I really don't want to know!
Actually, it's not that bad. I started December with a misc budget of close to $1,000.00. That had to cover all gifts (Kazi, her boyfriend, neighbour, 3 girlfriends, 2 brothers, 1 sister-in-law plus her mother and brother, my nephew his wife and their son - my great-nephew). Oh...and me!! (my gifts to me are all from the used bookstore! I hope Luna doesn't pick the one I want to read first!)
And let's not forget Luna and Lily...I bought some treats and toys for their stockings...sorry, Lily, you have to wait til Friday!!!
But that's not all. My misc budget also covers entertainment - eating out, going for drinks etc. It covers decorations - I bought a new (fake) Christmas tree (40% off) and light up wall decoration...(70% off!)
...and then there's the baking supplies...Bulk Barn LOVES me!
...the craft supplies... (Walmart and Michael's)
...and the liquor too! (tastes the same as Bailey's at a third of the cost!)
Christmas can easily get out of hand - I saw in the financial news today that Canadians are the worst abusers of their credit cards....in the entire WORLD!! So...I must confess....that I used my President's Choice Mastercard for ALL of my purchases...then went home and promptly paid them off! Why? So I would have enough points to purchase Kazi's new comforter set and new pillows, new sheets and all of her stocking gifts!! That's what saves my bacon every year - POINTS!
My cheap thrifty ways continue into retirement! My gift giving this year includes crocheted wash/dish cloths along with new Body Shop soaps and lotions; homemade treats and 2nd hand books. Points bought the new stuff and my baking supplies were bought in bulk. I'm not a label whore so Cartier's Irish Cream is very satisfying.
I am proud to announce that I still have $$ left in my chequing account! Not a huge amount but enough to get me to the end of the month. My fridge is stuffed and my truck has a full tank of gas. I vowed to myself I wouldn't take money out of savings and I didn't. Yippeeeeeee!
Did you have a Christmas budget? Did you stick to it?
No Christmas budget and I should have. We won't go into debt for it but it all adds up. Merry Christmas, Jane.
ReplyDeleteWe had a budget and definitely went over. I found some great deals and just couldn't stop. Plus I didn't keep on top of tracking all my purchases. But a lot of my kids gifts are clothes,boots, etc that they were needing anyways. No credit card debt for this Christmas either. All paid in cash.
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