“Sharing the holiday with other people, and feeling that you’re giving of yourself, gets you past all the commercialism.” ― Caroline Kennedy

I enjoy the holidays as much as the next person, but they’ve become pretty commercial … don’t you think?

Go into any store these days, and you’ll see Christmas decorations, along with Hanukkah, Thanksgiving, and Halloween. I’ve even seen New Year’s decorations. And it’s October!

Remember when Christmas stuff didn’t hit the shelves until AFTER Halloween? The good old days!

Maybe people just like to plan ahead and get things taken care of early. Many of you have already called me to confirm your holiday house cleaning schedules (Thank you for that, by the way! I hate having to disappoint people, but there’s only so many houses we can clean in a day. And we get booked to capacity at the holidays.), so is it the same thing for stores? Just planning ahead?

Maybe. I’m not entirely convinced, but … maybe.

As a grandma, I enjoy seeing the kids during the holidays. Most of my grandbabies aren’t babies anymore, and the oldest is driving! But the holidays tend to bring out the “kid” in all of them.

As for my kids … Now that my youngest son, Ron, is working in the business with me, I get to see him often. Darin, my oldest, works at Quady Winery in Madera, and I don’t see him as much. I look forward to spending more family time with all in these coming months.

Commercialism aside, the holidays are a special time of year. I hope you share yours with people who make them special for you!