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3 Ways to Pay for Your Christmas Expenses

December 10, 2014 | Leave a Comment

Christmas can be a very expensive time of year. For most, waiting until November to deal with all the impending expenses won’t work and cause undue stress.

The easiest way to manage Christmas expenses for most is to start early. That is, immediately following Christmas! Yet after saying this, I find most people have a hard time thinking about the following Christmas before this one is even finished but arguably the easiest way to manage your Christmas cash is to set aside the money every month beginning in January.

An alternative is that you actually buy presents every month until December by taking the number of people you have to buy for and divide by 12. I have done both and personally prefer to save the cash every month.

Here are some other ways you can keep Christmas from blowing your budget.

Sell your stuff.

Opening an account where you can save any extra money is a great way to not interrupt your daily cash flow and still save for Christmas. Again if you start early and save year-round you may be surprised how much extra money you can come up with, especially if you hold a yardsale(s) in the warmer months!

Get a second job.

Though I never actually did this, plenty of my friends did. They would pick up a seasonal job that allowed them to bring in extra money and get discounts at some of their favorite stores. Conversely I had a friend who would get a second job at her favorite clothing store every year and buy almost her entire year wardrobe during her employment there, saving all of her clothing spending money year-round for Christmas.

Use extra paychecks.

My husband and I are paid bi-weekly but budget monthly. This means there are two months of the year where we’re actually paid more. Rather than budgeting this extra money in our monthly cash flow we opt to use it for one-off expenses, Christmas being one of them. One of our pay-periods is October or November depending on when payday falls and of that extra pay we take out our extra money and use a portion of it for our Christmas expenses. While this works well for us I understand it’s not for everyone! Point in case, we won’t be completing our shopping until middle of December this year. For some that may stress them out but we’re so used to it we’re both very organized and are able to go out in one to two trips and get everything accomplished.

Whatever method you use to pay for your Christmas expenses, the point is that you do whatever you can to limit stress on you and your family. Please also remember that not doing gifts can also be perfectly acceptable and don’t be afraid to suggest it!

Though I prefer our current method to all other suggested I’m curious to know how other people manage Christmas expenses. Where I’d rather not even think about it until at least November I feel like most people in my life prepare year-round, what do you do? Do you use different ways to pay for your Christmas expenses?

Catherine

Catherine is a first time momma to a rambunctious toddler. When she isn’t soaking up all that motherhood has to offer, you can find her blogging over at Plunged in Debt where she chronicles her and her husbands journey out of debt. You can also follow her on Twitter.

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Why I’m Asking for Cash for Christmas in Lieu of Gifts for My Daughter’s

December 3, 2014 | Leave a Comment

Christmas is fast approaching and almost every day I get phone calls and text messages asking about gifts for our daughter. Everyone wants to buy her something. Friends, grandparents, cousins, neighbours. She’s only two and half years old! There isn’t much of anything she actually needs and really she’s still too young to know if she wants anything. While we as parents can get away with it (i.e. before she’s old enough to ask for stuff) we’re asking that people limit or exclude physical gifts for her.

We as her parents take care of her wants and needs and I think we do a pretty good job. She has all her needs taken care of and more than enough ‘’extras’’ in her life in the form of toys, books, treats and special events. Selfishly I don’t want a house overrun with her toys and ‘’stuff’’ either. I think it’s important to keep the level of ‘’stuff’’ she’s surrounded with at a realistic level. While I accept that people like to buy things for her, she doesn’t need much and so I would rather have the cash instead.

Cash for Christmas

With a cash gift, instead of another stuffed animal or doll, we can do more for her. First we could invest it her post-secondary savings account. I would much rather have $20 invested for the next 16 years than a toy she’ll play with for a few days which we’ll then end up donating or throwing away depending on its condition. We could also put it towards a special event or experience for her. This coming year we have plans to enroll her into a few dance classes for example. I would rather see her experience something new and exciting that can really help form her as a child than a simple toy she won’t have much interaction with.

