How’s that Christmas shopping going?

Rumors abound about people who finish their Christmas shopping before Dec. 1, those who spread their shopping over the course of the year so no December mad rush takes place.

Who are these people?

The logistics of those superorganized tasks boggle my mind on a couple of different levels.

First is the space. I don’t have enough free space in my home to hide Christmas presents for months. Often, shopping bags linger in the trunk of my car for days or weeks to keep them away from the little prying eyes that share my home. And since I drive a Prius, my storage space is limited there as well. Besides, even if packages aren’t visible, vehicle burglaries are rampant this time of year, especially here.

This Yahoo! article lists some creative places to hide Christmas gifts. Trunk of the car is No. 6 on this list.

Here’s another list, “8 Great Places to Hide Christmas Gifts From Nosy Kids.” One of its suggestions is stashing presents under the dirty clothes in your hamper. I think I’ll pass on that one.

One technique I use is bound to be a problem at some point. When I order gifts online, I don’t always open the package right away as they arrive to ensure that the box contains what I ordered. If they’re in the brown cardboard shipping package, no peeking. So far, I’ve been lucky, but as my oldest daughter said, “This has the potential to end badly.”

The second aspect that stumps me is how do people keep track of what they’ve bought when they are buying and stashing gifts throughout the year? Do they discover long-forgotten purchases around Valentine’s Day?

I’ve gotten better about keeping a list of ideas, as they occur to me, about what I’d like to get for people. But I still tend to put most of my shopping off until just a few weeks before Christmas.

And ultimately, I guess it’s a matter of perspective. While I think I’m pushing it, not shopping until December, my boyfriend doesn’t understand why I’m getting all my shopping done “so early.” I’m pretty sure he hasn’t started his shopping yet at all.

Are you just starting, all finished or somewhere in the middle on your holiday shopping? And what secret places do you have for hiding gifts and keeping track of your progress?