Food for Thought: Envy After Christmas

The day after Christmas is fun as I get to scroll through my Facebook posts and see pictures and watch videos of my beloved friends and family members enjoying their Christmas mornings. (One of my closest friends posted a video of his one-year-old son discovering the joys of a new Whoopee Cushion. The hilarity that followed was enough to make anyone lol!)

As I scroll through the posts I see other friends and acquaintances tearing open gifts and sharing love and laughter. Some people have Christmas trees surrounded by mountains of presents.

For the penny pincher it can be hard not to get envious. Don't get me wrong, Dani and I had a wonderful Christmas. We shared many great gifts with each other and our family, and we never forgot the real reason for the season, which I think is a key point in preventing us from feeling jealous of those who have a lot more.

It's important to remember, too, that some of those people with mountains of presents under the tree had to acquire mountains of debt to get those gifts. They may be happy for a few moments on Christmas morning, but come January when the bills start to arrive they might not feel so festive. On the other hand, I'm sure there are many families who buy lots of presents and can afford them just fine, while others may have carefully saved throughout the year and landed lots of good deals... but that's neither here nor there.

If you find yourself feeling underwhelmed by Christmas, and perhaps a tad envious of those who have a lot more than you, I'd like to challenge you to consider just how much your heart is truly fixed on the real meaning of Christmas. It's so easy to get caught up in the shopping and the wrapping and the gifts and the craziness, and when that becomes your focus than the things of this world have taken precedence over what should be a glorious celebration of the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ.

Keep pinchin' :-)

How to Handle a Christmas Conversation About Dave

Fortunately, Dani and I have lots of understanding friends and family, but we know there are a lot of naysayers out there who can kill one's momentum when it comes to being thrifty, money-smart, and a Dave Ramsey fan.

Dave offers some tips on how to diffuse any digs that people may take at you without getting all bent out of shape.

"The key is to talk about why you believe in having a budget and paying cash and to not make a big deal out of it," says Dave. "Say things factually. If you’ve been saving money each month of the year for Christmas and someone tells you that you can’t pay for gifts with cash, just say, 'Actually, I am—I’ve been saving all year. It really wasn’t that bad.' By being matter-of-fact, you quietly defuse their claim that it can’t be done without having an attitude. It’s no longer 'your opinion versus mine.' It’s fact—you have the proof right there in the figgy pudding. When you don’t give them ammo, they quickly run out of it."

Click here to read the entire article, How to Handle a Christmas Conversation About Dave, at his official website, www.daveramsey.com.

Giving While Penny Pinching

One of the things my hubby and I have made a point to be faithful in is giving to our local church. Budgeting for this is really important, because it is too easy to use this money on unexpected expenses or to help balance your budget when you go a little over.

But when you budget for tithing, you're creating a plan for that money as though it were for your mortgage or your heating bill. You've set it aside for a purpose, which means there's less of a chance it will slip into thin air.

God loves a cheerful giver, and I think the proof of this is in how he gives more when he sees that you're joyfully giving what you can. Here's what I mean: It took about a year for us to realize that we weren't tithing out of the extra money that we made each month—Jake's photography jobs, my babysitting and crocheting. Once we realized that we should be giving back to God from the excess he provides, we thought and prayed about how we could do that, and, like usual, God suggested a creative way of giving that has turned out to be a lot of fun.

We've created an account in which our tithing from any excess income builds up. This money is available to us whenever we feel led to give in a way outside of our regular weekly church giving. Recently we decided to use some of the money from this account to bless a little girl through Angel Tree, an outreach through Prison Fellowship. On Tuesday I went to Toys"R"Us to find a dolly for this precious little girl, and knowing I had money in our "extra giving" account meant I didn't even have to concern myself too much with price tags. It was so much fun!

I walked up and down the aisle where all the dolly's lived, touching them, checking to see what ages they were appropriate for, until I found one that was perfect for the 18 month old girl we had selected. I bought her a couple of outfits and a bag with two bottles, a bowl, a spoon, and a fork. I admit, I splurged. And I know I'll never get to meet this little girl, but I do wish that I could be a fly on the wall of her house on Christmas morning to see her open this gift, knowing it came from her daddy who couldn't be with her this Christmas, but loved her enough to send her a gift through me. It's things like this that bring joy to my heart and keep me motivated to penny pinch so that someday we will be able to give so much more!

Keep pinchin' :-)

It's the Holiday Season

As far as I'm concerned it's the "most wonderful time of the year," however my husband doesn't always agree, particularly when I turn on the Christmas music in October. As the time draws nearer, with the sparkly lights and blankets of snow, it's just splendid!

As much as I love Christmas time though I can't deny that it can be a very stressful time of year. Since getting married, Jake and I have endured the trials and triumphs of juggling family visits and traveling on snow-covered roads. The stress can get out of hand if I'm not careful.

