anxiety disorder can make people become very apprehensive when meeting other people for fear of being scrutinized and rejected. Just like shyness, people with SAD are afraid they will commit mistakes and will look stupid in front of other people. But the difference is, people with SAD have an almost ever-present anxiety. They develop avoidance patterns to make their world smaller but safer, hindering their career and social progress.

People with social anxiety disorder suffer from distorted thinking, including false beliefs about social situations and the negative opinions of others. Without treatment, social anxiety disorder can negatively interfere with the person's normal daily routine, including school, work, social activities, and relationships.
By facing their fears and acquiring conversational skills, shy people can eventually overcome their shyness. However, exposure to fearful situations fails to desensitize people with SAD. They are enveloped by “the fear of fear itself.”
Thanks to modern technology, new and improved treatments are being developed for social anxiety disorder. Known as the gold standard of treatment, Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is most commonly used to treat people with situational anxiety, which is characterized by specific fears, such as giving a speech, making phone calls, or talking to salespeople. CBT helps people change the way they think, behave, and deal with their anxiety. It guides the person's thoughts in a more rational direction and help the person stop avoiding situations that once caused anxiety. It teaches people to react differently to the situations that trigger their anxiety symptoms. Therapy may include systematic desensitization or real life exposure to the feared situation.

For chronic, generalized social anxiety disorder, CBT may be combined with antidepressant or anti-anxiety drug therapy. Counseling to improve self-esteem and social skills, as well as relaxation techniques, such as deep breathing, may also help a person deal with social anxiety disorder.
Although there is no single known cause of social phobia, research suggests that biological, psychological and environmental factors may play a role in its development. And while social anxiety disorder cannot be prevented, seeking help as soon as symptoms surface can help make therapies and medications more effective.
So when the holiday parties start rolling, remember to focus not on yourself to enjoy your fears away.

Post-Christmas Financial Difficulties

If you’ve spent more than your budget can cope with, then maybe you’re thinking about credit to help you through January. Many people fear the long, broke month of January. After a lovely Christmas full of joyous smiles January can see a mood swing in the wrong direction. Many of us turn to credit cards to help get through this terrible month. But without knowledge of the financial industry a person without a great income can fall victim to the evil grip of unscrupulous credit companies.

In his newspaper article, Simon Bain of the Herald tells of how one particular bank has been sending credit card applications to people with offers of a credit card with APR of up to 69% (http://www.theherald.co.uk/business/52784.html). This astounding rate applies with a credit limit of £150, while an APR of 41% applies to a credit limit of £1500.

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Quick additional sums of money may seem very tempting to people at this time of year, and without consideration a lot of people will be more than tempted. But it’s not until later that the repercussions of such a high interest hit home. This can lead to difficulties in February, which spill over into March …and so on, until before you know it it’s Christmas again and you have serious problems.

So before you go looking for short-term solutions that could lead to long-term problems, take some time to consider your options so that you can decide what kind of year you’re going to have.

There are many cheap and easy ways to get credit card advice this New Year. The best way is just to log on to the web. There are many sites out there dedicated to offering financial advice. One of these sites is http://Moneynet.co.uk. Here you can check out all of your options. There is a great page dedicated solely to providing credit card advice ( http://www.moneynet.co.uk/credit-card-guide/index.shtml ) as well as many pages advising the card with best introductory rate, the best standard rate etc.

So, before you go down the wrong road, check out what your options are this January, and make sure you truly do have a happy New Year.

Making a Christmas Budget

Having a budget for the holidays has many benefits. Making a Christmas budget is not that difficult to do, once you understand the basics and apply these basics to your household. Here are a few steps for making your Christmas budget.

When you have a Christmas budget, you are less likely to be stressed out after the holidays regarding overspending, or paying off big bills. You won't find yourself robbing other household budgets to pay for Christmas gifts. Your credit cards will not be over limit and your savings will be safe. The benefits are many, so get ready, and make your Christmas budget by following these simple Steps.

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Step #1 - Determine how many people you need to purchase gifts for this holiday season.

Step #2 - How much are you willing to spend no gift giving (did you have a Christmas funds account all year? if not don't fear).

Step #3 - Understanding how much you can comfortably afford to spend on gifts is half the battle of making a Christmas budget.

Step #4 Finding out how much you can spend if you do not know:

Find out how much is in savings or Christmas fund accounts. Write down all household expenses including bills, utilities, food and gasoline. Make sure that household expenses are set aside and you do not touch this money for gifts. Any funds outside of these household expenses can be used for gift giving. Do not use credit cards unless you have one that is solely for this purpose.

Step #5 - Consider making at least some of your gifts this year. Especially for grandparents, aunts and uncles who love to receive current photos of the kids, making photo collages and handcrafted items that the kids make, will be big hits that won't cost much to make.

Step #6 - After knowing how much $$ is in the Christmas Gift budget you can make a list of all the gift giving related items that you need to purchase.

Christmas Gift Budget Categories:

Present

Gift Wrapping

Ribbons and Bows

Gift Tags

Step #7 – Allocate the amount you believe you will need to spend on all categories except Present. The amount left over is what you have to spend on presents.

Step #8 – Deciding what to spend on each present – You can take the total amount of funds available in your budget for presents and divide it by how many people you need to buy presents for an example would be if your budget for presents is $250.00 and you have 8 people that you need to buy presents for, you would divide 250 by 8 and get $31.25 for each person. You may also decide that there are kids on your list that you would like to spend more money on and adults that you can spend less money on. You may have 3 adults and 5 kids to buy presents for and decide that you can find good gifts for $10 for the adults. You would then have $220 to split between 5 kids which would mean that you could spend $44 on each child. You can buy one gift for $44 or split the $44 into smaller gifts for each child.

Summary:

A Christmas budget will help you to stay within your spending means and this equates to a happier and less stressful after holiday season. Make sure that you remember to take into account that you will be spending more gasoline on shopping trips, going to Christmas parties and family gatherings during the holiday season, so keep this in mind when allocating funds.

If you do attend a lot of holiday parties, you may also want to make a category for host/hostess gifts. If you throw any holiday parties be sure to allot funds for the purchases you need to make for these parties.

Budgets are designed to help you spend without stressing too much, so take advantage of these steps now, so that this year, the holidays will be all about having fun with family and friends and less about stressing out over money.

Make Your Holidays More Enjoyable without Spending One Extra Dime

There are many techniques for improving your holidays.  If you don’t believe it, just take a look at the advertising circulars in your Sunday newspaper or take a quick television advertising tour.

The perfect toy will make your child happy and will fill you with the joy of Christmas.  A new set of bargain priced indoor-outdoor Christmas lights will make you the envy of the neighborhood and will give you a warm sense of holiday satisfaction.  Christmas, the jewelers tell us, won’t really be complete unless that special woman receives the gift that lasts forever (and takes nearly as long to pay off).  Even the simple notion of purchasing a holiday greeting card is imbued with heightened significance.  Tear jerking commercials remind us just how important it is to buy the name brand cards if we really want to communicate our feelings for loved ones during the holiday season.

