How much did you spend on Christmas this year?
December 22, 2006 by kellys
Filed under budget, holidays, money saving idea, odds and ends
I love giving gifts for Christmas. My favorite thing about shopping is to go out with my MIL and see how much I can save on black Friday. I had 22 people on my list this year and I only spent $250. I thought I did well this year. We gave all the adults family portraits and pictures of the baby this year. That’s what they wanted anyway. For the kids, we got clothes and toys and one baby gate. The gate was a regift.
How did you do this year? Anybody want to come clean and fess up to how much money you spent on all your presents this year? Come on and brag about your frugal ways.
I didn’t spend much, that’s for sure. The most expensive gifts were the ones that my husband and I bought for each other. We both got things that we wanted to have, but really I guess they were things we would have bought anyway. Not sure if that really counts. We were talking in the van today about Christmas. It seems like all the stuff we used to do for each other just doesn’t seem as important as it used to be. We used to get each other a special card, gifts, stuff for our stockings. Our priorities have changed a lot since we had kids. Those things were special to us back then when we just had each other. Now that we have kids the sense of family is more important. I will confess that I still want to be treated special on Valentine’s Day and our anniversary though.
If I didn’t count my gift to my husband and his gift to me, then I’d say I definitely spent under $200.
I normally don’t spend much at all. My wife normally buys all of the presents.
I will say that we spent more than $250, though.
I know what you mean Mike. I tease the men in my life (husband, dad, brother) about not buying gifts. I tease them because they’re just as surprised as the recipient about what’s in the package.
Mike, you are in the majority. Most people spend a lot more than $200 on Christmas. I would be more than willing ot bet that my MIL spends more on Christmas than I do on multiple mortgages. Of course she has a large family on both sides to buy for. Credit to her and my FIL, though. I have to brag on her. She puts money away each pay check in her Christmas club so that she can pay cash for most of it. Now that is frugal.
It doesn’t matter whta kind of awesome deal you get on a present if you charge it and then pay interest. I have never understood that. I always put aside money each month so that I CAN pay cash for Christmas. I have done this for as long as I can remember.
I would normally spend more than $200, but my husband’s family isn’t exchanging gifts this year. We’re just buying for the kids. Last year his family drew names. Even then it was expensive buying for immediate family.
We draw name for the kids and do a white elephant gift for the adults. It’s less expensive that way and you can give better gifts. It also takes the emphasis off gifts and more on spending time with family and friends.
I have been reading your blog with interest over the past month or so, and I cant do it! I spent over $500 on the cleaning lady and daycare providers alone! Probably $1500 all together. Next year, I am going to start reading a LOT earlier! Peace. D
Give it time. I didn’t get thrifty all at once. And don’t forget, Diane, I too struggle with spending money. My weakness is eating out. It will come.
As far as not being able to do it. You must have an extremely generous heart if you spent $500 on cleaners and daycare. You will get there next year. It takes some planning and enjoyment of the challenge. I want you to let me know how you do next year. I bet you will still give great gifts and you won’t spend as much. I have faith in you. You just need to plan a little more. Eventually, it will just come naturally. You’ll get there.
Diane: We are glad to have you as a reader. I hope that Kelly and I can inspire and educate you to cut your spending. My husband and I have just reached a break through in our finances. We are close to being debt free (other than our house). I’m not saying that to brag, but simply to tell you that it is so liberating!!!!! Now that we are so close, it is getting easier for me to watch our money even more because I so desperately want to be debt free and begin our emergency cushion.
Congradulations! I think we should all strive to be debt free. I am not even sold on having to have a mortgage.
One of the local financial advisors on the AM station I listen to advertises “to live like no one else so that later on, you can live like no one else.” I like that motto.
A good motto indeed. Once we get debt free (other than the mortgage) and I go back to teaching full-time, we can possibly make double payments on our mortgage. I would be ecstatic to be free of the mortgage too. It’s years down the road, but it can happen if we are thrifty enough.