For over a decade, we have been a single income family, which means we have to shop smart, especially when it comes to Christmas. I’ve compiled my best smart Christmas shopping tips because it is the most wonderful time of the year AND I try to get the best bang for my buck. No one, not even the wealthiest, have endless funds. We all have different budgets but at the end of the day money is finite. It is ok to act like that during the festivities of the season!
The first year my husband and I were engaged, we purchased everyone in our family $50-$100 gifts. Which now, might not be that debilitating but we were two college students making minimum wage. We couldn’t actually afford it, so we charged it. And in came that January regret. We spent about 6 months paying off that credit card. It was only a $1,200 balance but it stressed me out. I vowed never again to go into debt for Christmas and I have kept my promise to myself these 18 years. So, over the years, I have joined my love of finding the perfect gifts and sticking to a budget! It can be done!
I am behind on Christmas shopping and its mid-October. That may not seem like any kind of issue except that I am usually almost done by now. If you have poked around this blog at all you may have realized that I begin making next year’s Christmas list, basically in January. I take inventory of what went well, not just got gifts but across the board. Was I hospitable in all the ways I was hoping? Any fun ideas I want to incorporate next year? Anything to drop from the holiday season repertoire? An after Christmas report if you will. Then through the year if I find a great deal on something beautiful or find something that will make a perfect present for someone specific, I add it to my Christmas Closet. You can read about the Christmas Closet here, but just FYI my “closet” is more of a tote at the moment.
Ok here we go, my tips to make your holiday shopping season joyful and within the budget.
1) Make a Plan for Your Holiday Season: Intentions & Budget
Step 1: Think through all things need time, attention and cash.
A holiday vibe check is step one. Think about what you and your family really value in the season. For example, we observe Advent, which is a quieter, somber expectation of Christ’s birth. So, the four weeks leading up to Christmas are a lot of candles, dinners at home, Christmas music and of course Christmas movies and lights. And then we kind of crank up the crazy and silly on Christmas day through new year. Because of this, I actually like to be done shopping before early December if I can help it. Deciding what you want your December to look and feel like for you and your family is step number one. I think this should happen before any purchases are made. How much do you want to host? That takes money! What other things in December will cost money in addition to gifts and food? Outfits? Tickets to the Nutcracker? Ect..
Step 2 Develop a Christmas Season Budget and Stick to It
Planning your budget and sticking to it is key. Again, it’s not just a gift budget, there are many budgetary demands at Christmas and the easiest way to overspend is to not have a plan. After answering how you want your December to feel, make a list of all the obligations and plans that might cost extra money. Do the kids have a Christmas concert they’re going to need special clothes for? Family Christmas pictures? Do you do Christmas pajamas? How many events do you need to take food to? Are you hosting? Is Christmas decor a line item? All of that is out of the ordinary spending the other months of the year. Which is another reason I’m a big fan of planning and shopping early. More on that later.
After you’ve kind of looked at the upcoming month of December and made your plan. Make your Christmas shopping budget.
2) Christmas Lists are not Shopping Lists
This one might be unpopular, but I think it’s important for a few reasons. Asking your kids to make a list of Christmas gift ideas that they might like is not the same thing as them making you a shopping list. Ask for ideas, but communicate that these are ideas, not a shopping list. You are not promising anything on the list, its just for ideas. Also, if you see an item on your child’s list that exceeds your budgeted amount, I would highly recommended communicating that to them. Something you could say is “I noticed ______ on your Christmas list. That’s so fun! I wanted to let you know that item is not in the Christmas budget this year. Could you give me some other ideas. I don’t want you to be shocked or disappointed on Christmas day when we have so much to celebrate.” I think it is ok, even completely necessary that kids learn that money has limits. It does not mean your love does. Christmas gifts are not the main event of Advent and Christmas. They are *part* of the celebration. I love getting and giving presents, but I think communication, setting expectations appropriately and focusing on your family values during the Christmas season is really helpful. It can help manage the Christmas morning expectations and turn the attention to the whole experience of Christmas not just a Christmas list.
I want my kids to feel seen and known all year, but for sure on Christmas morning. Thoughtful gifts that do not break the bank can totally be a part of that. Sometimes the best gifts have been exactly what they’ve asked for and sometimes they love the thing they didn’t ask for, but I knew they would love.
3) Let what they ask for be good enough!
