Christmas in October?

It's just my opinion...but I've heard others express it too so I'm putting it in writing.  Christmas stuff?  Already?  Or maybe I should say MORE Christmas stuff.  

It's too early.  I'm older but I can remember when you never even saw a tree up in a store until Black Friday.  Then, the day I turned 40, I went to the mall and saw a major store all decorated for Christmas.  It was mid-October.  I was really shocked. 

One year I saw a store that was decorated at Labor Day.  Granted, that was only one store, and even though it's one of my favorite stores, I walked out, and didn't go back until the 26th of December and bought sale items.

Now you see Christmas items in nearly every store.  Halloween candy is on sale and THAT holiday is two weeks away.  

In my Avon business, it's essential for us to have Christmas on the cover of our brochures in October.  My customers have four more shopping days with me.  They need to shop now.  Mail order catalogs have been showing Christmas for even longer.  I don't mind that.  

I guess what bothers me is that some people have lost sight of what Christmas is.  We celebrate the birth of Christ by giving gifts to our family and friends as the Magi gave gifts to the Christ child.  We don't need to be bombarded by this every time we head to a grocery store or even into Wal-Mart to buy sweatpants.  We don't have to buy all the "stuff" they're showing.  Many can't afford to spend much money and others have enough to buy anything and everything.  But it's not the point of Christmas.  Sure, it's nice to get that special gift from someone, but we don't have to start thinking about it now.

Make/paint/create something if you have the skills-ignore the stores if you can, at least until after Thanksgiving when you turn on the Christmas music and sing along to all the songs.  But not now.

It's just my opinion, but I think that the stores need to back off a little-or a lot...your thoughts?