It is no wonder holiday stress has reached epidemic proportions.  We receive message after message telling us just how important every single thing we buy and do is with respect to having a good holiday season.  Simultaneously, we are bombarded with reminders that this is the most important time of the year.  Confronted with these messages, we look for a way out.  We look for a way to capture that elusive sense of holiday satisfaction—often with a wad of cash or a credit card.

There’s nothing wrong with spending within your means to have an enjoyable holiday.  It is, after all, a time of giving and a time of celebration and some level of cost is probably inevitable.  No one should begrudge another for buying that holiday diamond or eschewing cut-rate greeting cards.  However, there are ways to increase your enjoyment of the holidays without spending one extra dime.

One great piece of holiday wisdom is the simple reminder to “think about ideas and people instead of things.”  Even the most free-spending Christmas shopper, when asked, will tell you that the holidays are a time to reflect on the messages of the season and to spend time with loved ones.  The spirit of the holidays can be transmitted by proxy in the form of a shiny toy or even shinier ring, but the message is actually more clearly communicated by a simple hug or a quality conversation.

Too often, we use things as our means of expression instead of using ourselves.  By retaining a focus on people and ideas instead of things, we find can begin to really communicate the message of love that underlies everyone’s understanding of the holidays.  A hug, a conversation or a walk around the block with a loved one doesn’t cost a dime and can be the best way to build holiday cheer, pleasant memories, and an appreciation of the holidays.

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Another free means by which you can enjoy the holidays more is by making a contribution of time to a cause you support.  There is absolutely nothing wrong with making financial or material contributions to charities.  In fact, those contributions are entirely necessary for most charitable organizations to stay afloat and are also a great way to celebrate the holidays.  However, giving of yourself can really make the holidays matter and add a dimension to your appreciation of the holiday season.

Volunteering one’s time and energy to a charitable cause can increase one’s appreciation of the holidays and allows them to truly embody the spirit of giving that underpins the season.  These simple acts of kindness can be truly transformative—not only for those who benefit from the gift but also for those who are willing to volunteer.

If you want another strand of Christmas lights and they fit into your budget, go ahead.  Feel free to pick up that great toy for your child and the expensive knick-knack for your spouse.  Buy only the best wrapping paper, if you so desire.  If you feel like you can improve your holiday season with a few purchases, you can go ahead and try.

However, you should also remember that there are a few things you can do that won’t cost you a bit that can really increase the quality of your holiday season.  Remember to think about people and ideas—instead of things.  Consider volunteering your time and effort to a worthwhile cause, too.  Simple things like these can improve a holiday more than any gadget or gift.

How To Not Blow Your Budget This Christmas.

Every year thousands of families make a fresh decision to start living by a budget. They set up accounts on their home computer, begin to track everything they spend and set limits designed to help them save more and spend less.

Gwen Mathews is the Mother/Chief Accountant in one of these new budget conscious families. She and her husband Pete set up some ambitious financial plans with the goal of paying off their credit card debt. They split their family income up into categories and were doing just great. That is until the holiday season came along.

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As Gwen scanned the family Christmas list she realized that the ‘gift giving category’ her and Pete had agreed to early in the year wasn’t going to cut it.

Pete, Gwen and their three children sat down after dinner that night and laid out the situation. Christmas was a month away and the budget was clearly not going to buy the family the kind of presents that they were used to. They needed to make some decision together as a family. What did they want more? Expensive Christmas gifts or a shrunken credit card balance?

The secret to keeping a budget during the holidays is to:

A. Have a clear vision of your priorities. Remind yourself and your entire family of the reasons you had for getting on a budget in the first place.

B. Make a complete gift shopping list and then prioritize it according to your relationship with that person. Immediate family comes first, extended family, friends, co-workers, etc. Start at the bottom and cross off any names that absolutely don’t need to be there – then assign a portion of your budget to each of the remaining names.

C. Get creative with your gift giving. A day in the kitchen with the oven at 350 degrees will take care of a lot of people on your shopping list. A plate of home made Christmas cookies is a welcome and touching gift.

D. Give up keeping up with the neighbors. The surest path to a blown budget is to start comparing what you’re doing with what someone else is doing. Remember, they’ll likely be crying come January.

E. Don’t start shopping too early. Many a Mom has spent their entire holiday budget before Thanksgiving thinking she’s a smart cookie to get it all out of the way. Then the Christmas sales kick in and she’s kicking herself and thinking ‘Well I can spend just a little bit more can’t I?”.

F. Final rule: No impulse buying. If someone gives you an unexpected gift, it doesn’t mean you have to run out and buy them something – that’s what 'Thank You' is for.

By keeping their goals in mind and recruiting the support of their children, Pete and Gwen survived the holidays within their budget. As their gift to each other they wrote an extra payment to the credit card company. If they keep that up, they’ll be celebrating a debt free Christmas next year.

Holidays Screensavers - How To Select Best Free Holidays Screensavers?

Holidays and screensavers make a great combination. Holidays are important because they change our mood. The most busy and depressed of us become happy and energetic during holidays. Watch the faces during Christmas, Halloween, thanksgiving and other holidays. You will find a distinct glow and smile. The hearts are full of love and giving. The anxieties and envies are forgotten for a day.

Holiday screensavers designed for specific holidays add to this mood by providing us the visuals. Please remember that most of us are visual persons. Words don't affect them much, but a visual does. A drawing of Santa makes more difference to visual people than a paragraph about Christmas. For such visual persons, Holidays screensavers are a great boon.

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Today, on a very good website, you get free holidays screensavers. Download as many as you wish. Holidays or no holidays, watch them any time and any day and you will feel a change in your mood. The holidays screensavers are normally made for holidays such as- 4th July, Christmas, Easter, Halloween, Hanukkah, Happy Holidays, Memorial Day, New Year, Patriot Day, Rosh Hashanah, St. Patrick's Day, Thanksgiving, Valentines Day etc.

Download screensavers that are good looking, have bright colors, with low file weight, easy to install and uninstall, with music and good to look at. Download free holiday screensavers and enjoy a holiday everyday on your computer desktop.

Holiday Planning Tips For Busy Moms

Ahhh, the Holidays…… The Thanksgiving turkey comes out of the oven golden brown, with an enticing aroma that fills the entire house. All the china is in pristine condition and not a single piece in the set is missing. The family is gathered for holiday pictures, the children are poised perfectly; hands to themselves, not a hair out of place and their smiles are shining brightly for the camera. Then just as the photographer is about to capture the shot… you wake up!

Let's be realistic ladies. Without proper planning, the holidays are anything but a holiday. Just look at the list of things that need to be done: Shopping, cooking, cleaning, decorating, sending holiday mail, the list goes on and on.

Let me clue you all in on a few key questions that you should ask yourself in order to have a holiday season free of stress and worry, and instead filled with fun and laughter:

What types of holiday celebrations do you want? For example: Do you want to have an immediate family only holiday affair or an extravaganza including immediate and extended family plus a few friends? Once you've thought everything through and decided on the type of holiday gathering you would like, you can then start making your plans.

