When we were growing up, we would often get our Christmas tree after the tree lots closed on Christmas Eve. Dad was on strike at the factory and money was tight. It was an adventure to pick through the abandoned trees and find the perfect one without spending a penny.

After Midnight Mass, we ate a meal that included meat—a gift in itself.  We then opened gifts. One was a gift of necessity (underwear, sweaters or socks). We would also receive a toy from the Detroit Goodfellows, a coloring book and crayons from our neighbor’s friends and maybe a hand-crocheted dress for each of our dolls. Still, I believed in Santa even knowing he hadn’t provided these gifts.

Then, one Christmas, when I was 18-years-old, for a little while, I believed once more! There were gifts, wrapped in plain brown paper and string, under the tree that had no known origin! I had received a Wind Song Fragrance gift set and my little brother, Ray, received a table air hockey game. Our Dad immediately sat on the floor to play a game of air hockey with Ray, (another Christmas miracle). We later found out my 16-year-old sister, Sandy, used her first paychecks to purchase these wonderful gifts for us and sneak them under the tree while we all slept.

When we had children of our own, we made a conscious effort to make our children’s eyes light up when they opened their gifts from Santa. It wasn’t very difficult (except in those instances when we would wait in the cold in front of closed store doors). If they still believed, the shopping list was made while writing a letter to Santa or listening as they sat on his lap.

The “after-they-believe” phase then became much more expensive. The latest electronics (video game systems, cameras, computers, etc.) were the desired gifts. And, finally, we experienced the “can’t please ‘em” phase”. They’ll stand in the returns line on December 26^th to exchange those gifts generated from us clueless parents. I’m unsure if it’s become harder as my gift recipients have become older, or harder because I’ve become older.

So, to make gift giving a bit easier, we’ve compiled gift lists for us middle-agers. (You won’t find any shoes on the lists because Mom always said “If you buy them shoes, they’ll just walk out of your life”).

We will continually update this list, so come back often!