I’m not a total scrooge. I understand that for her toys are fun and we will be buying her some new fun toys and books to play with but if I allowed everyone person who has inquired our house would be littered with too much stuff. Too much stuff can lead to unnecessary expectations for her too. I don’t want her growing up with extreme Christmas expectations either. Gifts, though fun, are not the main focus of the season.

In me explaining that we would rather have cash (and/or books) in lieu of gifts has been very well received by people who have inquired. Once I explained what our plan was and why we wanted to limit the volume of gifts she got people seem more than happy to give cash in her name instead (one less gift for them to buy too!). People loved the idea of contributing towards something much ‘’larger’’ in terms of post-secondary or experience such as her dance classes. I have also accepted that some people (aunts and grandparents) genuinely enjoy buying things for her and that’s ok, as long as they don’t go too crazy 🙂

It is too easy to go overboard this time of year. I don’t want people feeling like they need to get her anything and if they do I just want to give the option of contributing to something more.

How do you manage request and gifts for your children for Christmas?

Catherine

plungedindebt.com

Dollar Store Christmas Gift Ideas for Kids

November 26, 2014 | Leave a Comment

With Christmas being less than a month away, the stores are in full Christmas swing and filled with busy shoppers from open to close.

I hate Christmas shopping! I do what I can to avoid the mall at all costs. We’re fortunate that our daughter is still young and doesn’t want for much in terms of gifts. That doesn’t mean we won’t buy her a few things though. We do a good job at keeping our Christmas shopping within a budget and when we can get away with buying something for cheaper, we will.

I made a list of gift ideas for friends and family who insisted on buying our daughter ‘’something small’’ and realized most of the things on the list could be purchased at the dollar store. It’s cheap, and in our case, we can avoid the mall, bonus!

Here are a few gift ideas that you can buy for the kid(s) in your life all of which you can likely get at a local dollar store:

Coloring books and crayons. Our daughter loves to color but I cannot justify paying $5+ for a coloring book where she will insist on ripping every page out to color individually. I’m much happier with the $1-$2 book and a box of Crayola crayons for the same price. It doesn’t sting as much when she snaps the crayons in thirds either.
Playdough and cookie cutters. We love to play with playdough. I have actually made my own in the past but when I found a box of it at the local dollar store for $2 I stopped making it. Our daughter loves to roll the dough out and cut it with plastic cookie cutters, again which I bought at the dollar store for cheap.
Books. At my daughters age I still prefer to buy books over using the library since she’s still learning the concept of being gentle (it stresses momma out to keep track of books we don’t own!). Given the volume of books we purchase I always buy on sale, used or from the dollar store. Some of our favorite books were only $1 at the local dollar store, always worth checking out. I have been surprised.
Craft supplies. Aside from the playdough and coloring books, I purchase all of my craft supplies (paint, pipe cleaners, popsicle sticks, sparkles…) at the dollar store. Making up a cheap fun craft kit from dollar store finds would make a great, cheap, gift!
For the little girl in your life: Hair stuff. I always check out the local dollar store for fun hair things like sparkly hair clips and elastics. I can’t justify spending too much money on these things since they’re lost into the abyss hours after buying them…
Toys. Like books, the dollar store surprises me sometimes with the toys they carry. My daughter loves dinosaurs so we bought her two bags of little dinos for $1.50 each. Worth checking out to see what you find before hitting the mall!
Stocking stuffers. When it comes to helping Santa, the dollar store can be a Mecca for stocking stuffer ideas for kids of all ages.

Until I go there I always forget how stocked the dollar stores actually are. If you’re not sure if you think they’ll have something, it won’t hurt to check, it may just surprise you!

What other Dollar Store Christmas Gift Ideas can You Think Of?

