Winter 2003-04
The approaching holiday season should be a joyful time focused on celebrations and family. Instead, many people find the holidays stressful because of extravagant expenses on gifts and travel. Some helpful ideas, however, can keep your spending under control.
The key to keeping holiday expenses in check is to set realistic expectations of what will be under the tree. Base your spending on financial reality by setting a limit instead of buying whatever comes to mind or whatever the hot item is this year. Resist the temptation to satisfy your child's every want at Christmas if it means overspending. Kids need to learn financial responsibility, too, and they need the necessities of life far more than the latest toy. Let your loved ones know that this year is the start of a new Christmas tradition: spending within your means.
Start by determining how much money you have available to spend, and then make a list of all the people for whom you plan to give gifts. Decide before you shop how much you can spend on each person and write it on the list, along with gift ideas. Allow some flexibility since you may find someone's gift on sale and have a little left over to add to someone else's gift allotment.
Because travel costs often represent most of a family's holiday budget, decide whether travel expenses to a relative's house count as their gift. If so, do not allow them to make you feel guilty when they open the card under the tree that says, "Being together is our gift to you," along with a token box of candy. As an alternative, ask for plane tickets or money to help with travel costs instead of receiving something under the tree.
Once you know who gets a gift and how much you plan to spend, you can shop year-round. The list allows you to wait for a sale on the perfect gift that is out of the price range now but will be affordable at the end-of-season clearance. As an extra benefit, year-round shopping means you do not have the hassles and stress of holiday crowds.
You might also start setting aside money each month in a Christmas fund just for holiday expenses. Lack of planning causes overuse of credit cards and paying more for the same gifts you could have purchased on sale earlier in the year.
After-Christmas sales are a great time to find jewelry boxes, gift sets, holiday decor and all the wrapping paper you will need for next year - at half price or less! If you have some financial flexibility, consider making your gift list for the following year the day after Christmas, then hit the stores. Keep in mind that the recipients will not be able to return these items, so plan appropriately.
Being in the military means you move every few years, which gives you a few gift-giving advantages. First, you have a new place to find unique local items. The first Christmas we spend in a new place, I like to find souvenirs from the area to give as gifts. I find food items, handcrafts, photos, artwork, books and even plants that have a symbolic tie to our new home's location.
The second advantage of moving frequently is that you meet new people who have skills that you can commission for gifts. In my current neighborhood, I know people who do woodworking, painting, quilting, sewing, basket weaving, handcrafted cards, specialty cooking and more. I can commission work from them that I pay for, or I can offer to trade my time and talent for their product.
Making your own gifts can save money as well. Craft stores have ideas for simple, attractive and relatively inexpensive gift ideas. Something like painting unfinished wood wall hangings is cheap, easy, can be personalized and suitable for everyone on your list. It requires virtually no creativity or natural talent; you simply choose your colors and go for it! The wood is pre-cut into a design, so you do not have to freehand anything - even easier than painting by numbers!
You may feel cheap giving gifts that did not cost a lot, but your family's financial security is priceless. With a little planning, this year can mark the start of new holiday spending habits. This year, may your bank account have lots of green, and may your monthly statement not show any red. Happy holidays!
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Julie Dawson teaches the Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society's "Budget for Baby" program at the Mountain Warfare Training Center, Bridgeport, CA, and is a contributor to www.CinCHouse.com.