If you are ready to get a head start on organizing yourself, your family and your holiday check lists, then keep reading:

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Holiday Cards: Start early! I use a holiday card list that I derive from saving names and addresses from holiday cards my family has received in past years. I created a simple, computerized list that is easy to edit and print onto address labels. Be sure to stock up on stamps so that when you have your cards signed, stuffed and addressed you can affix a stamp to them and make one, simple trip to the Post Office.

Holiday Gifts: There's nothing like getting a HUGE credit card bill in the mail at the start of the New Year. Many of us tend to want to be generous when shopping for holiday gifts. While your generosity will be appreciated at gift giving time, keep in mind that it is very easy to succumb to "impulse buying" and go all out on your holiday shopping. While your intentions may be good, your pocketbook may be singing a different song. Set a budget and stick to it – your bank account will thank you for it after the start of the New Year.

Wrap it up: Wrap your gifts and place nametags on them immediately after you bring them home, then store the gifts in a secure spot. This will cut down on those late night wrapping sessions that I am sure we ALL have experienced a few times, if not every year.

Baking & cooking: If you will be cooking during the holidays, it is important to plan your meals ahead of time. Be sure to stock up ahead of time on all the necessary non-perishable baking ingredients such as flour, sugar and spices. Create a list of your holiday menus and a list of the ingredients you will need to prepare each of those meals. Also, try to think of a few dishes that can be prepared ahead of time and then frozen as an extra timesaving measure

Delegate: This is one of my favorite tips. Be sure to enlist the help of your family or friends. Sit down and discuss what needs to be done then ask for volunteers. If no hands are raised, simply assign small tasks to each of them. Whether it is arranging for a babysitter so that you can escape for a child free day of shopping, passing the shopping list onto another family member or friend so that they can pick up the items for you, or letting the children decorate your home. Be sure to get the whole family involved in the holiday preparations so that you will not be overwhelmed.

Enjoy: Whatever you decide to do, remember to relax and enjoy yourself. You and your family will have much fonder memories of this holiday season if you are not spending it pulling your hair out.

Holiday Money

We are getting close again to the holidays again. While this is always a joyous time of year it can be stressfully too. It is a time when many people celebrate, but everyone can use some extra money to help pay the bills. A lot of people are looking for the extra income by the searched on the web such as holiday money, earn extra holiday money, Christmas extra money, extra holiday money, Holiday money and extra money for the holidays.

As a work at home web site owner it is important to realize that many of these folks are not looking for an online business as much as a way to create some quick cash to help pay for presents or even help with the monthly bills. The Internet seems like a good place for those desiring to create some additional income.

Here are just a few of the areas that may fit well for these folks:

Telephone Answering
Data Entry
Type At Home
Online Paid Surveys
Mystery Shoppers
Focus Groups
Ad Publishing

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This is just a few of the many that I have located, but this does cover the most popular of programs.

You need to use a SCAM filter, because there are many bad programs that will take your money and give you nothing in return. My suggestion is to use a website like mine, whereby the research has been done for you rather than spending hours researching the web. The cost is the same for you whether you use a website like mine, but not necessarily mine, because the companies pay site owners a small commission. The cost of the program if there is one is the same as if you were to buy from them directly.

Once you have either found a website or done the research yourself you will then need to choose from the many programs that are available to you. There are many good programs out there you just need to find them so you don't waste your time. Just give yourself the best chance for success.

You need to be prepared to do some work at home. It will take some effort, not as much as your day job, but it can be done. Who knows you may want to continue after the holidays.  In my opinion you will need the following basic equipment to operate from home:

Computer
Printer
Access to the Internet
Word processor with spell check

Many people are making a lot of money online and have replaced their day jobs, in some cases, so that they can stay home with their families and enjoy a better quality of life. You can be very successful if they pick the right program to meet their goals and dreams. You must make sure that the match is right for you.

Take your time, make your selections, join one or two programs, get started and start making money today. Please feel free to read more of this article by visiting my link in the resource box below. I always enjoy getting emails pertaining to my articles or my site. Your feedback is important to me.

Holiday Guide-Enjoy your holidays & be healthy!

Holiday season is the best among all seasons. Holiday season is the best for family gatherings, spending time with friends, and snowball battles. All of us want to enjoy holiday season. Several people feel migraine problems and severe headaches due to wrong strategy of spending holidays.  You should follow some guidelines to enjoy wonderful holidays.

Following are some ideas that will definitely help you to make great holiday season:

During holidays try to eat little of everything whatever you want because holidays means fun not eating! Eat little instead of joining a gym after holidays.

Avoid potatoes & stuffed food. You should eat more vegetables during holidays to be fit and fine.

Don’t spend your holidays in watching TV. You should spend your time with your nears & dears.

Make a list of important activities that you want to do during holidays. This will reduce your tension and headache.

You should also make a budget for your holidays and be familiar with your limitations. Don’t try to create more social events.

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You may also handover some of your important tasks to a responsible person who is able to perform those tasks efficiently.

Get familiar with your financial limitations and also don’t try to cross your spending limit.

Don’t forget to take rest because you’ve to go back to your work after holidays.

Do your regular exercises and drink plenty of water and juices.

Find some different ways that can make you happy. Forget the difficulties of past and be ready to enjoy your future.

Don’t spend a lot on travel. You should try to participate in the festivals, marriages, birthday parties and other lovely occasions.

Always spend your holidays with your caring friends, colleagues and family members.

And of course don’t forget to laugh.

Holiday Cards and Holiday Invitations

The holidays are a wonderful time to send a personal letter to old friends and new friends. There are a great variety of holiday cards to send depending on what the occasion is. Holiday cards don’t need to be sent just at the end of the year either. There are holiday cards to send year round. And with holidays, also come holiday parties, so don't forget about holiday party invitations too.

The end of the year is the most popular time to send holiday cards. If the sender is sending Christmas wishes or hosting a Christmas party, there are numerous types of cards and invitations available. There are many themes for holiday parties including traditional Christmas elements such as Christmas trees, wreathes, and presents. Other elements may include poinsettias, snowmen, and bells. For a Hanukkah celebration, there are many wonderful invitations and cards featuring traditional menorah or Dradle.

Kids Christmas Activities And Games

There are lots of other holidays year round that may call for sending a card or throwing a party. Independence Day invitations or 4th of July invitations are very popular. The summer time is a great time to get guests together for an outdoor barbeque or picnic. There are some great invitations that feature the flag or fireworks. Halloween is also a great opportunity to send cards or throw a costume party. Halloween invitations have some great themes like pumpkins, ghosts, and trick or treaters.

Since you will often need to order lots of invitations or holiday cards, it is important to find a distributor that offers a discount. Many distributors will offer a discount for orders over 25 or 50 invitations. Others offer a discount for ordering invitations online. Look for discounts like 25% off or free shipping. These types of discounts can help save a bundle, especially helpful at the holiday times when money can be spent on other things.