Catherine

plungedindebt.com

The Need to Take the Disgust Out of Halloween

October 22, 2014 | Leave a Comment

Growing up I loved Halloween but not for the regular ”kid” reasons. I just used to love the excitement, the crafts and the fun movies, which as an adult, I still do. I was never, and still am not someone who enjoys dressing up, Halloween night was fun to be with friends but I was always terrified I was going to get jumped by some ”high school kid” and they’d steal my candy (an unnecessary fear), this resulted in me not venturing too far from home and coming back fairly early from my trick-or-treating ventures.

As I got a bit older my best friend and I would watch scary movies together leading up to the ”holiday”. Classics by Hitchcock usually. I also had a soft spot for the old Ernest Scared Stupid but growing up I was never exposed to really gruesome stuff and I was scared as much as any child or young adult should be. I didn’t need decapitated babies, bloody pick axes or zombies with trachea’s hanging out of their mouth to scare me. Exposing me to Freddy Krueger was enough. At what point have we as a society become so desensitized to everything that the movie Psycho is a casual weeknight family movie?

I am by no means prudish in any way but as I approach my daughter’s first Halloween where she will be trick-0r-treating, I shudder to think about how I am going to explain some of the over-the-top decorations we’re bound to see. Dead bodies, bloody body bags, severed limbs… What happened to spooky skeletons and witches? There is line with Halloween that often gets crossed.

My sister-in-law is one who has always loved the goriness of Halloween, the bloodier the better in her eyes, but she contains the over-the-top decorations for the inside of her house where, when kids come to the door, they cannot see anything but if you’re an adult attending her annual party, be prepared for plastic, bloody, severed fingers to be served with your appetizer. My point is that there is a time, place and appropriate audience. If you and your friends enjoy said decorations, by all means share them together but don’t expose the rest of the world to them.

It’s not just kids that worry me. There are many people going through many varying personal issues where Halloween decorations could be upsetting. While I’m willing to bet a scary witch or ghost on your front porch won’t bother many people, hanging a noose around what looks like a bloody, plastic body bag and hanging it off your roof (real thing in our neighborhood last year), likely will.

Halloween has the potential to be a really fun ”holiday” (a term I use loosely). There are some amazingly fun Halloween movies that despite my Grinchiness with dressing up, I really love to watch every year. The over-the-top gore just takes away the fun of it for me and my family and makes us not way to do anything at all which, let’s be honest is no fun for kids.

Young children don’t have the life experience we adults do, and someone who is dealing with personal issues shouldn’t have to avert their eyes or have memories flared up because of a neighbor’s decorations. Be sensible and aware of your audience and have a fun and safe Halloween!

Do you think Halloween Decor has gone too far?

Catherine

plungedindebt.com

5 Tips for Planning a Cheap Family Getaway

September 3, 2014 | Leave a Comment

Last weekend I had the luxury of getting out of town with the family, even though we didn’t go very far it was so nice to just get out of our normal routine and boundaries. You don’t have to spend a ton of money to enjoy a family getaway. We managed a weekend away for less than $200 by finding some deals and capitalizing on cost savings, you can too.

Shop Around

We knew we’d need a hotel for the evening but weren’t interesting in spending a ton of money. I also knew we’d likely be spending a decent amount of time in our room given that we have a little on who is asleep fairly early so wanted it to be comfortable and spacious for my husband and I to enjoy while she was sleeping, without being overpriced. The internet makes searching for stuff like hotels a breeze. I found exactly what we needed for below the price we were willing to spend.

Look for Discount Options

We were planning to attend a specific event, if we signed up for notifications from the hosting vendor we would be granted a 25% discount on ticket price. Given that there we a total of seven of us traveling it saved us a decent chunk of money. We also saved on parking at the event itself because they considered us a carpool (more than 4 people), a nice surprise.

