every year, i get asked on so many occasions how on earth i am able to afford christmas and birthdays for my children. i have discussed the way we do birthdays several times here on the blog but now it's time to share how we do christmas.
first of all, i must say that christmas is NOT about gifts. this is definitely a hard concept to teach children, especially when there is so much influence around them in society, including at school and on television. however, our goal during this time of year is to create lasting memories by spending time with our children rather than focus on gifts.
even if our goal is to focus on the importance of family, of course our children still receive gifts.
but, the first thing to remember is...
STOP TRYING TO KEEP UP WITH (or outdo) OTHERS!
stuff does not make the person! here is how we save money to purchase christmas for our children:
1. START SHOPPING EARLIER IN THE YEAR. waiting until the last minute is not only stressful but a strain on the wallet if you are on a budget and haven't been saving all year. don't be one of those people who is stressing over the credit card bills they owe in the new year.
2. shop yard sales - just because it is from a yard sale does not mean it is used and even if it is, SO WHAT, WHO CARES!. i purchased almost all of elijah's christmas (and some for phoenix and tyler) on a facebook yard sale in my area (click the link to get an idea of what it's like). it's like craigslist LIVE (if that makes sense). almost everything i purchased was still brand new. the same thing applies to yard sales you visit at a person's house as well.
on the facebook yardsale, i purchased books, puzzles, games, dolls, vehicles and more. again, i won't go into details but i will say that out of pocket, i spent approximately $75 on brand new items that would have cost me approximately $500+ in the store (check out the photos below).
how do i know this? because i priced everything on the site before i bought it. and if you sell your items that you no longer use at the same time, you can turn around and use the money you make to buy other gifts. it's like recycling your money. :)
WARNING: do be aware that some people will try to over price items or sell you junk. don't ever be afraid to turn someone down if you feel you are not getting what you expected. it is your money!
3. bartering - sometimes you can trade items you don't want for items you do. i got an amazing deal on 13 wii games for phoenix and tyler by trading something i didn't need anymore. another great way to take advantage of bartering is if you make homemade items. you can trade your talent, skills, and homemade goods for someone else's.
4. shop online - i absolutely hate black friday! i hate the traffic, the lines, the rude people, and everything else about it (really people? are you really fighting over materialistic goods? yeah that's what Jesus wants for his birthday...you and someone else throwing blows over a stupid toy your kid is gonna break within two weeks?). black friday for me was at home in my pajamas with a cup of coffee and a christmas movie on the tele.
in fact, i did 95% of my shopping online this year and paid $0 in shipping. so essentially, i saved money because i didn't have to spend the gas money to get out in all that traffic. i was also able to compare prices between stores right there in front of me.
three very important things to remember when shopping online:
- check sites like ebates, coupon cabin, and retail me not for coupons and discounts before checking out.
- join websites, like mypoints or swagbucks, that reward you points per dollar spent at select online stores. once you have earned enough points, you can redeem them for gift cards. free money is always nice!
- if your account doesn't show free shipping at checkout, call the company and ask for it! i do this all the time and have never been turned down.
my shopping experience with kohl's is a prime example of how to all the resources i described to get the best deal. i shopped online (which saved me the gas money), i used a 20% off coupon i found at one of the site i recommended, and i got free shipping. plus, i received $90 in kohl's cash.
6. make your gifts - who doesn't love homemade gifts? homemade gifts deserves a post of it's own. come back next week for a post all about handmade gifts.
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even when we follow that general rule, they still receive gifts from grandma deborah, poppy & grandma darling, and ganma & ganpa. plus ryan and jacob receive gifts from their mom and her family, and mackenzie, phoenix, and tyler receive gifts from their grandma marsha. so you can see, they get plenty!
any mention of specific stores or websites mentioned in this post are my own personal recommendations and were not influenced in any way. i was not compensated in any way to mention these sites.
