Beckies Spot

We are officially 22 days from Christmas.  The stores are a mess, the shoppers are brutal, and most of the prices just aren’t low enough.  With the financial dive our economy has taken this year, we are all feeling our wallets clench when we try to open them.  More and more people are relying on credit cards for Christmas this year.  Personally, I don’t have any credit cards- but if I did, I know I’d be in trouble.

This writer usually has all of her Christmas shopping done by the beginning of October….I mean, wrapped, tagged and they’ve been gone over twice.  Candy canes or ornaments are attached to the top and they are seperated into piles….our house, his parent’s house, my mom’s house and church.  I know, a bit OCD, but usually, I am using the months of October, November and December to bake, ring the bell, Christmas Carol and spend time with my family.  This year, I have been having a hard time getting into the Christmas Spirit….my tree went up out of obligation and basically blackmail.  There are decorations around the house, but I put them up because Brent and James shouldn’t have to suffer because I am miserable.  I have put off buying Christmas gifts due to my bahumbug spirit and lack of money.

Today, I realized that the Hallmark channel can be legitimately playing the 25 Days of Christmas Series that they do every year (though they have been running it for almost two weeks already).  In coming to that realization, I also realized that there are only two gifts that have been bought.  This year, we are cutting corners financially and have been getting creative.  For those of you struggling to find gifts that are affordable but simply lovely….I wanted to share some ideas with you.

For those people that you feel like you must buy a gift for- co-workers, neighbors, your kids’ teachers or bus drivers, you don’t have to spend a lot of money to let them know you appreciate them.  First of all- you can make the Dollar Store your best friend.  I’m talking about the dollar stores where everything really is a dollar.  If you feel like you must buy gifts for people you work with, this is the place to go.  Let’s say you have 4 co-workers to buy for….Start simple by buying 4 Christmas coffe mugs.  Purchase a package of silver spoons, a box of Hot Chocolate, a bag of mini marshmallows, a spool of ribbon and one roll of colored cellophane (if they don’t have it, buy shiny-but flexible- wrapping paper).  Take the cups out of the box if they came in one, and make sure there isn’t any dust in the bottom.  Put one or two packages of the hot chocolate in the cup, followed by a silver spoon.  Throw some mini marshmallows into a mini zip lock bag, or tie them up- but be sure they are sealed off- in the colored cellophane.  Set the whole cup on a piece of colored cellophane (how much you need depends on the size of the cup) and wrap it up around the top….the spoon can stick straight up out of it, or be off to the side…tie it with some ribbon, and you are done!  Four gifts for 9 bucks.  You can also do this with tea bags or coffee pods if you want to keep with the drink theme.  I also like to put candy in the cups.  When I do this, I am sure to create my gift using only Christmas candies.  Peppermint Kisses, those little christmas tree nougat things, Andies mints, etc.  Instead of a spoon, I top it off with a full size candy cane.  Viola!