Christmas budget

[nick__45]

Our Christmas budget is 300 dollars for 4 people and I think it will probably be spent on a new watch for me and maybe a small toy for my kid and a pair of jean for my sister and a shirt for my wife. Without the watch, we actually have no Christmas spending and have managed to stay under 50 bucks each holiday season. We have a lot of stuffs and don't need anything because we never throw out anything.

I have been wearing the same watch for 9 years. It is still good but the kinetic battery charger doesn't work very well now. If I don't wear it for about 2 days, the battery will be dead. I want (not need) a Citizen Eco-Drive so I wouldn't have to worry about wearing it all the time to keep it charged. I don't believe in buying used watch because they tend to cost the same as new and there is no telling what is wrong with it or if it is not stolen. We get discount with Macy because my wife works there. This will be my first present in 9 years.

What's your Christmas budget? What you're spending on?

[wincrasher]

I'm trying to hold the line at $5000 this year. My list is about 10 people.

Holiday entertaining, decorations, booze and food are not included, but should run around $1,500 or so.....I hope.

This is about a 50% reduction from last year's spending. I was kinda nuts last year. But it was fun!

[nick__45]

I'm trying to hold the line at $5000 this year. My list is about 10 people.

Holiday entertaining, decorations, booze and food are not included, but should run around $1,500 or so.....I hope.

This is about a 50% reduction from last year's spending. I was kinda nuts last year. But it was fun!

$5000 for Christmas? That's a lot man. Hope you're not making fun of my goal of saving $5k by January 15.

Do you need to spend that much to have fun. I can provide entertainment of 10 people much less.

[wincrasher]

Not making fun of you.

But $500 a person is not really alot of gifts. Not extravagant ones anyways.

I find the holiday shopping is alot of fun, as long as you don't wait too long to do it.

I hope to have mine finished by Dec 1.

I don't do battle to get the best deals. I focus on what the person I'm shopping for would need or enjoy. You won't find me at any Black Friday events or sales. I'll take a good deal if I find it, but not sacrificing my dignity to get it.

[buildmybudget]

Wow, I think $500/person is quite high! My goal when spending for my 9 siblings and mother was $500. We've since moved to a secret santa gift exchange because it is so difficult to try and purchase gifts for that many people. My goal is still the same, $500, for my wife, secret santa, and any friends we buy gifts for.

[wincrasher]

At least one gift this year should be tax deductable - it's for a business client. Thanks Uncle Sam!

[nick__45]

Wow, I think $500/person is quite high! My goal when spending for my 9 siblings and mother was $500. We've since moved to a secret santa gift exchange because it is so difficult to try and purchase gifts for that many people. My goal is still the same, $500, for my wife, secret santa, and any friends we buy gifts for.

Wow. you buy gifts for friends. I learn that lesson a hard way 5 years ago when we gave some gifts to a few friends (more like acquaintances because my idea of friendship is too high) and not a return in gifts. We decided right there and then no gift exchange ever. I do buy my neighbors a box of candy last year because he and his wife are nice people. They gave us a few things ad-hoc but we would be ok if they didn't return the favor. They are good people and it is nice to have good neighbors.

My sister is very good, she doesn't want any gift. Neither does my wife or kid. Only me giving myself stuffs, which usually none. I love window shopping because it is free and full of excitement.

[wincrasher]

You don't buy your wife or kid a Christmas gift? Wow.

Remember it's the thought that counts, not the amount you spend. A simple box of candy is a nice gesture for a neighbor. I do Christmas cards too - I'll write a personal note in some of them.

You always have to balance what is appropriate for the different people in your life and what you can afford. I have friends that definately would feel awkward if they recieved any more than a token gift. I have others that actually asked for something as extravagant as a $180 bottle of booze. Some are just excited to get a holiday card.

The kids always have a list with some pretty good stuff on it. I indulge them. But it will be less this year. Not because I can't afford it, but I just want to slow the growth of bigger and better each year.

[littleroc02us]

All I can say is wow! Christmas in our family is more about being with family and secret santa. Believe, me it's not that our family cannot afford it, it's that we don't feel that spending money at Christmas is what Christmas is all about. We do the secret santa bit on my side of the family and the wives. Basically, it's a $50 dollar limit, and gifts for the kids. Basically, we only spend about $250 between my wife and I for all the presents.

