"At Christmas play and make good cheer, For Christmas comes but once a year." -Thomas Tusser

OK. Thanksgiving was wonderful, visiting with family and sharing fun stories and adventures; laughing around the dining room table, enjoying favorite stuffing and pies; watching parades and football games; and counting your many blessings.

It is now time to turn our attention to the many preparations for Christmas. Coming from a Christian perspective, I can speak for the anticipation which we all feel to celebrate the birth of the Christ-child. It brings us wonder each and every year, and the time and energy we put into its celebration never wanes. As I watch my Jewish friends prepare for Hanukkah, I sense, too, the joy with which they prepare celebrations with loved ones.

The gift of sacrificial love is the true essence of Christmas.

Teaching your children to give generously and to give cheerfully models the life of Christ. Our God, who created each one of us with more love than we can imagine, desires this same outpouring of love to others, and it is at Christmas that we likewise share our love through gift-giving and through acts of generosity and hospitality. We are buoyed by the "Christmas spirit" because it is through giving--rather than receiving--that we receive the most joy. Pausing to think about others, about their needs and desires, and extending yourselves to their benefit, brings deep inner satisfaction not found any other way.

Have you made your list of those people with whom you want to share the Christmas spirit?

Consider giving small, inexpensive gifts to a large list, rather than more extravagant gifts to a very few loved ones.

When Ithink of the model of giving I want to pattern for my own family, I cannot exclude from the list those folks who cross my path on a daily basis--in one way or another--who may or may not have yet reached into close friendship with me. And so I am always thoughtful for small yet kind ways in which I might extend generosity.

Extend your circle of concern.

Think not only of what members of your own family would appreciate at Christmas. Think of cousins and aunts and uncles, and of closest friends. And don't stop there. Extend your circle. Think of your mail carrier, pet groomer, your pediatrician's office staff, the folks at your gym, your neighbors, friends of your children, office workers at you or your spouse's place of work, your manicurist, the landscaper....think through the flow of your typical week and those people who enter your life on a regular basis. If they are serving you in some capacity, isn't it kind to remember them now?

Many people refrain from practicing generosity to those outside their small circle of concern because of the lack of money with which to do so. But inexpensive gifts can be handmade for pennies if we will only stretch our imaginations and put our hands--and those of our children--to good use.

Look to nature and to materials right outside your front door

Free for the asking and the picking: a fresh bouquet of greens-- evergreens, magnolia leaves, and berries, tied with a gorgeous silk ribbon--would be cherished by any receiver.

Tiny bird nest ornaments fashioned from Spanish moss, filled with speckled beans and a silk butterfly, and with a wooden clothespin glued from underneath, make delightful gifts for children and adults alike. My own tree is filled with them.

Collect pinecones and make an arrangement with them. Your thoughtfulness will be appreciated and it will have cost nothing more than a walk in the woods.

Homemade candies or cookies wrapped in inexpensive cellophane bags look elegant tied with ribbon and make perfect gifts for virtually anyone on your list.

Miniature baskets filled with one tiny, simple gift, are perfect for your children's friends.

Remember: children love exaggeration; anything diminutive (or enormous!) appeals to their sense of wonder.

Homemade "snow globes" make our list every single year

Simply use a baby food or other small jar and fill it with water and a small bit of glycerin (found at your local drug store) and white glitter; add a few plastic toys--Lego