Despite the recent record-high temperatures, Christmas Day is less than two months away. Stores are speckled with Christmas lights and holiday bows. Children are busy making their wish lists, and students are eagerly anticipating the close of another semester. But for parents who dread the teeming malls and shopping bills, there is likely apprehension about the approaching holiday season.
Judy Woodward Bates, a speaker and author who created Bargainomics, a style of economics she describes as dedicated to allowing God to control spending, offers a solution to the budgeting crisis of the holiday season.
“It is critical to prepare ahead of time and not wait until the last few weeks, or even days, before Christmas to dash out and buy presents,” Bates said. “Why should this year’s Christmas be next year’s headache because of the amount of money we’ve charged on credit cards?”
Some useful and cost-efficient gifts Bates suggested are:
4Prepaid long distance phone cards. The perfect gift for anyone with relatives or friends far away, these cards come in small enough increments to fit even the most meager of pocketbooks.
4Restaurant gift certificates. Purchase certificates from individual restaurants or discount coupon booklets from local schools. Check out the deals on www.Restaurant.com, where most certificates valued at $25 cost around $10. Look for additional applicable discounts at www.CurrentCodes.com.
4Shop online clearances. Visit the Money-Saving Links page of www.Bargainomics.com to find dozens of clearance Web sites that can lead to finds like the jewelry box shown here.
Bates suggested creating an “occasions list” immediately following the Christmas season. This list starts with a blank sheet of paper on which she writes the names of every one she will be buying a gift for in the next year, including miscellaneous listings such as bridal teas and graduations. Then, all year long, Bates shops for these presents.
“That way, by the time Christmas rolls around, all the gifts are bought and paid for,” she said.
Bates has two main rules for gift shopping. First, she spends “real money,” avoiding the use of any credit cards. Second, she shops for bargains. “If it isn’t at least 75 percent off, it’s not on sale,” Bates said. “The key is discipline.”
Barry Harms, manager of business operations for LifeWay Christian Resources, agreed. “Christmas budgeting first begins in January,” he said. “We should determine how much we can spend on Christmas gifts on an annual basis and begin setting aside money each month so that when the Christmas season comes around, we already have the money available to spend at a predetermined level.”
Harms encouraged Christmas shoppers to plan the maximum amount that will be spent on each person. “With the game plan in hand, we then have a reasonable chance to keep our Christmas spending within budget,” he said.
For those who have not prepared for the financial crunch Christmas can bring, Bates suggested an original alternative. She encourages families to have the courage to suggest, “Hey, instead of buying gifts for each other this year, why don’t we just spend some time together?”
Although this may lead to a non-traditional celebration, Bates said “you’ll hear a collective sigh of relief.” To keep Dec. 25 in perspective, she said to remember “Jesus Christ is to be our example, and His was a simple life not focused on accumulating material possessions.”
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