When I was growing up, my brother and I both looked forward to when the Christmas gift catalog would come in the mail. I remember that we got at least one, though there might have been more. We would go through each page looking to see what we might want to ask for, and we spent quite a lot of time doing so. My mom must not have minded, because she never said anything when we circled toys and folded down very important pages. In fact, thinking back, we must have made her shopping much easier this way.

What has surprised me is that these just don't come in the mail any more. I remember looking at one in a particular department store, and was shocked when I saw that you have to pay for them. Being a long time customer, I just assumed that I would get a Christmas gift catalog from them in the mail, just like my mother did. Apparently, times have changed. If you want something like this today, you probably will have to pay for it. You can find your favorite store's web site to see if you can sign up to get one, or what you have to do if this is something you want.

If you don't want to bother, you can see how they have changed the Christmas gift catalog in a way that does reflect the changes in time. For the most part, you can find the same selection of clothing and toys on each store's website. This is a great way to see what is out there, and to allow your children to give you some ideas about what they might like to have under the tree. However, for me, that is just not the same. There was just something magical about that catalog, and I always thought my children would do the same thing and my brother and I did.

There is a benefit to have online Christmas gift catalog selections, however. It does save on cutting down trees, and you don't have to worry about throwing them out when the holidays are over. If you did get a huge catalog from each place where you loved to shop, you could end up with quite a heavy stack of them by the time the holidays have passed. However, if you really want them, they do still make them, it might just be harder for you to get your hands on one.