So no matter when or what the occasion, cards and invitations can always come in handy. Choose the best theme for your party and find discount cards and discount invitations to stay in a budget. And most importantly, have fun!

History of Some Christmas Traditions

Christians celebrate Christmas to observe the birth of Jesus Christ, which is an event and not a tradition. But many other
activities related to celebrating the Christmas season evolved from certain traditions, many of which are from other countries,
particularly from peoples in Europe.

Among common items used in Christmas decorations are the holly and the mistletoe. Both are used primarily in wreaths
and garlands. The Druids started the tradition of using the mistletoe as decorative items up to two hundred years before Christ. To
celebrate the winter season, the Druids would gather the plants and use them to decorate their homes. The Druids believed the
mistletoe would bring good luck and ward off evil spirits. They also believed that the mistletoe had a healing quality and could be
used for everything from healing wounds to increase fertility.
In Scandinavia, the mistletoe was seen as a plant of peace and harmony and was associated with Frigga, the goddess of
love. This association is probably what led to the custom of kissing under the mistletoe. In the Victorian period, the English also
would hang mistletoe from ceilings and in doorways during holidays. The habit developed that if someone was standing under the
mistletoe, someone else in the room would kiss that person. Such outright behavior was not generally seen in Victorian society.
The use of the mistletoe in Christmas celebrations was once banned by the church however because of its associations with
pagan traditions, and the use of holly was suggested as a substitute.

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Poinsettias are another traditional decorative flower used at Christmas. It is native to Mexico and is named after Joel
Poinsett, who was the first U.S ambassador to Mexico and who brought the plants to America in 1828. Mexicans believe the plants
were a symbol of the Star of Bethlehem and that's one reason they are associated with Christmas. There's also the story that a young
boy was going to see the Nativity Play at a church but realized he didn't have a gift for Baby Jesus. The boy gathered some green
branches, which others scoffed at. But as he placed them near the manger, a bright red poinsettia flower started to bloom on each
branch, which gave rise to their traditional use at Christmas.
Candy canes became a Christmas tradition not because their red and white stripes matched the colors of the season, but for
the most unusual reason of discipline. that's because they were first used as treats that were give to German children to keep them
well-behaved for the duration of church sermons. Over time, the legend of candy canes at Christmas came to be associated with some
of the strongest symbols and beliefs of Christianity: the Father, Son and Holy Ghost known as the Trinity, the Blood of the Son of
God, Jesus as the embodiment of holiness, purity and without sin and the Son of God as the shepherd of man. The candy cane
represents these symbols respectively with its three stripes, its red and white color and its shape.
Sending greeting cards during Christmas and the holidays is as prevalent today as the custom of giving gifts. The tradition
of sending Christmas cards started in 1840 in Britain with the start of public postal delivery service of the 'Penny Post.' Then from
about 1860, large numbers of Christmas greeting cards started to be produced. The popularity of the cards increased in Britain when
they could be sent by the postal service for one half-penny, which was half the price to post a standard letter at the time, if they were
in an unsealed envelope. Religious pictures of Mary, Joseph , Baby Jesus, the angels, shepherds and Wise Men were traditionally
placed on Christmas cards. Some cards today include scenes from the Nativity, but pictures of Santa Claus, winter scenery, Christmas
trees, gift packages and others are also depicted on contemporary Christmas greeting cards.

Give One, Get One: Christmas Cards

Christmas is one of the best times of the year. It is anticipated greatly and loved by all. Some people begin planning for the next year's Christmas at the beginning of January. They think about the parties they will host, the people they will see, and the relatives and friends they will reconnect with. Those who love shopping hunt for the perfect gifts all throughout the year. There are many special traditions that people celebrate around Christmastime. One of the best traditions for many people is the exchange of Christmas cards.

Exchanging Christmas cards is an important part of many peoples' holiday. Because gifts can be really expensive, most people choose to send many people in their life the simple gift of a card. And what a gift a Christmas card can be. A thoughtfully chosen card with a personalized note inside makes anyone feel special around the holidays. If there are way too many people on your gift list this year considering giving unique Christmas cards instead.

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If you are looking for something different or a way to put even more personal touch into your cards, try making your own Christmas cards this year. This way you can choose the papers you like, the colors your friends and family enjoy most, and you can design a card uniquely for each family on your list. Another great benefit of making your own Christmas cards is including your children in the process. Allow them to roll up their sleeves and get creative. Grandparents, aunts and uncles, and family friends will love whatever creation they come up with. Making cards yourself will allow you to save money that we all know is valuable around the expensive holiday season.

Exchanging Christmas cards can be a great way to keep in touch with friends all over the country and the world. As you have opportunities to travel and meet new friends, committing to exchange Christmas cards can be a great way to stay connected even after your travels end. It is a special thing to stay in relationship with people who all come together to celebrate Christmas each year. Rather than sending packages all around the world, you can save money, time and still be thoughtful by sending a card.

And perhaps the best thing about exchanging Christmas cards is just that: you exchange them. Not only to do you take the time and energy to prepare cards for family and friends, but you also can anticipate receiving cards from people near and far. Getting the mail each afternoon can quickly become the highlight of a families' day during the holiday season. You feel loved and valued each time you open an envelope and get to discover the unique and beautiful card that is inside. You can experience the joy and care that your friends and family experienced as they created the perfect Christmas cards for you and yours.

As Christmastime rolls around this year, take time to cherish each important person in your life by creating unique Christmas cards for each of them.

Getting over the Christmas Giving Blues? Take the Christmas Budget Challenge.

Getting over the Christmas Giving Blues? Take the Christmas Budget Challenge.

Written by Bernie Wiemers Copyright 2005 http://www.my-wealth-plan.com

With Christmas just around the corner, our focus is slowly starting to shift from our work commitments to Christmas and with it comes the annual Christmas spending spree. Unfortunately many families don't set a Christmas budget and they rely on their credit cards to get them through the festive season.

Shortly after Christmas these same families will also develop symptoms of the "Christmas Giving Blues" which can include an upset stomach, lack of sleep and anxiety.


You know that feeling. You spend up big, charge it on the card, and then spend the next couple of months worrying about how you are going to pay off your Christmas debts while vowing never to let this happen to you again.

Unfortunately, this is a reality for a lot of families every Christmas and they just don't seem to be able to break out of the cycle.

This year, give yourself and your family a Christmas gift and take the "Christmas Budget Challenge" and enjoy your Christmas without the suffering the Christmas Blues.

There are two parts to the Christmas Budget Challenge:

1. Put in place a strategy that will help you survive Christmas with as little pain as possible.

2. Put in place a strategy that will give you a plan to enjoy your next Christmas. This plan will also run itself without you even thinking about it.

Let's start by putting in place a plan that will hopefully make this Christmas a little easier on your hip pocket:

1. Have a look at your finances and set an upper limit that you can afford for your Christmas spending. Allocate a certain amount to Gifts and a certain amount to other Christmas expenses. This is the start of your Christmas budget.