Enjoy and Seek Out Perks

I hate paying for parking at hotels, given the rate at which they charge you to sleep in a room I think it’s insane to charge upwards of $40 per day in some cities to park your car on top of room rate. I always look for hotels with free parking before ever paying. I also compare the room rate for breakfast vs. no breakfast included. At our particular hotel not only did we have free parking for only $10 more per night then the other hotel we were looking at, we got hot breakfast included. Our family of three certainly can’t eat (out) for less than $10. The hot breakfast is almost always worth the money to me.

Share Costs

A few family members were traveling with us to go to the same event to we decided to cut one of the cars out and share the cost in our vehicle instead. They save on wear and tear on their vehicle and we shared the cost of gas which was a help to both parties involved. We also shared a hotel room. Paying for the larger room and extra persons charge was still significantly cheaper than us each getting a room and it was nice to have the extra company!

Bring Your Own Snacks

Buying snacks on the road can get expensive. We always pack our collapsible cooler with drinks and light snacks for us and kiddo so we’re not tempted to waste money at gas stations and pit stop locations. We have a child who much prefers to graze throughout the day then eat larger meals so this works especially well for us.

With a little planning it is possible to plan a weekend away with your family and not break the bank. Proper budgeting will insure you can get away without worrying how you’re going to pay for it all when you get back!

Catherine

plungedindebt.com

How to Save For a Large Family Purchase

June 18, 2014 | 1 Comment

Having a family is expensive.

It doesn’t have to be as expensive as some stats would have you believe, but going from a married couple of two to a family of three plus will have added expenses.

These every day added expenses such as diapers, food, paying for kids activities and possibly private school tuition can make it seem impossibly hard to save for large upcoming expenses that affect the whole family.

Large expenses that affect the whole family may include:

Home repairs, everyone lives under the roof and mom and dad need to keep it safe!
Family vacations
Family vehicle

All of the above are expensive. Right now we need to start saving for an upcoming family reunion next summer and though much less critical we’d eventually like to upgrade the appliances in our kitchen. In order to do any of these things we need a plan.

Come up with a list

We created a list of everything we wanted to do and purchase, then, together as a family, prioritized each item with a number 1-5.

Once everything had a number we ranked within each set of numbers (ie we may have had three #4’s) and ranked in priority until we had a detailed prioritized list. Once the list was ranked we put an estimated cost beside the item and recheck the list. This is the order in which we will tackle things.

Come up with a plan

A list without a plan of attack is nothing. We can say we want to attend the family reunion next year but if we don’t have a means to pay for it then it will never happen.

The plan has to include a more realistic budget for the item or venture as well as a plan to come up with the money by a certain date.

Come up with the money

Coming up with the money is the hard part. If you’re able to designate a savings line in your monthly budget this is an ideal situation but if the money needs to come out of funds over and above your regular monthly budget then you’ll need to get creative.

Are you paid bi-weekly? If so, it means you have two ”extra” pay periods per year that you could use for the family purchase.

Have a tax return that you could use (if not reinvesting)?

Start small. My husband and I have big dreams of attending the 2022 Olympics with our family no matter where they are in the world. Obviously this will require substantial planning and substantial money.

I figure we would need to invest at least $100 per month for the next eight years to make this happen but since our current priority is debt we won’t be starting to save for probably four years at which point we will be able to easily double up the payment to $200/month for four years.

Save all ”extra” money. Overtime, side income, found money. Any unaccounted for income could go towards paying for your family’s larger purchases.

How do you pay for larger family purchases?

Catherine

plungedindebt.com

Saving Money on Kids Birthday Parties

June 11, 2014 | Leave a Comment

This past weekend my daughter was invited to the birthday of a little girl we know.

She was turning six and all I knew was that there was a ”clown theme”. It was the first time I’ve actually attended the birthday party of a child (outside of me being a kid myself) and holy. cow. The party was over the top.

I certainly don’t remember ever having, or attending a party of such detail before in my life. It scared me a little into thinking there was some new expectation to have a huge party for kiddo’s upcoming birthday.

