“Can you believe it? Christmas will be here in less than 6 weeks!”

I overheard Chirpy Blonde Chick gleefully impart this little gem to Mini Skirt Mum while grocery shopping the other day. MSM’s reaction was to smile serenely as she caressed the heads of her two  perfectly behaved toddlers.

“Oh, I know!” she gloated. ” I only have one more present to get and I am done!”

The self-righteousness emanating from her was was like a slap in the face for my whole day. Made me almost hope her kids threw a sugar whammy in the lolly aisle out of spite. Because how dare she remind me about Christmas? I had plenty of time to get sorted. It was still ages away, wasn’t it?

Reality came crashing in via a burst of mild panic. Dear God. Only SIX weeks? What the hell happened to October? My brain still hadn’t wrapped around the idea of Christmas, let alone start to plan for it. And yes, this was in spite of all the decorations in the shops and the half-a-forest’s worth of junk mail that has been spewing forth from our mail box for weeks.

I have been the master of ignoring it all. Too many other things to worry about, I’ve been all ‘I’ll deal with all that stuff later, much MUCH later.’ But like Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher, I couldn’t ignore any longer what was obvious to the entire planet.

Christmas, she was a-coming, whether I was ready or not. Snarky Sarah wanted to throw a massive tantrum in the middle of Frozen Foods and scream obsenities at Chirpy Blonde Chick before suggesting to Mini Skirt Mum exactly *where* she could put her organisational skills. (Oh, if only, lol.)

Fortunately, the ever-Sanguine & Sensible Sarah took over with a “FFS, Snarky. Do that and Santa will give you a lump of coal instead of a present.”

That left only one other option: I grabbed a large tub of icecream before throwing in some chocolate fudge brownies for good measure and stalked out of there, head held high.

Which brings me to here. No longer in denial. 6 weeks and counting. Are you ready?

I will be. Somehow. I may not be Mini Skirt Mum who is so uber-organised she has virtually all her presents bought, wrapped, labelled and hidden away already, but I will get there. If all else fails I know I can hit the shops and get it done in a couple of days – the secret is all in the planning. It’s like intense shopping on steroids. Crucial to this method is a plan, good stamina, a pair of comfy shoes and your nearest mega mall. Problem sorted.

And I’ll make sure I buy a nice bottle of wine for Snarky. *g*