2. Leave the credit card at home and pay for Christmas with money wherever possible.

3. Keep track of all your Christmas spending. A good way of doing this is by carrying a small notebook and pencil and writing your purchases in it.

Gift Buying

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4. Call your relatives and agree that Gifts will only be purchased for the children

5. Take your Christmas Gift budget that was allocated in step 1 and divide it by the number of gifts you need to buy. This number will be the maximum you can spend on each gift.

Christmas Food Shopping

6. Take your Christmas Dinner budget and make a shopping list.

7. When you are doing your shopping use a calculator to make sure you stay within your Christmas budget.

8. Save money by looking for the cheaper priced goods on the top and bottom shelves. Try not to buy items that are on shelves at eye level, these are usually the higher priced items.

9. Try not to buy items that are located in the displays at the end of the shopping aisles, these items are usually more expensive than the items located in the aisles.

10. Compare prices of similar items and buy the cheaper item.

11. Remember that Christmas is only one day a year. You don't have to spend a weeks worth of grocery money on one day.

12. Ask each relative to provide a food dish, drinks or dessert.

 As soon as Christmas is over and the pain is fresh in your mind. You need to take action and put in place the second part of the "Christmas Budget Challenge". This next step will ensure that you have enough money for next Christmas

1. Add up all your Christmas expenses including gifts, food and any other costs.

2. Take the total of your Christmas expenses and divide it by the total amount of pays until next Christmas.

3. Open high interest bank account with the following attributes:
- No minimum starting balance
- Interest is accrued daily and billed monthly
- Interest rate on this bank account must be higher than the inflation rate.
- No bank charges

ING Direct and Citibank have an online banking account that may be suitable for your Christmas Budget account.

4. Organize an automatic bank transfer from your bank account to your Christmas Budget account. This transfer will be on each payday for the amount you worked out in step 2. It is important that this is automated because most people will not stick to this plan if it is a manual process.

5. When next Christmas comes around withdraw your money and repeat the process again.

You can get a free excel "Christmas Budget Challenge" spreadsheet from http://www.my-wealth-plan.com/christmasbudget.zip. Use this spreadsheet as a template for your Christmas Budget,

This plan is very simple and surprisingly effective and you will be able to enjoy your next Christmas without the suffering the Christmas Giving Blues.

General Festivities and Entertainment at Christmas

Christmas is described as a festive season therefore we should all engage
in activities during the season that provide entertainment, merriment and which
give pleasure. Because Christmas is about celebration, many types of festivities
can be found to suit all preferences to make the season a joyful one.
A readily available option is watching Christmas movies. This can be done
from the comfort of home or by spending a few hours out at the theater. A
wonderful option now available for obtaining movies is to rent them via the
Internet. It's an option that allows you to get any movie you want to see -
whether traditional, popular or a remake of an original title. There's also
fairly easy access to obscure movie titles, as well as movies with holiday or
Christmas themes.

Although Christmas movies embody the spirit of the season, you can also
take time out during Christmas to enjoy new releases that may or may not have a
holiday theme. Christmas is a good time to catch notable new releases because
they are  timed to be shown in theaters before the end of the year to be
considered for prestigious Oscar nominations.
Performances of Christmas plays that depict the Nativity scene are also
another popular entertainment during Christmas. Although these performances are
done year after year, they never grow old because of creative difference in
interpreting the story, and also in how each role is acted by different actors
every year.
The dramatization of the Nativity demonstrates the meaning of Christmas and can
also simplify the meaning of Christmas for children. Participation in the
Nativity is also an important activity for children in drama groups at schools
and church groups.
Along with depicting the meaning of Christmas, the Nativity play also portrays
moral lessons that can serve as an inspiration for the way to become a more
spiritual person and to live a better life. Watching or taking part in the
Nativity play at Christmas time can therefore affect your attitude and outlook
on life.

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Musical entertainment at Christmas can come from pausing during shopping to
listen to a choral group at the mall or downtown. It can also be entertaining to
simply hum along to a Christmas carol or song being played on the radio. Carols
as a tradition at Christmas is said to originate in England and France in the
Middle Ages. At the time, carols were dances accompanied by singing. The
tradition that Anglo-Saxons preferred was to have small choirs gather on the
village green and sing carols and Christmas songs to passersby. Over time, the
meaning of the word changed to refer to only certain types of songs.
The tradition of carols is also believed to evolve from the angels, shepherds
and Wise Men who bowed down to sing praises and to worship Baby Jesus.
For those who are really lovers of the arts, professional groups like
Orchestras, Symphonies, Conservatories and Choirs also offer splendid concerts
during Christmas. They will also sing Christmas carols and songs. But the
harmony of their voices accompanied by a full compliment of instruments provides
a richer and more melodious rendition of the carols that is unlikely to be heard
anywhere else.
Probably the most popular festivities at Christmas are parties, which seem to
happen everywhere all the time at Christmas. There are parties at work, home,
with friends and class parties at school. Even social hubs such as bars may have
special nights with different food and lower-priced drinks during Christmas.
It seems there is no end to the festivities during Christmas. It's always
important however to have a good time, to remember the unfortunate and to reach
out to them and to have fun but in a responsible manner.

Fancy Tales Related to Christmas

A lot of what is widely regarded as true about Christmas or held as a
tradition cannot or has not been verified, or, has changed through the years.
Even Christmas Day itself, Dec. 25, has been questioned about whether that is
the exact day on which Jesus was born. Skeptics have asked why would shepherds
be out in the cold watching their flocks by night during the winter. Those
skeptics have put forward the thought that Jesus may really have been born in
the spring instead. It is therefore little wonder that there are many fancy
stories and tales that are told about Christmas and the Christmas season.
The most common fancy tale that everyone tells, particularly to children,
is about Santa Claus, also called St. Nicholas. But even if it were accepted
that Santa Claus existed, where does he live and how is he able to get to all
the houses of good boys and girls on Christmas Eve?
In the United States, Santa Claus is said to have two homes. There is a
home in Torrington, Connecticut, which is used as a distribution point for Santa
and his many helpers, who are elves, to hand out gifts. And then, a second home
is said to be located in Wilmington, New York, and that is where Santa Claus and
his delivery reindeer crew are located.
But Santa can be visited in Cyberspace at anytime and what about the
widely held belief that Santa Claus really lives in a village at the North Pole?
The people of Finland also claim that their country is the official
residence of Santa Claus. That's because in Finland, you can actually visit a
village any time during the year and see Santa's workshop and observe Santa and
his elves hard at work as they prepare for their very important Christmas gift
delivery job on Christmas Eve. The only day when Santa's workshop is closed to
visitors is of course, on Christmas Eve.
Maybe a very smart visitor could visit Santa's workshop on the day before
Christmas Eve to see if there are any clues to how Santa and his reindeers plan
to make their trip the next day. That's because as the tale goes, in Finland
Santa Claus and his reindeers do not reach their destinations around the globe
by flying.

