Preparing for Christmas On a Budget

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Preparing for Christmas On a Budget

15 November 2011 No Comment

Family budgeting expert Becky Goddard-Hill helps take some of the strain out of Christmas planning in her latest post for BornFree Mum & Dad.

How Parents Can Prepare for Christmas on a Budget

Let’s tackle three big areas of expense at Christmas, gift giving, the Christmas meal and going out. With preparation it is possible to keep costs low in all these areas.

Gift Giving

• You need your list of who to buy for and how much you plan to spend and you need to keep it on you from now on. As a gift is bought, made or found cross them off immediately so no double buying occurs!

• Be savvy, if you see a great book check on Amazon to see if it’s cheaper. Check the voucher code sites to see if you can get a discount.Look on eBay for that must have toy in plenty of time. Savvy shoppers save money.

• Re-gifting a present you have been given, but really don’t want, is being smart, not mean. Just be careful who you give it to!

• Homemade is heartfelt and most people are very touched by a handmade gift. Here are some ideas

Cranberry and chocolate cookies

A painted plant pot filled with the same colour Hyacinth bulbs

Gingerbread men with red ribbons to loop on the tree.

A video clip of you and your child telling grandparents you love them transferred onto a dvd.

Children will love making the above with you and will really have invested in these gifts.

Christmas Food

Sorting out what and where you eat this Christmas can make all the difference to your budget

• Food at Christmas can cost a fortune and a lot gets wasted. Plan your meals in advance to make sure you will use all you buy. Also consider a budget supermarket for a change. Aldi’s score in their own brand taste tests.

• Inviting others over for Christmas dinner when you have small children and a small budget is just a drain on all your resources. Invite people over for coffee and cake instead, Much simpler.

• If you are invited out for Christmas dinner make sure you say yes! These are the years to let someone else take the strain; you can always give them lots of help with the washing up.

Going Out

The demands on you to be out and about at Christmas can feel stressful when you are on a budget so you need to be prepared:

• Going out for the annual Christmas meal with friends can be replaced with a lovely walk in the winter air and hot chocolate back at yours. This is both child-friendly and cost-free. Suggest it first before you get roped in to more expensive options.

• Office do’s are often unavoidable and when it’s a plus one invitation you’ll need a babysitter. Get the dates well in advance and offer a baby sit swap with a friend in a similar position.

• You could ask for pricey Pantomime tickets as an advanced Christmas gift perhaps from grandparents.

• Santa’s grottos can be really expensive if you have a few kids in tow I would advise not going and doing something really special instead. Head to the Portable North Pole Console online and arrange for free for Santa to send a personalised online video message to your child. Enchanting!