10 Things I Love About Christmas Shopping

I like shopping. It's fun. It's interesting. It's pretty much the best thing ever.

I'm a shoe, handbag and jewelry nut. But I'm also a Christmas shopping nut.

So below is my list of the top 10 Things I love about Christmas shopping.

10. The time I get to spend in the car singing with the radio. I love to sing almost as much as I love to shop. So anytime I'm in the car by myself I plug my phone in to the stereo, turn the volume UP and sing at the top of my lungs. Christmas shopping provides me with plenty of opportunities to sing. Loudly. Cheesily. Awesomely.

9. Also related to music... I love Christmas music. My favorite songs are O Holy Night by Lea Michele, God Rest Year Merry Gentlemen/We Three Kings by The Barenaked Ladies and Sarah McLaughlin, Mary Did You Know by Rascal Flatts and Deck The Halls by SheDaisy. I'm also fond of She & Him and a few others. But those are my go to songs. Christmas is an excuse to listen to them. Christmas shopping allows me to plug my ear buds in and jingle all the way while finding gifts.

8. It's fun to rush around. I love it. I play games with myself to see how many shops I can get to in a designated amount of time. Malls only count as one. Today I was able to get to five shops in 2 hours. And I got some great stuff. Win!

7. I love all of the things I find in my wanderings through shops. Things I would never think to buy without having seen them before. I have found fun games, cute notebooks, and so many other things.

6. I enjoy being what feels like the only "nice" person. Everyone else is rushing around, scrambling to get the best deals and as a result they end up being rude. I never get upset. It doesn't do any good. Shopping should be a fun experience. Low stress. I refuse to stress about it. If I start feeling stressed I go home and wait for the next day.

5. I love doing themed presents and then tracking down the items for the theme. One year I did a guitar theme for Husband-Man. I bought all kinds of guitar gear that I knew he needed. Stands, capos, a really nice tuner... Even some Hula Girl picks to honor our love of Hawaii. This year I'm doing a theme for my stepdaughter... I can't tell you about it yet. But come back after Christmas and I'll show you.

4. Deals. Deals. Deals. I LOVE them. I have so much fun finding the best price for the things as am looking for. The best is when something is listed as one price and ends up being another. For instance... This year I decided G needed a Mr. Potato Head. So when I was shopping at Walmart I found a bin with them in it and a sign that said $10 but when I rang it up it was $5. SCORE!!!

3. Have you ever had someone on your list that you just can't figure out something to get them? Every year. Seriously... Every year. But the feeling when you are out and something catches your eye and you just hear angels sing and a beam of light falls on it while a sign unfurls above it with the name of the person it's for. Best. Feeling. Ever!

2. Sort of along the same lines as 3...finding everything you wanted to find for everyone. Knowing that you were able to get everyone you love exactly what they wanted or needed is such a great feeling. 
1. The anticipatory feeling I get when I shop for others. I live for the thrill of seeing the people I love open their gifts. Every time I put something in my cart I feel a frisson of anticipation. "How is Husband-Man going to react when he sees this?" "M is going to pass out when he opens this!!!" I love that feeling. I love shopping for the people I love. I love giving to others and seeing the joy in their faces.

So that's it... Those are the things I love about shopping for Christmas.

I'm almost finished with my shopping this year. And I'm literally on tenterhooks waiting to see how my darlings like what I've found for them.

Hurry Christmas...