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Finland welcomes visitors to Santa's workshop but there is nothing said
about whether visitors actually have any chance of having a word with the man
himself. While the chances of doing so are believed to be non-existent, among
the questions that inquiring minds could ask Santa is whether Rudolph is the son
of Donner (and to confirm the spelling - Donner or Donder) or whether Santa
spotted him in a different reindeer village one foggy Christmas Eve when he had
already started on his Christmas toy-delivery mission.
If mere mortals got a chance to question Santa, then he also would likely have
some questions for us humans. He may want to know whose idea was it to have
Christmas trees and for the gifts to be placed under them.
The tradition of Christmas tree as it exists today comes from Germany by
way of immigrants. But it isn't clear how the tradition really gained a foothold
in Germany. One story is that Christians in Germany during the 16th century
started to bring trees that were decorated into their homes. Some of those
Christians would build pyramids for Christmas. The pyramids were made of wood
and would be decorated with evergreens and candles if wood was in short supply.
It is however Martin Luther, a Protestant reformer, who is said to have
been the first to add lighted candles as decoration to a tree based on his
inspiration from the brilliant light of twinkling stars that shone through
evergreen trees as he walked home one winter evening.
As the legend goes, Martin Luther placed a tree in a primary room of his
house and placed wires with small, lighted candles around the branches of the
tree. And that is how, as the tale goes, the Christmas tree as known today, was
started.

Enjoy Christmas Everyday With Christmas Screensavers

Most of us say - Let every day be Christmas. But we say this only during Christmas. As Christmas passes, the spirit passes and after some days, we all get busy with our day-to-day life and forget everything about Christmas and its spirit.

Why do we wish every day to be Christmas? Because we all love the atmosphere of Christmas and the time, when we love giving. The times when we forgive, our hearts are full of love for others and compassion overflows. We love that kind of experience. Unfortunately we forget all about it after some time. How to retain that spirit and feel love all through the year? Let me give you a very simple remedy. Download few beautiful Christmas screensavers and desktop wallpapers on your desktop and watch them every day.

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Let us find out how this works. Let us give you an example. When you watch something beautiful, when you hear lovely music and when you read inspiring and loving text, your mood changes for the better immediately. Your state changes to a very positive state. When you see something dirty, hear noises and read dirty words, your mood changes to negative in a fraction of a moment. Our sense organs can change our state in a short time. Therefore it is important that we battle with all the negatives with positives to keep our state happy and positive.

Christmas Screensavers with lovely music, video shots and messages of giving can do this very effectively. Whenever you are feeling bad and depressed, watch some of the Christmas screensavers and your mood will change immediately for the better. Why not give it a try? You can make every day Christmas.

Don't Have a Cow This Holiday Season -- Give One

Want to give a meaningful gift that won't be forgotten or stashed away after the holidays?

Heifer International, an organization working to fight hunger worldwide, has a solution: livestock.

By donating a sheep, cow or any other farm animal in honor of a loved one through Heifer International, you can help impoverished families get the resources they need to get out of poverty and become self-reliant.

The farm animals provided by Heifer International give families wool, milk, eggs, transportation and other necessities. Families can sell their surplus products and use the money for school supplies, medicine, farming supplies and housing improvements.

A goat, for example, can supply a family with several quarts of milk each day. Extra milk can be sold by the family or made into cheese, butter or yogurt.

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Heifer International also provides llamas, water buffaloes, heifers, chicks, ducks, geese and hives of honeybees - to name a few.

Here is how to set your gift in motion:

1. Contact Heifer International to receive a free gift catalog.

2. Request a unique gift card that you can personalize and send to your honorees, describing the generous contributions you've made in their name.

3. Revel in the joy of knowing that, thanks to your gift, a struggling family is on the road to self-reliance.

4. Watch your gift multiply. Every receiving family promises to "pass on the gift" of its animal's first offspring to another family in need. Thanks to this act, entire communities can lift themselves out of poverty.

Christmas Trivia Quiz

Christmas Quiz

1. Which Christmas tree fact is NOT true?
A. Artificial Christmas trees have outsold real ones every year since 1991.
B. Nova Scotia leads the world in exporting Christmas trees.
c. Franklin Pierce was the first president to decorate an official White House Christmas tree.
D. The Christmas tree was chosen to represent this holy holiday because it's shape points the way to heaven.

1. Which Christmas tree fact is NOT true?
D. The Christmas tree was chosen to represent this holy holiday because it's shape points the way to heaven.
QQ: OK, so maybe it's true, but the QuizQueen can't prove that fact, as reasonable as it sounds, because it wasn't in any of the literature she dug up for this quiz.

2. Can you name the popular Christmas song that was actually written for Thanksgiving?
A. Jingle Bells
B. It Came Upon a Midnight Clear
C. I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus
D. Away in the Manger

2. Can you name the popular Christmas song that was actually written for Thanksgiving?
A. Jingle Bells
QQ: The song was composed in 1857 by James Pierpont, and was originally called One Horse Open Sleigh.  When you think about the words make a lot more sense that way…

3. Electric Christmas tree lights were first used in what year?
A. 1865
B. 1895
C. 1905
D. 1932

B. 1895
QQ: American Ralph E. Morris had the bright idea that electric Christmas lights would be safer than using candles.

4. Good King Wenceslas was king of what country?
A. Bohemia
B. England
C. Germany
D. Morocco

4. A. Bohemia.
QQ: Who knows why those Bohemians always get such a bad rep? Although, history has it that Wenceslas, who lived in the 10th century, was only a Duke, not a King at all.

5. In 8971, the New York Sun newspaper wrote a famous response to a little girl's question: "Yes, _______, there is a Santa Claus."  Can you name that girl?
A. Mary
B. Charlotte
C. Vidalia
D. Virginia

5. In 8971, the New York Sun newspaper wrote a famous response to a little girl's question: "Yes, _______, there is a Santa Claus."  Can you name that girl?
D. Virginia
QQ: Virginia O'Hanlon to be exact! Shame on you, if you missed it.

6. Can you name Scrooge's dead business partner from Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol?"
A. Jacob Marley
B. Tiny Tim
C. Bob Cratchett
D. Old William

6. Can you name Scrooge's dead business partner from Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol?"
A. Jacob Marley
QQ: The first of four spirits to appear to Scrooge that fateful Christmas Eve was that of Jacob Marley, his old business partner.

7. One of the pagan traditions that Christians have incorporated into their Christmas celebration includes hanging mistletoe.  Which of these is NOT a former pagan belief?
A. Ancient Europeans believed that the mistletoe plant held magical powers to bestow life and fertility as well as protect against disease.
B. French girls used to slip branches of mistletoe beneath their pillows to dream of their future husbands.
C. The Celts believed mistetoe brought about peace and goodwill.
D. Northern Europeans associated mistletoe with the Norse goddess of love, Freya and developed the custom of kissing underneath mistletoe branches.