I was right, there was a clown theme which included:

Having a live clown perform or two hours making balloon creations for every kid present (at least 30 kids), a full kid-friendly magic show and all sorts of attention for the birthday girl.
Rented hall for event.
Full decoration (balloons, streamers, plates etc)
Toys for kids (clown noses, silly bowties, party hats)
Food (fresh fruit, candy in skewer form, cake, chips)
Multiple treat bags full of stuff for each kid.
And so many gifts!

Saving Money on Kids Birthday Parties

Kid parties certainly don’t have to be so over-the-top though. You can have all sorts of fun without compromising the child’s memory. To save on kids parties consider doing these money saving tips:

Only invite the child’s friends/family. There was simply no way this little girl was friends with every child there. Invite only kids that your child actually interacts with. There is no rule about mandatory invitation to every child in their class.
Don’t have it during a time when a meal may be expected. Only serve snacks and keep them to a minimum. Depending on how many people may be present, buying in bulk at a store like Costco or Sams Club may be the best option.
If you do serve a meal make or buy something that is inexpensive but can serve a lot of people (lasagna, pizza, pasta, BBq burgers/dogs) or consider a potluck meal.
Look into group party discounts at local attractions. I know the local movie theater here offers a pretty good price for a large group (movie ticket, snacks, room rental and cake all included). If you’re only inviting close friends and family it can be a reasonable option.

If you start with extravagant parties, especially so young, there will be an expectation for years.

I’m not suggesting you shouldn’t have fun and celebrate their special day but keep it within reason. This can’t be the new norm! I remember having my friends over for pizza and games, as we got older possibly a sleepover, not an all-out afternoon event with every kid in the neighborhood. Put the focus on your child having fun, not money spent.

How do you save money on kids birthday parties?

Catherine

plungedindebt.com

A Rant About Mother’s Day Gifts

May 14, 2014 | Leave a Comment

Maybe it’s because I didn’t pay much attention to the ads until this year, being my second Mother’s day celebration. Maybe it was because growing up, making homemade gifts for special occasions was the only option, not ever noticing ads.

I don’t know why but this year more than ever, there seems to be a huge amount of what I would consider inappropriate ads for special occasions, Mother’s day being just one.

Mother’s Day Ads Gone Overboard

I caught a local ad on TV advertising that what mom ”really wants” is this luxury vehicle for Mother’s day. Really? A car? For Mother’s day?! Not only is this just insane to me, it gives the message of ”Thanks Mom for driving us around all day, mind-as-well have a comfortable bum while it continues”. Who buys mom a car for Mother’s day?!

Mother’s day is important. Moms work hard. While I don’t want to discredit Dad, my experience (both as a mom and child) is that there is generally more pressure on mom. More pressure to keep the house running, nursing, feeding, parenting, mom’s do it all, no questions asked.

What a Mom Really Wants

Taking a single day every year to make sure moms are acknowledged is important. Don’t let Mother’s day excuse you from doing it more often though 🙂 Mom doesn’t want a car. Any mom, I don’t care about demographic, ethnicity or race, doesn’t want a lavish gift such as a car. Mom wants time.

Time that is usually consumed by doing dishes, taking to practice, running the house. Mom wants one day where she has every second of her day to enjoy however she wants. For me I was able to take a nap, for no reason other than I could. Had extra cuddles with my daughter while I let her watch one of her favorite shows just so I could hold her while she was still.

Time outside running around the park. Time with my family while we ate a yummy dinner prepared by my husband. It was a beautiful day and while my daughter did get me a gift (a vegetable garden made by dad which my daughter and I will enjoy together) the best gift given to me was time. While I still did some cleaning and got some laundry done, it was on my own accord and I was able to accomplish everything I wanted.

Moms don’t need cars and diamond rings. They want time for themselves. Time with their family and general acknowledgment that what they do is recognized. Showering mom in foolish expensive gifts is a cop-out. The effort you put in to making anything will be much better received than any gift in which you merely had to swipe a card for. If mom needs a new car, sure, work it out so she gets one, but disguising it as a Mother’s day gift is an injustice to your mom.

