So to help with the holiday blunder, I have complied a few tips to help us get through the next 3 weeks.
1. Prepare! I could not stress this enough (get it..stress...ok I'm done with the corny jokes) but seriously, preparation is everything! Even though it's probably a little late to start this now, one thing that my husband and I did this year that has helped us tremendously is we put our kids Christmas gifts in layaway! I'm not sure about bigger toy stores but I know K-Mart and Wal-Mart both have layaway. We went right after Halloween and picked out Christmas gifts for both kiddos and we've been paying on them little by little. The first plus was we didn't have to fight the "Christmas crowd" when we were shopping and the second, most obvious, plus is we didn't have to spend a chunk of money at one time. We will definitely be doing this every year!
One way we are preparing for all of the Christmas festivities is by using a planner. I use a planner religiously anyways so it was second nature for me to use it to plan all of our Christmas outings/functions ect. By writing everything down in my planner I can easily keep up with everything we have coming up and it keeps us all more organized and helps us to not over-book ourselves.
2. Just say NO! This is something that I have a very hard time doing but I am trying to do more. Let's be honest, do we really have to attend every single Christmas party on the block or drag our kids all over creation just to try and create the perfect Christmas memories for them?! Don't get me wrong, that's all well and good but I know that I have more memorable childhood memories of my dad and I sitting in our living room floor watching "A Christmas Story" and eating oranges rather than us traveling hundreds of miles to go see Christmas lights or standing in line for 3 hours just so I could get my picture with Santa. Don't get me wrong, I'm not downing those things at all, my point is we don't have to do it all! Wonderful memories can be made at home just being with each other! Those are the times that I truly cherish!
Take full advantage of free time! Instead of feeling obligated to attend every single holiday festivity, stay home, get in your pj's, watch Christmas movies and eat cookies! I mean, who wouldn't want that?!
3. Reduce your spending! Ok I know I am walking on egg shells with this one but it's just the truth! Sorry not sorry! It is mind boggling to me the amount of money we spend for Christmas. To think that some people will get themselves in debt just to buy Christmas gifts completely blows my mind. What has happened to the TRUE meaning of Christmas. I could probably preach on this subject but for your sake I won't ha! Instead of breaking your bank try these instead:
1. Prepare! I could not stress this enough (get it..stress...ok I'm done with the corny jokes) but seriously, preparation is everything! Even though it's probably a little late to start this now, one thing that my husband and I did this year that has helped us tremendously is we put our kids Christmas gifts in layaway! I'm not sure about bigger toy stores but I know K-Mart and Wal-Mart both have layaway. We went right after Halloween and picked out Christmas gifts for both kiddos and we've been paying on them little by little. The first plus was we didn't have to fight the "Christmas crowd" when we were shopping and the second, most obvious, plus is we didn't have to spend a chunk of money at one time. We will definitely be doing this every year!
One way we are preparing for all of the Christmas festivities is by using a planner. I use a planner religiously anyways so it was second nature for me to use it to plan all of our Christmas outings/functions ect. By writing everything down in my planner I can easily keep up with everything we have coming up and it keeps us all more organized and helps us to not over-book ourselves.
2. Just say NO! This is something that I have a very hard time doing but I am trying to do more. Let's be honest, do we really have to attend every single Christmas party on the block or drag our kids all over creation just to try and create the perfect Christmas memories for them?! Don't get me wrong, that's all well and good but I know that I have more memorable childhood memories of my dad and I sitting in our living room floor watching "A Christmas Story" and eating oranges rather than us traveling hundreds of miles to go see Christmas lights or standing in line for 3 hours just so I could get my picture with Santa. Don't get me wrong, I'm not downing those things at all, my point is we don't have to do it all! Wonderful memories can be made at home just being with each other! Those are the times that I truly cherish!
Take full advantage of free time! Instead of feeling obligated to attend every single holiday festivity, stay home, get in your pj's, watch Christmas movies and eat cookies! I mean, who wouldn't want that?!
3. Reduce your spending! Ok I know I am walking on egg shells with this one but it's just the truth! Sorry not sorry! It is mind boggling to me the amount of money we spend for Christmas. To think that some people will get themselves in debt just to buy Christmas gifts completely blows my mind. What has happened to the TRUE meaning of Christmas. I could probably preach on this subject but for your sake I won't ha! Instead of breaking your bank try these instead:
- Don't buy for every single person. Only buy for your close loved ones (kids, spouse, parents)
- Try homemade gifts-I LOVE getting homemade gifts from my friends & family. Homemade jams, salsa, lotions, scrubs...the possibilities are endless!
- Set yourself a budget per person-make it a rule that you are only going to spend $10 on each family member. That narrows down your gift choices plus ensures that you won't break the bank.
- Instead of gifts, spend money on experiences-instead of buying material things, make a family date for your whole family to go ice skating. Making memories will last a lot longer than a shirt from TJ Maxx, promise! :)
- Buy something for your home-this year instead of my husband and I getting each other random gifts we are buying ourselves a new mattress! It will be something that we will keep for years and it's something that we really NEED (in a seriously bad way)!
It's sad to think that a holiday that is suppose to be so meaningful has become nothing more than a commercialized money pit which at the end of the day causes you to be so stressed out that you find yourself dreading the holiday's rather than enjoying them. Let's pull back the reigns and get this under control. Don't fall into the Christmas trap. Rest, relax, and enjoy this truly wonderful time of the year! Merry Christmas Ya'll! :)
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