They opened their Chanukkah presents today...sigh

"CC Bailey" wrote in message
...
Now I use the HandyShopper application on my Palm Pilot to
create a database for presents. HandyShopper has a feature
where you can assign aisles for product placement in stores,
and I use that feature to keep track of what number(aisle)
is written on which present. As I wrap a present, I assign
it the next available aisle number.

I just have to say I *love* HandyShopper. It's the reason I got a
PalmPilot!
--
Cheryl S.
Mom to Julie, 2 yr., 8 mo.
And Jaden, 3 months

Cleaning the house while your children are small is like
shoveling the sidewalk while it's still snowing.

(chiam margalit) wrote in message . com...
We've been though this before, and they KNOW the consequence, which is
that the presents they open get saved for their birthday...at the very
end of August. I've done this twice already. Evidentally, this isn't a
consequence that works. So maybe it's time for a new one.

The consequences for us a if you see 'em you don't get 'em. AT ALL.
I keep the receipts and take them back. And you don't get anything as
a replacement.

My older two were so scared I'd follow through (and I would) that they
put their backpacks from school on top of the blanket I had in the
back of the car that was covering their gifts and didn't even lift a
corner to peek. They knew what was under there, too!

As for hiding, our gifts are in a place the kids never go...our scary
old coal room in our basement. There's a bunch of other junk in there
that's inside black plastic trashbags, and so are their gifts. I'm not
wrapping and putting out a *thing* until the night before (Christmas,
in our case.)

- Bev

On Fri, 19 Dec 2003 10:39:24 -0500, Cheryl S. wrote:
"user" wrote in message
...
Personally, I don't see what the issue is. The
gifts were for the kids - for all intents and purposes,
they were already owned by the children.

I don't agree with this. Gifts do not belong to the recipient until
they are *given*. In that sense, the OP's kids did take something that
wasn't theirs and I can see why she is upset.


So what, then, is the point of them being a "gift", if their
ownership comes with constraints prior to them taking possession?
I'm not talking about things that are given as rewards, which
implicitly have constraints attached to them - but Chanukkah/Xmas/etc
are supposed to be occasions in which we give out of simple
love, because we want to make someone happy. And even if you disagree
with that - what was the crime? At best, all I can see is
a violation of social convention where we're supposed to allow
ourselves to be surprised. Ignoring that convention, while crass,
doesn't rise to the level of high crime.

Now, the follow-up events, in which the OP was lied to, certainly
merits some discipline. But it seems to me that it should never
even have gotten to that point in the first place. If I were
in that situation, I would probably have left it with a snarky
question like "Did you approve of the presents?", just to let them
know that they're not putting one over on me. ;-)

Heck, when I was young, it was essentially a game between we
kids, and our parents, to see how clever we could be about
hiding the gifts. Who would have thought that hiding tapes
in an empty box of soap powder, left in plain sight, could be
so effective? :-)

In ,
jojo wrote:

*a local blue or brown santa (or pick a charity that is not christian based,

What is a blue or brown santa?

--
hillary israeli vmd http://www.hillary.net
"uber vaccae in quattuor partes divisum est."
not-so-newly minted veterinarian-at-large

On Fri, 19 Dec 2003 17:15:49 +0000 (UTC), Hillary Israeli wrote:
In ,
jojo wrote:

*a local blue or brown santa (or pick a charity that is not christian based,

What is a blue or brown santa?

When I was in college, the UPS driver was the Brown Santa. :-)

But from the context, I think she means some holiday aid
programs that are run in Texas.

I would have kept the presents hidden until it was time to open them...
it's just too much of a temptation. even now, as a grown women, I may
have
been tempted, LOL!

I agree.


I say, let them have their presents (hey, it's *their* surprise that was
ruined) and next year keep the things locked up until it's time...
Bethany

So what's the consequence or doing something they're not supposed to do?
They've done this before and obviously didn't learn their lesson. And they
lied. In my house they'd be in trouble for both things.

I like the idea of donating the gifts to needy children. Might seem harsh
but I bet if they're reminded of what happened to their gifts, next year
they won't do it again. And if they do, we'd be off to donate them again.

What is a blue or brown santa?

--
hillary israeli vmd http://www.hillary.net
"uber vaccae in quattuor partes divisum est."
not-so-newly minted veterinarian-at-large

Sorry...Brown Santa is the Texas state trooper association (brown uniforms)
collection toys and food for the needy at the holiday season.

Blue Santa is Austin Police department doing the same thing.
jojo

"Cheryl S." wrote in message
...

I just have to say I *love* HandyShopper. It's the reason I got a
PalmPilot!
--

I wonder if it will work on the little Palm Zire I have...it would be the
only add-on I'd use.
--
JennP.

mom to Matthew 10/11/00
remove "no........spam" to reply

On Fri, 19 Dec 2003 18:54:57 GMT, JennP wrote:

"Cheryl S." wrote in message
...

I just have to say I *love* HandyShopper. It's the reason I got a
PalmPilot!
--

I wonder if it will work on the little Palm Zire I have...it would be the
only add-on I'd use.

It will work fine. My wife used it on her ancient Palm III for years.

"CC Bailey" wrote in message
...
"chiam margalit" wrote in message

I'm an evil mother, according to my kids, because I don't
put names on presents when I wrap them. All presents get a
number written on the gift tag, and on X-mas morning the
kids (now almost 13 &16) pass out the presents one by one as
I tell them which number goes to which person. This also
makes the opening of presents less of a free-for-all since I
only allow one present to be passed at a time.


That seems like way too much work for me, for something that is supposed to
be fun. If they are that determined to find out what they're getting, I say,
let them find out. They are the ones taking the fun out of it, not me.

I can say, that despite knowing that the kids have snooped in the past, this
is not something that I'm going to waste time over.

Marijke