If you have not had a chance to read my blog post on Celebrating Christmas on a Budget, a quick read will give you the background for this update.
After I presented my ideas to the family, I waited for them to process my suggestions. My family is used to me suggesting things; sometimes they jump on board and sometimes they balk at my ideas.
Of course this choice came at the beginning of all the Christmas shopping deals. I deleted many emails and ignored many advertisements. I needed to stay focused on our goal…spend no money.
I was asking them to stretch their creativity and come up with homemade Christmas items. I was not going to hand over money and take them shopping.
My youngest son quickly approached me and asked to schedule a meeting. During our meeting we prayed for his siblings and focused on what they enjoyed doing. Once we had a few ideas we did a search on Pinterest for ideas. It didn’t take long to find a homemade foot scrub for his sister and a DIY ukulele strap for his brother. All the items needed to construct the presents were things we had on hand.
Once word got out that I was providing consultations for ideas, the family embraced the excitement.
Except, my oldest son didn’t say anything. I think he was waiting for us to change our minds. I think he used up his extra brain energy on his college finals. Since he is employed, he decided to spend money. Of course his ideas are modest and mixed with service. For example, he is going to buy his brother a Toby Mac album, and then he will update and rearrange a new playlist for him.
My daughter is crafty. Her only struggle is finding the time away from her studies to make the presents.
My youngest 3 kids decided to construct a fun little game for their oldest brother. Yes, we think one of the best gifts for a college student is money. Now, we didn’t just want him to unwrap boxes containing cash so he will be going on a “Cash Hunt.”
We took 4 empty toilet paper rolls and glued them together in the form of a box. Then each kid placed a clue in one of the rolls. We covered each end with a small piece of tissue paper held on with a rubber band. We decorated the outside. Then we added instructions on how the “Cash Hunt” works. He gets to punch out one tube at a time then read the clue and hopefully he can locate the money.
If you find your budget tight this year, I pray that you are able to find the inspiration to celebrate the season without taking on additional debt.
The only thing I miss from my plan…Christmas cards…I really love creating them.
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