Going forward for future years, make sure you spend time with mom. Make her something to the best of your abilities. Tell her you love her. She doesn’t really need that silly materialistic item regardless of what the advertises will have you believe.

What do you think is an appropriate gift for mothers day?

Catherine

plungedindebt.com

Use Chippmunk to Reduce Your Valentine’s Day Costs

January 31, 2014 | Leave a Comment

Valentine’s Day is right around the corner. While it’s a time to show your love to that important person in your life, it can also be a very expensive day. The traditional Valentine’s Day might include a meal out at a nice restaurant, perhaps a movie, and don’t forget gifts for one another.

Besides the expense, if you opt for this route, you’ll be spending a lot of time simply waiting. If you eat out on Valentine’s Day night, you may wait several hours just to get a table.

Instead, consider having a quiet Valentine’s Day at home. You can have a romantic dinner in and give each other gifts. Better yet, use a site like Chippmunk to get nice gifts at a deep discount.

What Is Chippmunk?

Chippmunk is a unique site. Rather than simply looking for coupons or coupon codes that can save you money, Chippmunk first asks you to choose your budget and what you are shopping for. Then, the site chooses coupons for you based on your budget.

If you enter a department that you’re looking for such as “chocolate”, the site will find you the retailers who have the best deals. You might be thinking of buying Fannie May candy, but you might find a better deal for Godiva Chocolate or Cherry Moon Farms.

Say you want to spend $30 on chocolate for the sweet in your life. Fannie May Berries can give you 25% off boxed chocolates. Or, you could save 20% off your order of $29 or more from Shari’s Berries.

Not sure which retailer you want to go with? Chippmunk also offers ratings measuring the customer experience provided by the store. In the above example, Fannie May Berries earns 4 out of 5 stars while Shari’s Berries earns 5 out of 5 stars.

In addition to searching by department, you can instead choose to shop by retailer. If your significant other loves Lindt Chocolate, for example, you can search by that store. There is currently a coupon there for 50% off. That sure beats paying retail!

Other Chippmunk Features

Chippmunk also shows what discounts are available if you spend a bit more. For instance, in some cases, if you spend $50 instead of $30, you’ll get free shipping or be able to unlock a bigger discount. You’ll have to do the math to see if increasing your budget is worth your while. Sometimes you save more when you enter a larger amount to spend.

Valentine’s Day is the perfect day to show those in your life such as your spouse and kids how much you love them. However, you don’t have to wait 3 hours for a table or rob your wallet to do so. Plan a romantic meal at home and take advantage of deal sites like Chippmunk. You’ll have a fun day, and you’ll be glad you didn’t have to fork over so much money to have a good time.

What other tips do you have for a frugal Valentine’s Day?

Brian

Brian is the founder of Kids Ain’t Cheap and is now sharing his journey through parenthood.

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Saving Money While Traveling With Children

January 19, 2014 | 1 Comment

I previously wrote about how my family was getting ready to partake in a family vacation together. The event was a family reunion and our first vacation with our daughter. Even though she’s still quite young, I can already see how the expenses are adding up with factoring more that just a plus one in your travel plans. Kids eat, sleep and partake in events just as adults do and costs add up!

Getting Ready to Travel

A key to saving with traveling is to prepare appropriately. I like to prep for travel by trying to earn as many points as possible for my travels. For example, with the TD Aeroplan Card, I can earn points faster, and they also have a 2-for-1 travel special. Since my daughter is still young, she can fly on my lap. And with this card, my husband and I can travel for the price of one ticket. Then, you add in points, and we’re well ahead on our path to save money traveling.

Saving Money on Travel with Children

I don’t need to tell anyone that airfare is expensive. While bartering or negotiating posted airfare prices isn’t an option there are other ways to save on travel costs.