7. One of the pagan traditions that Christians have incorporated into their Christmas celebration includes hanging mistletoe.  Which of these is NOT a former pagan belief?
B. French girls used to slip branches of mistletoe beneath their pillows to dream of their future husbands.
QQ: That was a tough one, wasn't it?  The QuizQueen is soooo clever…

8. While today the Christmas tree is an enduring symbol of the season, it wasn't always a holiday tradition.  Which historical fact is NOT true?
A. According to legend, Martin Luther, the founder of German protestantism, while walking through the forest on Christmas Eve was so moved by the starlit fir trees he brought one indoors and decorated it with candles to remind his children of God's creation.
B. In 1841, Prince Albert of Germany gave his wife, Queen Victoria of England, a gift of a Christmas tree. This was reputedly the first Christmas tree in England, but the custom quickly spread.
C. German immigrants brought the Christmas tree to Europe, the United States and Canada, where it soon became a popular tradition.
D. On a bet, 11-year-old P.T. Barnum started hawking trees in Connecticut in 1821, telling his marks they were all the rage.  Soon the fashion spread throughout the country and it became tradition, thus establishing his maxim "There is a sucker born every minute."

8. While today the Christmas tree is an enduring symbol of the season, it wasn't always a holiday tradition.  Which historical fact is NOT true?
D. On a bet, 11-year-old P.T. Barnum started hawking trees in Connecticut in 1821, telling his marks they were all the rage.  Soon the fashion spread throughout the country and it became tradition, thus establishing his maxim "There is a sucker born every minute."
QQ: Good 'ole P.T. Barnum did try to sell just about everything, and may in fact have sold Christmas trees, but I doubt he sold them at that age!

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9. Many people are familiar with the term "The Twelve Days of Christmas," but not everyone knows where it originated. Can you pick out the right explanation?
A. The Twelve Days of Christmas represents the number of days Joseph and Mary traveled to Bethlehem.
B. The Twelve Days of Christmas represents the length of time that the three wise men from the East traveled to reach Baby Jesus after his birth.
C. The Twelve Days of Christmas represents the number of reindeer pulling Santa's sleigh.
D. The Twelve Days of Christmas represents the length of time required to celebrate Good King Wenceslas' birthday.

9. Many people are familiar with the term "The Twelve Days of Christmas," but not everyone knows where it originated. Can you pick out the right explanation?
B. The Twelve Days of Christmas represents the length of time that the three wise men from the East traveled to reach Baby Jesus after his birth.
QQ: And you thought you didn't learn anything practical in Sunday school?

10. Who hasn't wondered what "wassail" is and why people would request it at Christmas. Let's see if you can guess…
A. Wassail comes from the Old Norse "Ves Heill" and means "to be of good health," so when neighbors would visit on Christmas Eve they would drink to each other's health.
B. Wassail comes from the Old German "Ves Heill" and means "to avoid Hell," so loved ones would share this sentiment with each other on Christmas Eve in preparation for the birth of Christ.
C. Wassail comes from the Old Celtic "Ves Heill" and means "drink up" so is naturally associated with all party occasions.
D. Wassail comes from the Old English "Ves Heill" and means drink of the angels and eventually became associated with Christmas.

10. Who hasn't wondered what "wassail" is and why people would request it at Christmas. Let's see if you can guess…
A. Wassail comes from the Old Norse "Ves Heill" and means "to be of good health," so when neighbors would visit on Christmas Eve they would drink to each other's health.
QQ: Sometimes The QuizQueen can be very, very silly.

11. Everyone loves to receive them, but dreads performing the annual holiday ritual of sending Christmas cards. So who do we NOT have to thank/blame?
A. Medieval Europeans who exchanged wood prints of religious themes for Christmas.
B. English illustrator John Calcott Horsley who created the first modern Christmas card in 1843 that depicted a family celebration with the caption "A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to You."
C. German-American printer Louis Prang who made advances in color lithography allowing him to mass produce colorful Christmas cards in 1875.
D. Desmond Hallmark who had a surplus of cards left over from Arbor Day depicting a fir tree and decided to unload them by the box by simply printing Merry Christmas across the trees in red ink.

11. Everyone loves to receive them, but dreads performing the annual holiday ritual of sending Christmas cards. So who do we NOT have to thank/blame?
D. Desmond Hallmark who had a surplus of cards left over from Arbor Day depicting a fir tree and decided to unload them by the box by simply printing Merry Christmas across the trees in red ink.
QQ: While all except poor Desmond can be held responsible, The QuizQueen truly blames Louis!

12. Remember that fuscia sweater Aunt Edna knitted for your Christmas present last year? Don't blame Aunt Edna, she's not the one who started the Christmas gift giving tradition, so who is?
A. Those three wise men who visited the stable where Jesus was born.
B. The ancient Romans who exchanged gifts to bring good fortune for the new year.
C. Mark Antony who was always looking for new ways to please Cleopatra.
D. The ancient Greeks who sought to placate the gods on Mount Olympus.

12. Remember that fuscia sweater Aunt Edna knitted for your Christmas present last year? Don't blame Aunt Edna, she's not the one who started the Christmas gift giving tradition, so who is?
B. The ancient Romans who exchanged gifts to bring good fortune for the new year.
QQ: Of course, Aunt Edna is to blame for choosing that color. You can't blame the Romans for that.

Christmas Time

As we ready ourselves to celebrate yet another Christmas to honor the birth of our Lord Jesus let us remember that this is a time to focus on the many blessings in our lives. Each day should be a day to focus on these things we hold dear that the Lord has brought to us but Christmas time is especially good for bringing these things that we should always notice to the forefront of our minds and our thoughts.

Christmas time is about giving and not only in the way of handing out material presents to one another that we purchase from the many stores we have to choose from but it's mainly a time of giving the most important things like an ear to someone who needs to be listened to or a coat for a small child who is need of one. Handing out and giving can be done best by giving someone a smile when they are feeling down or encouragement to get past the gloom they might feel in order to stand tall and move onward with joy.

Christmas time giving can mean giving a home to a small animal that otherwise would be alone and cold and miserable out in the elements with nobody to care for them. All these things make a difference in the world and they might not individually heal all that needs to be healed but each offering of kindness furthers the cause of bringing true love and peace to a world badly in need of these things.

A few material gifts are fine and are especially welcome from the children who wait for old Saint Nick to come and spread his joy to the children but among the joy of the material should also be a lesson that the best and most important gifts come from inside and are given from the heart and soul from one human being to another.

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I feel that even as we watch the nightly news that tells us of the many sad and evil things of this world that goodness overcomes and goodness makes up the majority of the people of this world.

As the three wisemen were guided by the star of Bethlehem to the manger to witness the miracle of the birth of Jesus let's also use that same light that shines in us from Jesus to guide our hearts to do good deeds and make another human being feel special and cared for in the most important ways by the power of love and mercy.

Let the lesson of Jesus being turned away from the Inn inspire us not to turn away from someone or something that may be in need of our help and our light to shine on them. The power of the human spirit and the human heart can work wonders and the pureness of a kind act can turn wrong into right.