Probably the most stressful aspect of the season is the shopping - shopping, shopping, shopping - but with long lines, pushy people, and a limited window of opportunity what should be a girl's dream come true can easily turn into a nightmare. Here are some tips to making this holiday season more enjoyable for the penny pinching pro:

1. Create a budget for you holiday spending. Hopefully you have been doing this throughout the year by putting aside some money for gifts, but if not decide now what you can and cannot afford and commit to going plastic free this Christmas.

2. Limit the amount of trips to the stores. Plan ahead, make your list, and then go shopping. The less time you spend in the stores with the masses the less stressful you may find yourself, and the less you'll spend on gifts you don't really need to buy.

3. Consider how you have been gift giving and how you might want to change it. Growing up my parents had a set budget they would spend on each of us kids, which would usually amount to about 10 presents for each of us. Now just imagine with six kids in our house, that was 60 presents! Not including the gifts we got for our parents, and those that we got for each other. Now as a kid, I loved it! In fact I would have probably thrown a fit been sad if they tried to change it, but now that I'm an adult - or at least pretend to be - and am contemplating how I want to handle gift-giving with my own kids I've decided that I want to keep it simple. My husband and I have decided that maybe three gifts, each representing one of the three gifts given to Jesus from the wise men, would be a good way of not only limiting our holiday spending, but also drawing some attention to the real meaning of the season. If you don't have kids already, or they are really little, now would be the best time to change what you do for gift giving.

4. Don't be afraid to go homemade! Whether it be spending time baking together as a family or with friends, or making some of the gifts you give to others, consider how you can make the holidays a special time without breaking the bank. And at all costs, do NOT start dipping into that "emergency fund" for Christmas. Christmas is not an emergency!

5. Create traditions or keep some of your childhood traditions alive. Consider giving each other new PJ's on Christmas Eve so you look half decent great for pictures on Christmas morning or have a family Christmas movie marathon. (Both of which are things that we do. *smiles proudly*) Traditions can be so much fun, and they can give you something to look forward to continuing each year.

Hopefully these five things will help to make your holidays less stressful and more enjoyable. And don't forget what this season is all about: celebrating our Savior's birth! Make that your focus and it will be a wonderful time of year.

Let us know what you do to keep your stress level low on Christmas. Got any favorite family traditions? How do you give gifts in your family? Leave a comment below.

Keep pinchin' :-)

Making vs. Saving Money: Both Are Important!

When it comes to getting out of debt you have to adopt a "whatever it takes" mindset, because if you're half-hearted about it or if you don't follow through you'll either keep repeating the same money mistakes or you won't ever be able to correct the ones you've made.

So get creative with your thinking. How can you earn more money to pay off that debt? Remember, whatever it takes! ... Well, apart from selling yourself on a street corner, that is. Begin by evaluating any talents you may have that you can use to either make money or save money. This will play a big part in paying off your debt early and then staying out of debt for good.

Now you may read this and think that you have nothing that could save or make you money, but everyone has something. You just have to do some self-searching, and maybe wander a little outside your comfort zone, but if you're resourceful and creative with implementing this it can help take you further into debt-free living!

Lucky for me I married this amazingly creative, artistic genius—go ahead, be jealous—and this has helped tremendously. Jake has a photography business and specializes in wedding photography and also does lots of family and individual portrait sessions. Thankfully, his day job allows for some flexible hours so he can often work his two jobs around each other. Jake also acts as a freelance writer for several newspapers in the area and also does some photography for them also. His graphic arts talents get him hired for various odd jobs like illustrating books and designing covers. Check out his website at www.isleofturmak.com.

I’ve also been able to find a few ways that I can contribute in this area, and though mine might not be as profitable every penny helps. I have been able to sell crocheted hats around Christmas time—anything from Hello Kitty to Monsters, Inc., and I enjoy using this as a creative outlet. I hope to crochet enough over the next year to build a small army's worth of hats and mittens that I can take to a craft fair, or sell to the Marine Corps. Whatever comes first. I'm guessing craft fair. I've also done some babysitting, which is great because I love kids and I've found it to be a good way for me to meet new people in my area.

With the holidays upon us, Jake and I have been thinking about what gifts we could make for family and friends. Not every single gift we give is homemade, but each one we do saves money, and is more special to the recipient. My husband made this beautiful watercolor painting for my grandparents of their beloved dog Buttons, which they both loved.

Giving gifts is certainly an area of struggle for many people living on a tight budget. I know many people decide to simply not give gifts when they're in a season of slaying debt, but Jake and I like giving gifts too much for us to cut it out completely.

So maybe you aren’t artistic. Maybe you can hardly draw a stick figure. But if you look hard enough you can find something you can do that can either save you or make you money.

Let me know if you come up with any!

Keep pinchin' :-)