Most airlines don’t charge for children under two years of age so travel away with your babies! Younger children will often get discounted tickets as well. Another option for saving on additional ticket costs is to look into any rewards you may have through credit cards or point redemption programs. Even if you don’t have enough rewards for your whole family, having enough to help offset some travel costs will be beneficial on your travel budget.

While flying would have been a fast and convenient option for our family, we chose to drive. The cost of driving the 2800 km (1750 mi) round trip was significantly cheaper than paying for the airfare for our family and, in my opinion, much more fun. We made the road trip fun and apart of the vacation fun.

Saving Money on Events

The easiest way to save money on events is to attend events where kids are free or discounted. We didn’t attend a single event that we had to pay for our child. Even though she’s young (14 months), most places were free under six anyway. Only the professional sporting event would we of had to pay if she didn’t sit on our lap, an event well worth the money should we needed to pay.

Prioritize the events the family wants to do and come up with a budget that suites everyone’s wants.

Saving Money on Food

We saved money on food a few ways. One, we stayed in a hotel that had breakfast included. The hotel had a hot breakfast selection every morning which was great because it kept us well satisfied until late in the day. We often skipped lunch, opting for a snack instead and having a normal dinner. We also had the option of requesting a mini fridge and/or microwave in our room which made things quite easy. We were able to buy some foods at the grocery store and store in our room for the week. This was especially good for having a little one with us and being able to keep her favorite snacks and fruits on hand.

Like the event option, choose restaurants where kids eat free, or cheap. We went to one restaurant where kids ate for $0.10 per pound of body weight. I don’t know if they actually enforced the weigh-in and fee or if they had a generic kids price, but there was a discount for kids.

Travelling with children will be more expensive but with a little more planning you should be able to make it work. Vacations should be about making memories not stressing about money!

How do you make your family vacations more family/budget friendly?

Catherine

plungedindebt.com

Staying Organized During the Holidays

December 17, 2013 | Leave a Comment

This is a crazy time of year for most people. I have a relatively small family but every time slot of December is consumed with events. Between work parties, family gatherings, Christmas eve/day events and New Years plans, if you don’t stay organized it will be easy to get stressed out! I learned years ago that starting early with my organizing is what helps keep me calm.

Get a Calendar

I have a large central calendar on my fridge where I write out everything. No detail is too small. It is in a visible spot where I frequently look at it. I used to hide it in the cupboard but it wasn’t working for me. I got over the fact that it looked messy on the fridge and put it up! As soon as an event is planned write it out, even if it conflicts with something else, still write it down so you don’t forget. This is where you’ll have decisions to make. If you child’s Christmas concert is the same night as your staff party, something will have to give but this way you’re reminded what you have to RSVP to.

Write reminders on the calendar too since you’re likely to forget. We’re responsible for making the dinner rolls for our family dinner. I have a note written on the 23rd to remember the rolls giving me two days to find time to buy or make them.

Declutter

This is something I start in October/November. Around the same time I take out/put away the Halloween decorations is when I casually declutter certain areas of the home that accumulate over the year. Our crawl space, where most of our storage is, has a tendency to have stuff shoved in it throughout the year. One evening in November I reorganize it so everything is accessible and I can easily get the Christmas stuff in and out without making a huge mess. In the month of November I also make a point of organizing the closets and ”junk drawer” in our house. Christmas is so busy for us that I need to make sure I know where everything is so no time is wasted. My friend couldn’t find her (fake) Christmas tree this year so went and bought a new one. How do you lose a seven-foot tree? She found it when putting the new one away, imagine.

I also anticipate certain things like needing space to make room for gifts I know the little one will receive. Just today I cleaned out her closet and cleaned her room, getting rid of toys and clothes she doesn’t play with or fit into. Decluttering is also a great way to give back by donating unused things to charitable organizations or to sell unwanted items and fund your Holiday budget!

Clean!

