Two Christmases ago, my son's pre-K class held a gift exchange grab bag.

Frantic with a two-month old and a family trip to Florida looming, I was caught off-guard but, between Jeff and me, we had purchased a duplicate gift.

Rather than return one, then, I submitted it for the gift exchange. Yes, it was well above the price range of $10 but so what? I made some kid's day.

Last Christmas, with two children in school, I didn't dare get caught off-guard, so without official prompting, I purchased two grab bag gifts. The notice of the gift exchange never came home, so I asked my sons' teachers about it.

"Not having that this year," came the reply. I dropped the inexpensive gifts at a local firehouse's toy drive.

This year?

I completed my Christmas shopping very early for a couple of reasons, fear of crumby weather among them. The crumby weather has yet to materialize. The very possibility of a gift exchange at school slipped my mind!

Until late last week when the cheery notice came home. Drat!

As if I feel like waddling around a toy store at 38 wks.