I love Christmas!
More than money – I love Thanksgiving through Dec. 25. Everyone is happy. My favorite radio station is playing Christmas music. I have a tree. Time off is coming. Everyone (almost) is festive.
One month ago today, we were all joyfully unwrapping gifts, spending time with our families and/or friends, and eating ridiculously amounts of amazing food.
How many of us gained some weight in December?
Now, how many of us gained financial weight?
It’s so easy to go overboard on Christmas. I love, love, love Christmas. I love finding the perfect gift and buying it. Really, as an adult, I truly love giving gifts. And my desire to find the perfect gift can easily mean overspending on it.
Now, how many of us gained financial weight?
It’s so easy to go overboard on Christmas. I love, love, love Christmas. I love finding the perfect gift and buying it. Really, as an adult, I truly love giving gifts. And my desire to find the perfect gift can easily mean overspending on it.
For me, it’s so easy to overspend on kids and spouses; but I know I will even go overboard on my other relatives. Overspending means over budget and under funded. And that used to mean burning up on plastic. How many of us got our credit card statement this month from December? OUCH! I never want to feel that pain again.
So here we are – a month out – still cleaning up from Hurricane Noel. Unless the Lord returns this year – Christmas 2011 is only eleven months away. It will do no good to be “gazelle intense” and then have no money for Christmas next year. It needs to be a monthly budget item!!!
Sit down today, tomorrow, this week and plan your Christmas.
As the saying goes, "Make your list and check it twice."
List who you buy for and how much you plan to spend on them – estimate big. I even include our tree, wrapping supplies, lights (you know the strands you bought last year are going to mysteriously burn out in the attic in July), even our Christmas pictures and postage for our Christmas cards. Total it all up. Divide it by 11. And add that amount to your monthly budget.
As the saying goes, "Make your list and check it twice."
List who you buy for and how much you plan to spend on them – estimate big. I even include our tree, wrapping supplies, lights (you know the strands you bought last year are going to mysteriously burn out in the attic in July), even our Christmas pictures and postage for our Christmas cards. Total it all up. Divide it by 11. And add that amount to your monthly budget.
I do this for everything I know is coming! We have a wedding this year. I know I’m going to be spending at least $XXXX on it. (Yes, it’s four digits!!!) I have six months to save for it. That is now part of our budget.
TIP: Tax time is almost here. (Me: “Gasp – yay!”) If you can’t stretch your budget any further, than take part of your refund, if you’re getting one, and go ahead and fund that Christmas account. You can set up an online savings account (we use ING) and let it earn some interest. Financial gurus will tell you this is a no-no since you’ll probably pay more in interest on debts than you’ll earn, but it’s better than not saving at all.
Christmas is coming!
Love,
The Eternal Optimist
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