Christmas and money for it

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ilovepiggies

I saved up quite well for Christmas this year, I have started my shopping now and it seems to be disapeering so fast...
I love Christmas its a fabulous family time of year but isnt it awful how much people feel the need to spend.
I dont have much £ to start with so I have budgeted well and I have mostly bought 'thoughtful' small gifts. I have also bought gifts from oxfam unwapped which makes me feel like I am helping other in a small way aswell as giving small gifts to animal charities..
However I still worry I wont have enough £ to get everything I need in which I know is daft but I always worry, then I worry about how much I have spent! ha ha
It must be so much harder for those with kids and large families!
I am looking forward to the company of family friends and pets more than anything else!
 
Mmmm well yes, know what you mean. I save up what i think is enough $$ but it's never enough by a long shot.
Perhaps i'm a lousy budgeter (sp). :D
Don't worry it doesn't matter how many you have to buy for it's always hard with the $$ amount.
We now don't buy for our adult brother & sister inlaws etc.. just give $$ to charity, more satisfying.
But in all you are right its more important to be with friends, family and enjoy the moment.
Hope you have a great Christmas, do you wish for snow?
 
Money spent on Christmas presents seems to spiral up each year and you always get more and more to buy. Sometimes I think you've got to take stock and try to cut down on them a bit. I phoned a distant relative of my hubby's last week to say I hope she didn't mind but now her children are in their teens we were going to stop the pressies. I felt really tight but we never ever see them, they don't thank us for what we get although I'm not too bothered about that. We've not got children and I know they always felt a bit bad because we bought for them and they didn't for us - but again that's not the point so was never bothered about that. Everytime I said to hubby what shall I get them etc he wasn't interested and I ended up doing it all, so hence the phone call. Plus it gets out of hand at work, last week 2 colleagues were asking each other what they wanted from each other - turned out they both wanted more or less the same toiletries from the same place. It was ridiculous, I know that they'll both worry in case the other one has spent more! I can't be done with it all! Christmas isn't about this!
 
For me it was all vouchers this year. And being fairly cheap at that. Next year i plan to get lots of little bits throughout the year, that way i hopefully spread the cost a bit. We could hardly afford pressies for ourselves let alone anyone else! Dont feel bad for not buying pressies for someone. With things rising in price and wages staying the same only rich people will be able to buy presents soon!
 
I have had a few money saving ideas this year for a start I am not buying all family members a card with individual names on say mam and dad or uncle, instead I am going to buy a pack of really nice normal cards say 10 for £5 and the kids are going to make one for their dad instead of forking out £3 . I've also cut down on prezzies as well ,I started shopping in August I think and am more or less finished even wrapped most of them.

well perhaps not a few ideas just the 1 ;D ;D
 
hartly lops said:
I have had a few money saving ideas this year for a start I am not buying all family members a card with individual names on say mam and dad or uncle, instead I am going to buy a pack of really nice normal cards say 10 for £5 and the kids are going to make one for their dad instead of forking out £3 .
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That's what i did, we spent over £30 on cards last year! Ridiculous.
 
its realtives and special cards that cost us a fortune,we normally buy ours just after xmas when theyre half price but forgot this year so its gonna break the bank yet again,and they only get thrown in the bin after :(
 
I keep all of our old cards and the kids use them through the year for making things,usually all they make is a mess though ;D ;D ;D
 
I send an e-card to everyone in my hotmail address book and then "proper" cards to family only. Its much easier I find.

My sister is making a stand this year, she is not sending any cards or wrapping any presents because of the environment.
Presents are going into bags that she will reuse every year

I think thats kinda cool
 
I think thats a great idea,think I would prob still wrap the kids though but as for adults fab .already wrapped most of mine though but I might just steal that idea for next year ;)
cheaper aswell ;D
 
I start buying in may and if you have catalogues use their summer sales to buy and put away things times i forget what I've got by the time I come to wrap them but I always start early every year, yes I agree personal cards are expensive might try making my own next year, mines mostly done now got to send packages to America which cost me a fortune but its for a dear and special person in my life and her family,
 
I say every year i'll be more organised but i never am. Christmas has got so expensive over the years and this year even though i told everyone i would be cutting down, ive still gone way over budget. ::)

I'd love to go away for christmas, to Cornwall or somewhere like that, by the sea, eat christmas dinner then go for a brisk walk on the beach. Id much rather spend my money on that and spend quality time with my family than profit the stores....still we all do it!
 
I often buy things in the January sales, then start getting a present every week to a month leading up. That way, it's no big budget taken out
 
amanda said:
I say every year i'll be more organised but i never am. Christmas has got so expensive over the years and this year even though i told everyone i would be cutting down, ive still gone way over budget. ::)

I'd love to go away for christmas, to Cornwall or somewhere like that, by the sea, eat christmas dinner then go for a brisk walk on the beach. Id much rather spend my money on that and spend quality time with my family than profit the stores....still we all do it!
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How true is that! It's like this pressure that you have to do it a certain way but there's nothing to say you can't do it differently. The actual Christmas time is usually good but it's all the work beforehand! I lost my Mum 3 years ago too so Christmas will never be the same for me again.
 
I don't know how people afford Christmas! I can tell my parents struggle every year :/ I don't think they've even started Christmas Shopping yet but I might be wrong. (why don't they listen when I tell them I don't want anything and I'll be happy with an apple? :P)
 
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