Merry Christmas!

Do you go to family gatherings at this time of year? Do you exchange gifts with the entire family?

Here's a novel idea.

Put all the names of everyone over the age of 7 into a hat. Everyone draws one parson they are to give to. Sounds pretty basic, right?

But here's the twist. Everyone must MAKE their gift! Yes, make it. If you are Grandma and 8 year old Janie draws your name, which would you want? A preboxed hankie set from K Mart bought by her mother or a single handerchief with an embroidered "To Grandma from Jane, age 8 - 2007" Mom can assist here, but Janie must make it herself.

Uncle Jim draws teenager Alex. So he makes a CD rack out of wood. He has a YEAR to make it so it's mahogany. It's the pride of Alex's Cd collection. And even if someone says they have NO talent, you would be amazed at how much they really have. And so will they! One realtive dabbled in leather. So when he drew his sister's name he panicked. They really didn't get along that well. But he spent the year making a complete leather coat for her. He signed the inside "To Betty, from Mike". 15 years later she still has that coat and wears it only to "special" occasions. Mike is gone now but she always has that special memory.

Another story is that of a woman that drew her sister's name. She made a scrapbook of her sister's family. It was the high point of that sister's day.

The gifts don't have to be special. Let's face it, 8 year old Billy isn't the most co ordinated person. But building a simple birdhouse, painting it himself and signing it means it will NEVER be discarded by the recipient!

Give it a try. You will find a completely new meaning of Christmas giving.