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How do I tell someone I can no longer give her a Christmas present  At a pre-Christmas party a good friend gave me a nicely wrapped present to put under our tree. I was caught off guard and didn’t have a gift for her, even though we had exchanged gifts in the past. What do I do now?

I have sixteen grandkids and their parents to buy and wrap presents for (and in some cases mail in time for Christmas) and I can’t keep up with exchanging gifts with coworkers or friends any longer. What do I say?

–SE, Dover,MA

What to say when you no longer do the gift giving exchange with a friend or coworker.

There are three options here: Be honest and tell them the truth with no apology.

Lie saying you ordered them a book through Amazon, which everyone knows can take two months to arrive, and they’ll have it as soon as it is delivered to you.

Express your appreciation and go home and order online a small, sweet basket of cookies from dancingdeer.com; then during the course of the coming year drop the hint that you’re no longer going to be exchanging Christmas presents outside the family.

~Didi