Listen.to.me. You do not need to break the bank account to get great gifts. This starts with letting what they ask for, be enough. What I mean by that is sometimes we push kids, especially little ones, into asking for more. When our oldest son was little, we asked him if he could have anything for his big gift, what would it be? He said a Paw Patrol pillow. I do want to state here, we were not suffering in poverty. We lived in a nice home, he went to a good preschool, and had lots of toys. Just making sure I wasn’t painting some Tiny Tim imagery in your head. Anyway… He asked for a Paw Patrol pillow. And we let that be his big gift. We still did stockings and got him a couple toys, but we let his “big ask” be just that. And I got him a pillow and put a Paw Patrol pillowcase on it. And he squealed with delight when he opened it! We still have the video of his adorable, overjoyed reaction to this pillow.
I guess what I am saying is, if you cultivate a family culture of gratitude, no matter how small the gift, it’s VERY hard to be disappointed on Christmas morning.
If you cultivate a family culture of gratitude, no matter how small the gift, its VERY hard to be disappointed on Christmas morning.
4) Early Christmas Shopping
Early Christmas shopping is probably the best way I save money. This is because you can get really great prices all year round if you kind of know what to look for. By early, I mean pre-black Friday. There might be some things that are truly a better deal on Black Friday, but I think that is rarer now than ever. I would rather spend a wee bit more per gift throughout the year and support small businesses than to spend more in impulse purchases during a holiday rush and marketing blitz. I understand that shopping super early for kids might not be feasible, they might find the stash, their interests might change throughout the year, and if your kids grow like mine, then you for sure cannot buy them clothes early. BUT most of the adults in your life have their interests and things they enjoy pretty well solidified. If I find something beautiful in July that my mom would love, there’s an exceedingly good chance she will still love it in December.
Online shopping can save you money. but it’s becoming easier to impulse buy online. Stick to your plan and list. I use the website www.camelcamelcamel.com which is a site that compares amazon pricing to help you decide if those Prime Day or Black Friday/ Cyber Monday deals are as good as they say. They also have one called Camel Mart now to help compare Walmart prices over time.
5) Stick to the Holiday Budget!
This is the best way to avoid financial stress and the New Year tidal wave of regret. Stick to your budget. With online shopping, Black Friday marketing and advertising being blasted (deals! deals! deals!) it can be so easy to go over budget.
– Let the gift list you or your kids wrote be your guide. Stick to you plan and budget.
-Avoid online holiday gift guides unless you are absolutely stumped. I think they can be helpful, but it’s also a way that you could easily feel inadequate or your budget to suddenly look super tiny. You know your people! You’ve got this!
-Practical gifts are fun too! My aunt used to give my cousins a laundry basket full of their favorite things. They were not over the top things, just their favorite snacks, shampoo, toothpaste, socks ect.. I always thought that was so fun. In a house full of kids who may not always get their preferred version of whatever the daily necessity is, what a fun way for my aunt to say I can’t buy everyone’s favorite all the time but I know what they are and want you to have them. Now as a parent, I realize how much those gifts of “I see you” really mean. To me when I was a kid, and even now as an adult.
The Best Gift is not about how much something costs, it’s letting the recipient know I see you and I love you. Great news! You can do that with literally any budget!
Here is the tutorial on how to make the above ornaments! I loved them!!
A few parting thoughts:
Never let anyone guilt you into spending more. I once had someone try to pressure me into entering a gift exchange, when I said our budget was tapped out they responded with “Christmas comes the same time every year, you should have planned better.” It does come the same time every year but unexpected medical bills, car breakdowns and so on like to come very unscheduled. Do the best you can with what you have.
Cultivating gratitude has been something we have done from the start and I am so glad we did! Our kids aren’t even launched yet and I’m already so glad we were intentional about that. It changes the entire tone of your home when everything is something to be thankful for. My oldest is one of the most joyful receivers I have ever met; if one of his little cousins brings him a leaf, or a grandparent surprises him with something big, he is happy! That starts with us parents, meaning when he was bringing me leaves and mangled dandelions, I was so appreciative! I had a tiny little vase on my kitchen shelf that I would stick anything he brought me and display it with pride. (Side note, the baby is also a joyful receiver…. Probably lol I just didn’t mention him because he is, in fact, a baby.)
If your budget is super tight, or even if its not, don’t be afraid to buy second hand. Some of the nicest things I’ve found have been at Goodwill. Last year, I got an almost new Thomas the Train set for my nephews that was $80 online for $7!!
I really love Christmas, I think it is truly the most wonderful time of the year. The older I have gotten I realize, it was my mom that made it that way for us! Now it’s my turn and I think its’ so fun!
Have the Merriest of Christmases this year!
-Lauren
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