Tis the Season (Getting Ready for the Holidays with Giveaways!)

I had planned to start the Cool Moms Rule! Holiday Gift Guide listings tomorrow, chock-full of fantastic gift ideas for your teens and 'tweens--over a hundred items I hand-picked as the best and the brightest gifts this holiday season, just for you--but the Guide, already chock-full, overflowed when some wonderful people, like the folks at Hallmark, sent me all their thoughtful ideas for those special products and services we Cool Moms need BEFORE the holidays--you know, the time when we are all gettting ready, counting down the days.

So naturally, I just had to do this special "pre-post" to let you know about them!

Now, I know that some of you are, like me, rejoicing in this magical time of year and looking forward to spending the holidays with family.

BUT I also know that some of you are dreading all the fuss and stress and bother that come along with the season, and I can already hear you grumbling about that.

So, for this pre-holiday post, I have officially split you all into two camps, and you can line up appropriately: The Scrooges to my left and the Christmas Spirit folks to my right, please! And don't you worry--I have giveaways for you BOTH!

Okay, so to get started:

What to do for those school gifts? You know, the ones for the coaches and teachers? The ones you have to get all the parents together for, and then collect money and all of that--Wait!

Why are more of you heading over to the Scrooge side now? Come back! It's okay!

I've got your back.

Or rather, Frumus.com does. Frumus.com is your one-stop, easy-peasy solution to those collection hassles. With frumus.com, you set up a page online and let all those parents come to you. All you need is a Paypal account if you are the one collecting the money, or a credit card if you want to donate to a group present someone else has started. They even provide gift ideas on the site. Best of all, the Frumus.com service is free!

Speaking of free services, you'll love freeshipping.org, the website that tells you all the ways to get free shipping offers at your favorite online shopping sites, like JC Penney's, Kohl's, etc. Freeshipping.org really makes shopping for those out-of-town relatives so much easier!

When you are shipping presents from home, don't neglect Hallmark's latest offering, one of those slap-your-forehead, "Why didn't I think of that?" true-genius obvious ideas: adhesive gift wrap! That's right, Hallmark now has gift-wrap that sticks to packages all on its own, so you don't have to fumble with the tape and the scissors and the paper all at the same time!

Hallmark also has new holiday cards that are just amazing--you may have seen the commercials for them. These cards are both musical AND recordable, so you can send, for instance, the grandparents a colorful card complete with a Christmas tune, all overlaid with the grandkids shouting out, "Merry Christmas!" to them. Very, very cool.

Once you get your shipping supplies underway, it's time to decorate the house. Akrongrove is a nice new little online shop with really sweet holiday soaps just perfect for gracing your guest bathroom. My personal favorites are the traditional Santa and the cute Chrismas Mouse, available in scents like Gingerbread, Sugared Spice and even "Nutcracker".

Light some of Bath and Body Works' new candles to spread holiday cheer throughout the home. Their silver penguin candle holders are adorable, and, in stores, the nifty blue zippo lighter, specially for the season, helps raise money for autism research! We'll have even more Bath and Body Works goodies later in our guide--I'm loving their shop this year, and have already been back to the store twice to shop for family presents.

Remember the giveaways I mentioned above, for the Scrooges AND the Christmas Spirits?

You are going to absolutely love them.

So, Scrooges, if you've been reading this post with a jaundiced eye, Christmas Sucks: What to do when fruitcake, family and finding the perfect gift make you miserable is THE perfect book for you! Christmas Sucks: What to Do When Fruitcake, Family, and Finding the Perfect Gift Make You Miserable is available now at Amazon.com, and it makes a great gift, too, by the way. It's full of practical and time-saving tips to save you from stress and frustration this holiday season. You might want to write, "Read the Cool Moms Rule! Holiday Gift Guide" right there in the cover of your copy. ; ) Pick it up at Amazon, or, to WIN this humorous take on the holidays, just leave a comment with, "I'm a Scrooge!" below this post.

For you Christmas Spirits out there, I have lovely collectible ornaments from our friends at Hallmark, and they are based on the hottest hits this season: Hannah Montana AND High School Musical 3! That's right, one lucky winner takes them both home for the holidays! Based on the hit Hannah Montana TV show and the High School Musical 3 movie, each one plays a tune when activated. Hannah Montana fans can sing along to, "Best of Both Worlds", while the HSM3 locker plays "We're All in this Together" when opened. Just leave a comment with, "I have the Christmas Spirit!" and I'll know you want to WIN these adorable collectible ornaments from Hallmark for your Christmas tree!

By the way, sometimes even I can be a bit of a Scrooge, even though I am usually up to my chin in the Spirit of the season, so I'll understand if you want BOTH of these giveaway choices. Hey, maybe reading this post put you right back into that holiday spirit again.

So, to enter BOTH the Scrooge AND the Christmas Spirit giveaways, just put, "I'm a Scrooge AND I have the Christmas Spirit!" and you'll be entered to win ALL of the prizes!

For additional entries, do any or all of the following and leave me an additional comment so I know what you've done:

• Subscribe to our feed,
• Put our badge on your sidebar
• Blog about this post, or
• Visit GiveRespect.org and credit Cool Moms Rule!

Good luck!