[nick__45]

All I can say is wow! Christmas in our family is more about being with family and secret santa. Believe, me it's not that our family cannot afford it, it's that we don't feel that spending money at Christmas is what Christmas is all about. We do the secret santa bit on my side of the family and the wives. Basically, it's a $50 dollar limit, and gifts for the kids. Basically, we only spend about $250 between my wife and I for all the presents.

Yep. We spend about 50 bucks total for Christmas and that's not on gifts. We have more things than we ever need. The baby has so much toys, she doesn't know what to do with them. She doesn't need toys, just want to play with us. Both her and my sister are similar, they are more into clothes than anything and my kid wears my sister's stuffs, which I bought for her when I was single and had plenty of discretionary cash.

Christmas is about family, not a consumer confident festival. It seems that all the excitement we have for Christ's B-day is the shopping before hand.

I 'may' get myself a watch this year because of all the stress I had in addition to having to work part-time due to my over-time being abolished. I want some fancy Citizen and it's probably about 250-300 dollars. But that is a big 'maybe.' I don't have any debt beside my mortgage so I need to psychological boost and will ask for my OT to be restored.

[nick__45]

You don't buy your wife or kid a Christmas gift? Wow.

Remember it's the thought that counts, not the amount you spend. A simple box of candy is a nice gesture for a neighbor. I do Christmas cards too - I'll write a personal note in some of them.

You always have to balance what is appropriate for the different people in your life and what you can afford. I have friends that definately would feel awkward if they recieved any more than a token gift. I have others that actually asked for something as extravagant as a $180 bottle of booze. Some are just excited to get a holiday card.

The kids always have a list with some pretty good stuff on it. I indulge them. But it will be less this year. Not because I can't afford it, but I just want to slow the growth of bigger and better each year.

I get mad when people give me cards. Give me a soda or something. My wife can buy whatever she wants since she has the same CCs and is a authorized users. But we are chasing the Jones here. I am the only materialistic person in the house but I chase after no one but my own shallow needs/wants. We're saving for a nice 5k Jeep or 4x4 truck.

[littleroc02us]

Christmas is about family, not a consumer confident festival. It seems that all the excitement we have for Christ's B-day is the shopping before hand.

Funny statement. Just listen to the media every year. It seems like every year since I've been alive the media states that sales will be down for Christmas, but last year again they were up 2%. The sky is falling! The older I get the more comical the news becomes....

[wincrasher]

News I've been seeing lately is saying expected sales to be up slightly - 1 or 2 percent. People still expecting to buy smaller, cheaper gifts and looking for bargains. Sounds about right to me.
Most people I know are looking for practical items - not so much electronics or jewelery this year.

[nick__45]

It is funny how retailers want sale to be up by a few percents each year. You can only go up so far. If you had a great year last season, if this season is down a few percents, you should still consider it a great season. Maybe if things were made in the U.S. people would buy it more because more would be employed. Things are made by machines anyway so the labor involved isn't that much; therefore, save the country and the planet by making it locally to where it's being sold.

[nick__45]

Funny statement. Just listen to the media every year. It seems like every year since I've been alive the media states that sales will be down for Christmas, but last year again they were up 2%. The sky is falling! The older I get the more comical the news becomes....

Another funny statement is that the bible says Jesus and God love us all equally, sinner or saint, rich or poor, beautiful or not. However, our preachers seem to love the rich more, at least when I went to church with a friend. So I just listen to church radio and not set foot in church. It is hard to be truly religious on a budget in this country.

I overheard a preacher and his buddies one time about how they should raise the donation limit to 15# because they feel they deserve more than waitress. I hope they're not seriously.

I really want to have a new watch this year. I really do but I don't know if I should get it. Possibly, I just spend the money installing a oil's pressure and temperature gauge in my car. That would takes a few hours of my mechanic, who charges $50 an hour to do it at his house. Christmas is about giving so maybe I should give him some business so he can take care of his family. Christ will be more please with that. I wonder if the preacher would prefer I drop that few hundreds in the donation box.