We all need a reality check to remember why we care at Christmas

NOW that Halloween is over we can discuss the next big event — Christmas! It’s only 45 days away and the shops and the adverts on radio, TV and print are in overdrive. I know it is generally a season of fun for children, but it is also a very difficult time for lots of families.

The expense for many families is overwhelming — we really need to go back to basics and be realistic. Today is the Ireland of the haves and the have-nots.

Speaking for myself, I am luckier than I ever imagined I would be growing up. We are not wealthy, but we are comfortable and have a roof over our heads with a job that helps us pay the bills.

I started buying my Christmas gifts in Dingle when we were down for the Food Festival last month. The Strand House had a sale on with great bargains and has been my place of choice to start shopping for a number of years. My mum loves it too and we had time to browse and look for something a little different — yet useful.

Most people are lucky insofar as they do not really need any more, and my aim has been to buy a useful gift, as opposed to buying something for the sake of it. The kids in our extended family are very lucky as they don’t really need anything.

SO I have been looking at options and the new Dublin Monopoly Game is a big one as a way of keeping them away from their phones, iPads, computers, etc. I have also found beautiful Guinot box sets at thebeautyparlour.ie and have already purchased some gents scarves from an Irish brand, Weaver & Wilde at John Taylor’s Shop in Baggot Street, Dublin 2. I will have everything bought and wrapped before the end of November because December is our harvest time. There are sales everywhere right now, and the savvy shopper would be wise to stock up while prices are right.

Newbridge Silverware’s showroom sale starts today. I have never been a last-minute shopper — it’s not worth the stress. I was in Kildare Village early last Saturday and by the time I was leaving at 11.15am, there was a mile-long queue long waiting to get in. Shopping online is grand for some items, but I am a shopkeeper’s daughter and I like to see and feel what I am buying.

Please be aware that websites pop up with seemingly great bargains at this time of year. Not all are kosher. If it seems too good to be true, it usually is. Be careful and be aware.

StreetSmart is an innovative fundraising scheme which works during the winter when people begin to think more about those less fortunate than themselves.

With the homeless crisis, this is even more important now — no-one wants to see anyone suffer from the lack of a permanent home, especially children. StreetSmart is an easy way for people to ‘Dine Out and Help Out’.

Over the past three years, it has raised over €90,000 to help the Peter McVerry Trust, Focus Ireland and Stepping Stone. With the benefit of a table card or a reference on the menu which explains StreetSmart, a voluntary €2 is added to each table’s bill in November and December.

At the end, all participating restaurants pass on the funds raised to the homeless charities here and to the other charity partner SCOOP.

Most of the money — 90% — supports homeless charities in Ireland, and 10% makes an impact at a global level through SCOOP, by supporting projects tackling the refugee crises in Syria, Iraq and Yemen.

StreetSmart is ultimately about bringing together the restaurant industry to address the biggest social crisis for a generation.

Besides ourselves at L’Ecrivain, some of the other eateries that have signed up are Fallon & Byrne, Darwin’s Restaurant, Locks, The Winding Stair, Woollen Mills, Yamamori Noodles, 777, Fade Street Social, The Market Bar, Coppinger Row, Klaw, Rustic Stone, Whitefriar Grill and Vermillion. We hope many more will join in too.