The weeks leading up to Christmas I make sure the house has at least one good deep clean. Spending one day to make sure the house is nice and clean is much easier to maintain with frequent tidying than constantly trying to get one room done. If you have little kids I know this is hard. Get a babysitter for a day, or at least a few hours to dedicate to getting things cleaned and put away. Someone told me trying to put laundry away with a toddler running around is like blowing a fan onto a desk full of papers, and I could not agree more.Cleaning with kids is one step forward and at least four steps back. Send young kids away for the day when you clean and if they’re older have them help out.

The holidays are fun, family filled time. Stay organized so you can enjoy it all!

What do you do to stay organized?

Catherine

plungedindebt.com

How Much is Too Much? Establishing Gift Guidelines with Children

December 11, 2013 | 2 Comments

Last week at work, a lady ended up bringing her daughter with her to her dental appointment. Her daughter sat quietly over in the corner reading a book while I treated her mom. At some point the young girl, less than 8, started asking me questions. Everything from why I have a mask on to what I was doing to her mom. So I could stop answering so many questions (which all led to more ”why’s”) I started asking her questions.

Given the time of year, I asked her if she was getting excited for Christmas. She immediately brightened right up and exclaimed, yes. We started chatting about the crafts she was making in school and what she was going to ask Santa for. My daughter being only 18 month old, I was curious to know what she was asking for and what she expected to get. She explained that her mom told her that Santa only has room for three presents in his sleigh so she had to think carefully about what she wanted.

Setting a Present Limit With Children

I though the three present limit was a good idea. We all know how out of control children’s lists can get, which can, in turn lead to disappointment. The little girl explained that since she’s only allowed to ask for three gifts, unless they were really big, ”like a horse” she would get them, no questions asked. I thought it to be interesting to know the same parent who set the three gift rule had her daughter to believe whatever she asks for within her three gifts, except horses would be given to her.

The little girl asked for, and expects to receive an iPad, $100 cash to shop with and a new Xbox one. What?!

Obviously I couldn’t really comment beyond, ”that’s a big list” since I wasn’t about to ask mom how she planned on doing that but to me, this list seems crazy to me. Again, I only have one child who is very young but she will not be raised to believe that Santa or mom and dad, will be providing close to $1,000 worth of gifts.

Even if you’re not a religious person, my opinion is that Christmastime is meant to be a time of year when we slow down, reflect on what we have, share gifts with ones we love, and reminisce. Simplify our lives for a few days, enjoy good food, bake cookies from scratch and focus on building memories, not things. I think it’s important that if you’ve decided to make gifts apart of your Christmas tradition, guidelines, or rules be set in place. The earlier you start the easier it will be.

Setting Realistic Gift Guidelines

Guidelines for not going overboard with gifts may include:

Setting a gift limit. Either in volume or price. If you set a three gift limit from Santa make sure they understand they are realistic with it. If you think it’s appropriate that they ask for a $400 gaming console, make sure they know the couldn’t possibly ask for both an iPad and cash as well. For older children, let them know early on that mom and dad have a Christmas budget to work with and they may not get everything they want.
Get them involved. Have your children help you shop. Have them shop with you for another family member and let them know the budget. Have them learn what that money can buy. This will help them have a better understanding of what they can ask for and what they may receive.
Open discussion. Especially with younger children, who’s understanding is still very much forming, help them with things like writing their letters to Santa. Explain that they may not be able to get everything they ask for.
Gift swap. This works especially well in larger families. Everyone draw someone’s name and you’re only responsible for gifts for that one person.
Reminders. It’s so easy to get caught up in the commercialism of Christmas. Remind your kids, and self, on a daily basis what the true meaning is (which may vary between individuals an families). Memories,not things.

I have had very sparse Christmases (in terms of gifts) and had years with more gifts that imaginable. I never feel any different about the season. I was taught early about the real meaning and to hold onto memories as much as I can. Learning to enjoy the simpler things in life will go a long way, even when Christmas is over for the year.

What are your thoughts on setting realistic gift guidelines?

Catherine

plungedindebt.com

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