Christmas Presents

So here it is--the presents under the tree scene. Now that Santa is "gone" in our house, everything is very different. I used to put all of the toys unwrapped under the tree---made a fantastic scene each Christmas morning. Now, the few small but expensive teen gifts are wrapped and placed under the tree ahead of time. I think the metallic bags are pretty! :) I think my teens feel a bit like I do--that's all? But they dare not say anything--some very valuable things come in very tiny packages!! We will have a very Merry Christmas, and it is NOT about how many presents are under the tree!! Still, let's be honest--middle class teenagers who want for nothing are often a bit...um...materialistic? I remember being that way when I was their age--only thing is, there wasn't any of this expensive technology back then. I am wondering how other parents of teens are handling this--if times are very tough financially, teens just have to understand--if families are comfortable financially, do they often go overboard trying to get the latest and greatest things?--if things are okay and families have good credit, are they racking up big debt to buy lots of expensive things for their teens? I guess we are okay--luckily there was a modest Christmas bonus that kept us from needing to charge--still, we did "Christmas lite" this year. Why in the heck am I having such a hard time dealing with this?!! Why am I feeling "guilty" for not having more money to buy them more things--that is crazy!! You know what? I am ready to get Christmas over with and move into the new year--I need to get past all of this craziness!! Christmas with teens is just so different--no cute things to do during the holidays to distract from the commercialism--sometimes I miss the "good old days"--the days of Christmas movies, plays, music, Santa visits, cookies and candy, etc.--Christmas with kids is SO much fun--Christmas with teens is just, well, less fun! I love them so much and I want to make this a nice holiday, but what can I do with them that they would enjoy? We still like watching SOME Christmas movies together--maybe we will drink coffee by the fire while watching a few. However, my son just left the room because a Christmas "variety show" just came on--he thinks those are so lame! Merry Christmas to everyone! :)