the_rck | (no subject)

(no subject)

Two questions--

First, have I written here about what 'panic attacks' are like for me? I can't remember. If I haven't would anybody be interested? I started writing something in response to a post on my FL, but it got long. I could work it into an entry without too much trouble.

Second, does anybody have any suggestions for simple, inexpensive holiday gifts for entire families? Our circle of friendly family acquaintances has extended enough that I'm trying to think of some options. I don't think I have the spoons to bake batches and batches of cookies, and I definitely can't make that many scarves, even if people wanted them.

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Mix CD's? Christmas music given before Christmas, or kids songs that aren't overdone a billion times, maybe?
Jars of ingredients and instructions for (soup/cookies/brownies)?
Bunt cakes, instead of cookies?

Mostly? This is why people send cards?

If I think of more, I'll either post them in my journal, or reply to something again. I'm usually much better at stuff like this than those suggestions.

I may end up falling back to cookies for some of the families. These are people I don't necessarily know very well but who have helped us out over the last few months. I want to do something nice for them without straining our resources too much.

I would be interested in the panic attack thing, since what

theferrett wrote was so alien to my experience.

Written and posted.

Plus, I was going to say "mix cd's" too. That's my first go-to idea.

My sister once bought us a couple cheap family movies and threw in some bags of popcorn. It was title 'family movie night.'

That's a definite possibility for one of the families. I know they like movies.

Really good hot chocolate?

A cute but cheap jar, with all the makings for excellent cookies measured out and tied in little bags, so all the peeps have to do is take it out, mix, cook, and the cookies are done?

Hot chocolate mix has some possibilities.

I think I'll avoid the cookie mixes. I'm afraid they might be too much work.

Mixes. Put together the dry parts of something that can be baked, with instructions (try for things that only need milk or water or maybe an egg added). Put them in cute little bottles or boxes with a bow and they look neat. Drink mixes such as a cocoa mix or a tea-and-fruit-drink mix can work nicely too.

That's a possibility. I think, though, that I'll just make cookies if I'm going to do something food related. I suspect that making up mixes would be nearly as much work as baking. I also worry about food allergies. I know most people don't have any, but they're hugely common in my extended family, so I see them as normal rather than not (it's also vastly frustrating to receive a gift that looks and smells great but that I can't touch because of one or two ingredients).

Jan's family tends to give things from their garden, and one relative gives a book of photocopies of things she's read recently and found helpful.

Homegrown houseplants? Ornamental peppers grow pretty nicely from seeds, and look festive and winter-y. The downside is that it's hard to transport houseplants in cold weather.

Those fleece blankets where you take two rectangles of fleece, put them back to back, cut fringes through both layers, and then tie each pair of fringes into a knot?

Framed photos? The dollar store sells photo frames.

If the people are all together in a group that you have shared photos of, you might make a photo scrapbook with Picaboo (free software that you can download from the web -- it makes making a digital scrapbook almost as easy as selecting pictures and a theme and pressing a button) and then print it out on "presentation paper". If you're feeling fancy you can get them bound at Office Depot for pretty cheap.

Fruit?

If I'd thought about it soon enough, I could have done herbs. It's too late to harvest sage this year without risking the plants, and I'm not sure how winter savory does when cut back in cold weather. I do have coriander. Hm...

We don't have a good spot for growing anything indoors. The dining room table is about it in terms of flat surfaces that get sun.

I've never tried making one of those fleece blankets. They sound relatively easy.

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