As much as I love the Christmas holiday and all the things it represents, the prospect of not just surviving but thriving in a low-budget environment can be overwhelming. But it CAN be done! These are random thoughts, in no particular order, which I hope will help your family this Christmas season:
Shop after Christmas and clearance. This advice may not help you for this Christmas, but it can help you prepare for future ones. I have a box in my closet in which I collect possible Christmas gifts (and birthday presents, too…you know how your children get invited to birthday parties on the week when there’s nothing left in the checkbook? Not a problem!) For instance, in the Christmas clearance at Wal-Mart last January, I was able to find a pricey kid-friendly digital camera, normally $80 but on clearance for $20, for my oldest daughter’s birthday in October. Two cautions with this method: one, you might forget where you hid the item when it comes time to give it; and two, if you’ve collected all year, you might amass more than you realize. That happened to me last year. I had WAY more stuff than my kids needed, and had to give it away to others. Isn’t THAT a great problem to have?!
Find toys and books at the Thrift Store. You might be thinking, “Ewww!” True, there’s some stuff there that isn’t very appealing or giftworthy, but you might also be very surprised at what IS there. Last year, my son found a Lightning Storm McQueen toy that lists for over $20 at Toys R Us. We paid 49 cents! Even the batteries worked! My animal lover daughter found a FurReal Friends Newborn Puppy (retails at $12.99), marked $1.99. These aren’t isolated incidents, either. I’ve also found nearly new Nancy Drew books for my oldest daughter for around 50 cents. A great stocking stuffer for one of my favorite bookworms!
Gift Baskets are a huge moneysaver. With lots of nieces and nephews on both sides of the family, it’s been easier for us to give gift baskets at Christmas for the entire family to enjoy. In the past we’ve given a movie basket which included a family-friendly DVD, bags of microwave popcorn, a box of Junior Mints, and a two-liter bottle of pop. (Even though I may live in the South, I’m really from the North where we say “pop.” If you want to say soda, get your own blog. 
Incidentally, I got the DVD for free by swapping DVDs we no longer want or need on Swap A DVD.) We’ve given a pizza basket in previous years, including a pizza cutter, package of Martha White pizza crust mix, jar of pizza sauce, a package of pepperoni, and an apron. Consider making a bath & body basket, although I would recommend free or inexpensive items from your CVS and Walgreens runs, rather than true Bath & Body Works items unless you got them free through a promo or coupon. I’ve included some Revlon nail polish with toe separaters, body wash with a scrubbing puff, and even toothbrushes and toothpaste (if your intended recipient isn’t picky about brand names).
How about a samples basket for a teenager? I know the teen in my house loves getting little samples of shampoo, deodorant, toothpaste, etc., to call her own. It’s a great use for some the freebies I’ve been getting in the mailbox! You can make a themed basket for just about anything. I’ve done some with cleaning supplies, thanks to all those Walgreens deals on S. C. Johnson products. They have gotten rave reviews because they’re practical and the perceived value is high. They don’t need to know I got those things for free or almost free from CVS or Walgreens! Oh…where do I get the baskets? I have yet to find a nicer basket than the small wicker laundry basket in the craft department at Walmart for $2.88, unless you can score some on clearance at 80% off at Hobby Lobby, which is how I got the missionary baskets for this year’s mission conference. I have to go to the Murfreesboro or Nashville Walmarts to find these now, since our smaller Walmarts have downsized their craft department.
Gifts in a jar are fun to make and give. I’m sure you’re familiar with these, so I won’t go into great detail, but this is a fun way to get your children involved, too. My kids love assembling and giving these. Here’s a great website with recipes to get you started.
Baked goods are always welcome at our house. I don’t always have time to do (or the willpower to avoid sampling) holiday baking, so it’s a welcome treat when people at church give us homemade goodies to snack on for the holidays. Breads, cookies, fudge…my kids love it all! You might feel that’s a cheap substitute for a store-bought gift, but if you factor in the time, ingredients, and love involved in baking those things, you’re really “spending” a lot. It just doesn’t seem like it to your wallet!
Who doesn’t love photos? If the person is close enough to your family to be receiving a present, he or she would probably appreciate a recent picture of your kids or your family. It doesn’t have to be a wall-sized poster print! In the past I’ve given small photo ornaments that the recipients can hang on their Christmas trees, using the kids’ leftover school pictures. There are lots of photo freebies around for the holidays. I plan to dig some more up soon and post them, so stay tuned! There are tons of photo deals around Christmas, too, and I try to highlight them for you on my blog.
Make a scrapbook. You knew this one was coming, right? I spent 10+ years as a Creative Memories consultant, so scrapbooking is never far from my heart or mind, although these days I do way more digital scrapbooking than traditional. Gather some extra pictures, tell the story behind the picture, and the person you give it to will cry! Happens every time I hand one out. “Pass the Kleenex, please. Julie’s been scrapbooking again.”
Make homemade coupons for family members. As a mom, I have to say that it’s such a thoughtful thing when my kids make me “breakfast in bed” coupons, or a coupon that says, “Good for one room clean-up without whining.” See? They know what I really want for Christmas! And it’s something that money can’t buy.
Find creative ways to get gift cards. Yes, it can be done! In the past I’ve logged on to a credit card account that my husband and I don’t use anymore and discovered that we had unexpired bonus points to redeem! How cool is that?! So I have a $25 Amazon gift card coming my way! I was so inspired that I logged on to my MyPoints account and redeemed some of those points (received for reading a couple of emails each day) for another $25 Amazon gift card, plus they were offering a special: receive a free $15 gift card for FTD.com when you redeem points! I can either give the cards themselves as gifts, or find something to order someone as a gift. Either way, it was free. I’ve recently gotten some free cards in the mail (Bath & Body coupon, JCPenney’s $10 off your purchase of $10 or more, etc.) which I plan to redeem for items I can give for Christmas. Since November 2008, I have gotten a ton of gift cards through Swagbucks as well as some through MyPoints, and checks in the mail from Ebates. You can read about those opportunities here.
I’m sure there are tons more ideas out there (Readers? Care to contribute?) But for now, since December 1 is quickly approaching, I intend to hunt down the chocolate advent calendars I bought for my kids at CVS after Christmas last year for 80% off. I know my kids will think they have the coolest mom on the planet…when I find the calendars. And who knows what else I might find when I get there?
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