When you are deciding which toys to buy your kids this holiday season, it helps to keep three things in mind. You want toys that have a long play value, toys that educational or enriching, and toys that are inexpensive. The trick is to find toys that have all three attributes. And let us add a fourth attribute: toys that are safe. The good news is that this year, it may just be the best year to find the toys you want for you kids at the lowest prices. In fact, you may even want to stock up for gifts … Continue reading →

Each year, it seems that we wind up spending too much money on the holidays. One of the ways to cut this expense down while reinforcing the validity of Christmas is to concentrate on gifts that come from the heart, gifts that are made by hand. But coming up with something that doesn’t look homemade can be a bit of a challenge. Why not get organized with a Santa’s workshop that will not only yield great gifts but also create a warm social engagement during the holidays. Setting up the workshop Making gifts is really fun when you do it … Continue reading →

Does your budget include Christmas cards for this year? If not and you still want to send them, consider the following options. They will help you save money and still follow this cherished tradition. First take a look at what cards you may already have before you purchase any new ones. Maybe they don’t all match, or maybe you have a few less popular cards, but if you have them, you can use them. This will save you on the cost of having to buy new cards this year. I know that I frequently find extra cards packed in with … Continue reading →

I just read an article about some halloween festivities that happened yesterday. A local town sponsored a pumpkin walk, where kids could visit downtown and trick or treat safely. The reporter’s angle on the story was that families were spending less money on Halloween this year than they had in years past. Statistics that were quoted put Halloween spending projected at $56 per person. Um, with a family of five, that means that I would be spending $280 total for costumes, decorations and treats. Gulp. Does that seem frugal to you. Perhaps the statistic meant per household? That $280 figure … Continue reading →

Very often when we are budgeting for Christmas, we think of the gifts and maybe the food. We usually leave out the cost of the Christmas tree and any extra lights or ornaments that may go with it. But the Christmas tree can be an expense to budget. As such, let us see how we can save the most money that we can. Buy what fits Buying only what fits can be applied to both live and artificial trees. Who hasn’t brought home a live tree only to discover that quite a few inches need to be lopped off once … Continue reading →

Are you in a panic about how to afford the toys that you would like to give your kids this holiday? This is the second in a two-part series. Through these posts, I can offer some tips on being able to afford toys for your kids without compromising your financial stability. As you know, the holidays aren’t all about toys and material gifts, but most parents want to have something fun for their kids at this time of the year. Here are some more options for affording those toys. Outgrown Sales Local churches and other organizations offer outgrown sales that … Continue reading →

I was shopping at Target yesterday, looking for a Halloween costume for my youngest child. He really wants to be a doggie, and I thought that this would be an easy find. After all, I wasn’t looking for a licensed character, so the costume should be pretty inexpensive, right? Well, unfortunately, I was wrong. They not have a doggie costume in his size. The doggie and other generic costumes seemed to have stopped at size 18-24 month. After that, all of the costumes for boys were those dreaded (for me anyway) character costumes. There was a Scooby Do costume that … Continue reading →