Have you looked at the calendar lately? It's just more than 10 weeks until Christmas.
Have you started, or even finished, shopping?
A friend who works in retail said she heard during a sales seminar that the average adult spends $740 on Christmas. For Jim, my husband, and me, that amounts to $1,480.
Fortunately, we don't spend near that amount.
Like many others, I shop all year long. If I see something I know a certain person would like, or needs, I buy it and put it into a closet. I occasionally end up with too many gifts for one person and not enough for another, but it works for us.
Spreading our Christmas spending over the year ensures we don't take a huge financial hit in November and December.
Then there's the do-it-yourself gift-giving approach, which has become a family tradition.
My mother — a professional seamstress who taught sewing for many years — makes gorgeous quilts, table runners, placemats and pillow cases. No one has any idea of the time and money that she puts into these gifts, but people enjoy receiving them.
Some years, I make lighted Christmas baskets or other hand-crafted items. It doesn't save money, but it is fun.
This year, we have cut down our Christmas list. Most of our family and friends have everything they need, so we will donate more money to church and missions such as Samaritan's Purse.
There are many choices; we can help churches here in Okaloosa County or help those in other countries who are struggling.
Our church has a weekly soup kitchen, a cold night homeless shelter and numerous other missions.
In other countries, think of the joy an entire village receives when a well is dug and villagers finally have clean water, or the family who receives a goat that can provide milk as well as income.
It seems many causes are more beneficial than another tie, sweater or DVD.
Janice Lynn Crose lives in Crestview with her husband, Jim; her two rescue collies, Shane and Jasmine; and two cats, Kathryn and Prince Valiant.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: CROSE: Cutting down Christmas shopping lists, thinking of others