A few weeks ago, my 4-year-old daughter and I were shopping at a local department store when we came across a section that had already been decorated for Christmas.
“Mommy, why are there Christmas trees already?” my daughter asked me.
She stole the words right out of my mouth.
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We were still three weeks away from Halloween and yet there were already Christmas ornaments on the walls and holiday music playing in the background. Discounted Halloween items were tossed into the middle of the aisle and I’m not even sure that I saw anything related to Thanksgiving.
I shook my head and told her that the store was being silly and that we’d look at Christmas decorations after we had our turkey.
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There is no doubt that this is my favorite time of year, but when did there become a need to kick off the celebration three months ahead of time? The same thing can be said for commercials. Toy ads, Santa Claus and layaway commercials already have been airing for a few weeks.
The worst part is that on Dec. 26, all of the Christmas decorations will disappear to make room for Valentine’s Day candy and teddy bears. Everyone will be wishing for Spring and we’ll be back to the daily grind.
For once, I’d like to see a holiday season where we celebrate Halloween in October, Thanksgiving in November and Christmas in December—the month’s in which they were meant to be celebrated.
Let’s allow the pennysavers to grab a few discounted items before everything is stored away. Why not consider those of us who celebrate Christmas after the first of the year? Obviously, this will never happen and each year it seems to get worse. The good news is that I still have plenty of time to go shopping for those who are on my list.