All I Want for Christmas

Remember as a child when you would get that Christmas gift that you didn't really want or already had or for some reason or other were not thrilled about.  Remember smiling and saying thank you and being grateful for the gift itself.  The other day we were in the Suburbia Target and I was dumbstruck by some lady - a mother actually.  She was telling her husband to make sure he got a good picture of the toy she was holding so that it would look good on her facebook.  That's right, she is going to take pictures of all the items her children want for Christmas and post them as an album on her facebook profile.  That's insane.  I mean, I guess it might be helpful in some twisted way, but really?  Then I heard on television this morning that this is one of the latest trends.  Parents making interweb birthday and Christmas lists for their children so that they get what they want.  I'm sorry but this has just gone too far.  Registries are for weddings and babies and times when you need certain items for your life, not want certain items for the heck of it.  It's ok for little Sophie and Hunter to get something that they didn't request on their birthday.  It's ok for little Matthew and Emma to get the wrong color of a toy under their Christmas tree.  With an established wish list, there is no thinking about what you want to get the child.  There is no personalization.  There is no fun in the gift giving when the gifts are pre-ordered.  And what will become of the manners of the children today when they never have to deal with a non-customized situation.  What ever happened to teaching children to be polite and thankful for the gift no matter what it is?  When I was young there was something we were taught that seems null and void in today's society.  Remember this? Its the thought that counts.  The question is if you are given a registry of gifts to choose from, don't you feel as though your thoughts don't much matter.