This holiday season let that same pureness flow from within your heart and into anothers and let's make Jesus proud to be our Father and our Lord by our actions that are inspired by his love for us.

May you and your family have a very blessed Christmas and a Happy New Year and may the light of the lord always shine upon you and carry you in your time of need.

Christmas Customs Around the World

December is well-known for Christmas but do you know how people in countries around the world celebrate it? Here are some customs from various parts of the world.

Australia

Greeting - Merry Christmas
Santa's Name - Santa Claus. Children leave him a piece of cake or biscuits and a glass of milk or a bottle of beer.
Food - Many Christmas dinners include roasted meats and vegetables, special fruit cakes, and puddings with a coin baked inside. Since the temperature can reach 100 degrees Fahrenheit, people are starting to eat cold meats and salads, tropical fruits like mangoes, and stone fruits like plums. Often, the main meal is eaten for lunch.
Gifts - These are left under the Christmas tree and opened Christmas morning.
Decorations - Shops and homes are decorated with tinsel, Christmas trees, decorations for the holiday, and special lights.
Customs - Traditional and Australian carols are sung by candlelight on Christmas Eve and are broadcast on television. On Boxing Day, the day after Christmas, two sporting events take place:
The Boxing Day Test Match (cricket game) and the start of the Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race.

Brazil

Greeting - Feliz Natal
Santa's Name - Papai Noel (Father Noel), who is dressed in a red, silk suit with boots.
Food - Many people eat a traditional feast with roast turkey and vegetables, while others eat chicken and rice or beans. Beer and wine are also served. Some regions begin eating around 9 PM on Christmas Eve, while others eat around midnight.
Gifts - Local charities take in donations but do not seem to have enough presents for all the children.
Decorations - Brazil has a mixture of people so Christmas is celebrated in different ways. In the northeastern area, it is common to find Nativity Scenes; in the southern part, snow is simulated with little pieces of cotton on pine trees.
Customs - Brazilians sing a number of Christmas carols.

Greece

Greeting - Eftihismena Christougenna
Food - Special holiday cakes are baked.
Gifts - Most Greek people exchange gifts on Saint Basil's Day, January 1.
Customs - To honor Saint Basil, the holiday cakes have gold coins hidden inside them. The cakes are cut at midnight on New Year's Eve. Whoever has a gold coin in his piece of cake will have good luck the following year.

Hungary

Santa's Name - Actually, the Baby Jesus is said to bring presents on Christmas Eve. A bell sounds signaling that the Angels have brought the tree and gifts.
Customs - On December 5, children leave out their shoes. During the night, Mikulas and Black Peter come to fill them with goodies for well-behaved children and switches for naughty children.

India

Decorations - Sometimes, houses are decorated with mango leaves; mango or banana trees are also decorated. Small, clay, oil-burning lamps are placed on the edges of flat roofs as decorations.

Israel

Greeting - Chag Semeach (Happy Chanukah)
Santa's Name - Actually, parents, grandparents, and other family members give presents to the children.
Food - Because oil is an important part of the holiday, many foods are prepared with it. A favorite is potato latkes (pancakes).
Gifts - Since Chanukah lasts for eight days, children may receive one present each night.
Decorations - Jewish stars, blue or silver foil garlands,
dreidels (spinning tops), Chanukah gelt (chocolate coins), and pictures of the Macabees (Jewish army that recaptured the Holy Temple and Jerusalem from the Assyrian Greek King Antiochus) are found around the house.
Customs - The menorah (candelabra) is lit each night. On the first night, one candle is lit; on, the second night, two candles; and so on until all the candles are lit on the eighth night. After lighting the candles, families eat a festive meal, dance, play games, and open presents. They also attend Chanukah parties.

Japan

Greeting - Kurisumasu Omedeto
Santa's Name - Santa Kurohsu. He does not appear in person but is pictured in advertisements as a kind old man with a round sack on his back.
Food - Depending upon the family's custom, they eat turkey on Christmas Day or on Christmas Eve. Japanese families also eat Christmas cake.
Gifts - Stores sell merchandise for men, women, and children; and on Christmas Day, families exchange gifts.
Decorations - More and more artificial Christmas trees are beginning to appear. They are decorated with small toys, gold paper fans, dolls, lanterns, paper ornaments, and wind chimes. A popular ornament is the origami swan. Other decorations are mistletoe, evergreen, tinsel, and lights. An amulet is put on the front door for good luck and children exchange 'birds of peace,' pledging there must not be anymore war.
Customs - The daiku, or Great Nine, refers to Beethoven's Ninth Symphony and is performed many places.

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Mexico

Greeting - Feliz Navidad
Customs - Beginning on December 15, some families carry colorful lanterns and walk from house to house in their neighborhoods, each night, until Christmas Eve. This is called La Posada, which means 'the procession.' On each of the nights, the families are invited into different houses where they become guests at a party. There is plenty to eat and drink. Children play the pinata game, trying to break open the papier-mache figure with a stick while blindfolded; when it is cracked open, candies and small gifts fall out.

Netherlands

Greeting - Hartelijke Kerstroeten
Santa's Name - Sinterklaas (St. Nicholas), who wears a red bishop's hat and bishop's cloak and has white hair and a white beard. He arrives on a white horse with his servant, Black Pete, to put small gifts in children's wooden shoes.
Food - The Dutch people eat lots of marzipan, spiced ginger biscuits, tall chocolate letters, and 'bankletter' - initials made of pastry and filled with almond paste. When they are around the Christmas tree singing songs, they eat 'Kerstkrans' - a Christmas ring.
Gifts - On December 6, after hearing a knock at their door, children find a bag full of toys, nuts, and gifts.
Decorations - The Christmas tree is known as the Paradise Tree. Decorations of the season include dolls, musical instruments, fruit, candies, and lights.
Customs - The Dutch sing carols, the most popular one being "O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree."

Sweden

Greeting - God Jul
Food - Coffee, cakes, and special buns are served on Santa Lucia Day, December 13.
Customs - Santa Lucia Day honors Saint Lucy, who helped blind people. The oldest daughter in each Swedish household dresses in a white gown with a red sash, wears a crown of evergreen
with seven candles in it, awakens the family with a song, and serves the coffee, cakes, and buns. Each town and city also chooses a young woman to be Lucia for the day. She then serves coffee and food to the townspeople at schools, hospitals, and other public buildings. From these women, a national Lucia is chosen; followed by a parade, feast, and dance.

Now that you have this data, let your children put the information in a comparison chart. Label the left side with the names of the countries and the bottom with the various information (ie: Greeting, Food, and so on). Then fill in the boxes!

Let your children do research to find out the information I left out.

Conduct research to find out the same customs for other countries, especially the heritage countries of students in your class or your own family.

However you celebrate the holidays, have a safe, wonderful season and a Happy New Year!

I hope these ideas are useful and inspire your own creative thinking.

And remember...Reading is FUNdamental!