Kobe & I went on the bus today with our neighbours to see Santa at a shopping centre. Where we were greeted by crowds of shoppers with trolleys packed to the brim with presents for loved ones. All I wanted to do was turn tail & get back on the bus home before I too got swallowed up in the consumerism of this festive season.
Strangely this Christmas Im a lot more chilled about it as I sticking to a more relaxed mindset of "Christmas is a time to spend with loved ones not spend lots on loved ones to prove how much you love them".
(Sidenote; how freaking cute is this retro burger bank I found at an op shop? It will be Kobes once he learns to respect his stuff & not break it carelessly. Cant wait til he fills it up with pocket money he has earnt to save for something special).
So I thought why not share my frugal tips of surviving on a budget during this festive season.
To keep costs down this time of year I follow these basic principles;
*Be organized, I jumped on the internet halfway thru November to order gifts so that they would arrive with plenty of time before Christmas.
*Go for mindful gifts that will be used as opposed to gimmicky gifts (you know those annoying ones that fart or swear etc) that everyone will laugh about when they open them only to ditch them days later once the novelty wears off.
*I hate shopping centres due to the large volume of customers. I feel suffocated & overwhelmed which would leave me to grab anything to buy just to get the frick out of there. If your like me then write a list & stick to it & don't go on an empty stomach (unless you really needed 4 bags of cookies... which are my weakness). If you dare, take cash & no bank cards, that way you resist any impulse purchases.
*Set a realistic budget which you can afford without relying on a credit card. Do you really want to spend January playing catch up paying off December purchases?
*Box up your unused clutter & sell it on Gumtree, Ebay or at a market stall. Put what you made towards your Christmas budget.
*Embrace seasonal produce, its cheaper.
*Share the load on Christmas day & everyone brings a platter. No one wants to be stuck in a hot kitchen all day doing all the cooking. Sharing is indeed being caring.
*Waste not what not. Why not regift anything you no longer need to someone who would actually use it? Cheeky sure but one less item in landfill.
*If you have a large family why not do chris cringle & everyone pull out a name out of a hat? We have done this for Lukes family the past couple years but sadly it got to the point where everyone just chose their own gift. So Im advocating for family time spent together as the gift this year. Afterall the best things in life are free such as quality time with loved ones.
I hope I didn't come across as the Grinch who stole the Christmas spirit but you don't need lots of stuff to have a fulfilled life:)
Happy Friday friends!
Grace
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