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Christmas in July is upon us. And ok, here in the US we don’t celebrate Christmas in July, but I think it’s a really important budgeting holiday to acknowledge. Christmas comes once per year and usually is very expensive. Somehow, every year, people are not financially prepared. Stores boast zero percent credit cards and putting items on layaway, but in the end you will end up spending more money by not having enough in savings to cover your Christmas expenses. So here’s July. Time to start planning for Christmas and setting money aside for gifts.
There are two ways to prepare for Christmas. Either save money for gifts or start slowly buying gifts throughout the year. You might say that it won’t be possible to buy gifts throughout the year, but it is. It might not be possible to buy all of your Christmas gifts in advance, but it is possible to buy the majority of them. You can stock up on gift cards to use for gifts or for gift swaps.
Types of gifts you can and can’t buy in advance
Some items, especially for kids, you might need to buy closer to Christmas since their interests and the “hot gift” is changing. For others or for items that are needed, you can purchase the items throughout the year as they go on sale. You can also keep an eye out for gifts that can be used for multiple people. For example, I purchase gifts to use for gift swaps as the items are on sale. With gift swaps, dirty Santa, white elephant, Yankee swap, or whatever else it is called, I find that buying a gift you would truly enjoy tends to be a great tactic. Why? Because you have something in common with the group you are swapping with so if you love it, they might too. Plus, as a bonus, you can always try to go home with your own gift.
Use Amazon Prime Day to prepare for Christmas
A great chance to get ahead on Christmas gifts is Amazon Prime Day, which is July 15th & 16th this year. Just make sure you have a safe spot to hide them where the gift receiver won’t find them. If you are not an Amazon Prime Member, you can get a free 30-day trial and I highly recommend becoming a member. I get a ton of use out of my Prime membership between free shipping, Amazon Music, and Amazon Video. Add items to your wishlist so you get an alert when it goes on sale. Some deals only last a few hours so be sure to take advantage of them while they last.
Does everyone buy everyone gifts at Christmas?
Is your family still buying gifts for everyone so when Christmas comes you have more than 10 people to buy for? I know this can be a really sensitive topic, but start talking to your family about changing to a gift swap or Secret Santa. In a gift swap, if you bring a gift you go home with a gift. In Secret Santa, everyone draws a name in advance to decide who to buy for. Not only do you spend less money, but let’s face it, for the most part people are gifted things that aren’t truly necessities. Do you really need to leave Christmas with 10 items per person and a very low bank account? And as a bonus, the swap can become a game.
How to transition away from buying everyone a gift
If you want to explore the option of moving away from buying everyone a present, there are some options you can use to ease the pain. You can do a swap for the adults and still have everyone buy for the kids. People tend to feel less uncomfortable if the kids still have presents to open. You can also do Secret Santa and a gift swap so everyone leaves with 2 gifts. Or even exchange 1 gift and 1 recipe.
When you do a recipe swap, be sure to have everyone read what the recipe is for so everyone can enjoy in the fun. You can even add a theme for the recipes like cookie recipes. I think you’ll find that after the first year everyone will enjoy the new tradition and will realize that the holiday is more about spending time together than exchanging gifts.
Use the Four Gift Rule
For your immediate family, consider using the four gift rule. Never heard of the four gift rule? The concept is simple and I think it’s genius, plus it helps you spend less on Christmas, teaches children to value things other than material possessions, and helps your house not overflow with toys and other stuff that you just don’t have room for. The concept is that each person receives 4 gifts — one from each category: something you want, something you need, something to wear, and something to read.
While it’s very different than a big expensive over-the-top Christmas, the four gift rule lets everyone open gifts and even allows time to start a new tradition. Maybe each year after opening gifts, as a family you watch a movie, play a board game, do a fun outdoor activity, do a craft, or even cook or bake something together. Make the day more focused on family time and memories and less focused on gifts.
Be sure to start thinking about Christmas now so it doesn’t sneak up on you and don’t forget to add items to your Amazon wishlist prior to Amazon Prime Day on July 15th & 16th!
Need Gift Ideas? Check out these ideas.
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Love the 4 gift rule, so implementing that for holiday shopping!
So glad you like it! Thanks for reading 🙂