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A GUIDE TO PLANNING AND THINKING THROUGH YOUR HOLIDAY EXPENSES SO YOU CAN SPEND ON WHAT YOU REALLY VALUE
HolidaySPENDING
(800) 877-4444 bull oefederalorg
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
Contents 1 THE REASON FOR THE SEASON 3
2 CREATE A PLAN BASED ON YOUR BUDGET 6
3 MAKE A LIST AND CHECK IT TWICE 8
4 ENTERTAIN WITHOUT BREAKING THE BANK 10
5 BE FESTIVE AND FRUGAL 11
6 NOT BEING HOME FOR CHRISTMAS 12
7 OVER ALREADY 13
HOLIDAY WRAP-UP QUESTIONS 1 5
2
~ -~ bull _ _ ~~- -shy-~ -4
lt -- -middot 1 ~ -
----
THE REASON FOR THE SEASON
In our most hectic moments we might call the holidays a giant bundle of stress Therersquos family to coordinate guests to entertain kids to shop for and meals to plan It all has to get done in the span of a few days Those days are supposed to be a chance to unwind from the crush of work and school but they instead become something to dread
Throw a tightened budget on top of all that stress and it just gets worse Consumers spent $626 billion on holiday gift-giving in 2015 Thatrsquos about three times more than what Americans gave to charity during the whole year Stats like that really make it seem like holiday priorities may be a little out of whack
Itrsquos also a big part of whatrsquos contributing to that bundle of stress And yet we still feel like wersquore missing out on something So every year we plan to do more for the next year More presents more travel more out-of-town guests bigger meals bigger trees and add another dozen cookies to the holiday pile With so much stuf sur-rounding them itrsquos easy to lose track of the joy that we receive during the season
Itrsquos supposed to be fun to celebrate These are supposed to be times to build memo-ries tell stories and celebrate the things that are important to us The holidays are supposed to be meaningful
Thatrsquos the goal of this book to empower you to make your holidays meaningful to you and your family Along the way therersquoll be tips on budgeting gift giving travel-ing on the cheap and other fnancial matters Those are an easy way to think about all the stuf that goes into the holiday season but the point isnrsquot just to save money
The point is to sepa-rate the stuf that mat-ters from the stuf that doesnrsquot Cut out the stuf that doesnrsquot matter and spend time and money on stuf that does A bud-get is just a way of fgur-ing out one from the oth-er
3
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
Plus yoursquoll save a little money too That never hurts
As an exercise towards the bottom of this page therersquos space to write down all the holiday activities and to-dos on your list Therersquos a space next to each line to put in how much joy it gives you on a scale of 1-10 There are also columns to estimate how much money and time you spend on each item Think of this as a descriptive budget Itrsquos where you are right now Itrsquos also the frst step to fguring out where your holiday priorities actually lie
You might fnd theyrsquore pretty much in line with where you want them to be All the items on your list bring you joy and you spend time and energy in ways that give you the best holiday you can have Thatrsquos great The rest of this book will provide a quick tune-up to make sure yoursquore not missing any easy ways to spruce up your holiday plan
On the other hand you might fnd that your priorities arenrsquot quite where you want them to be Thatrsquos OK In fact thatrsquos probably normal It doesnrsquot make you a bad per-son nor does it mean you just donrsquot get the holidays It just means therersquos room for improvement
Making a list checking it twice
ITEMACTIVITY JOY RATING ESTIMATED MONEY ESTIMATED TIME
4
~ -~ bull _ _ ~~- - -~ -t ---
Itrsquos a daunting list isnrsquot it Well donrsquot worry once you get started it should go a little more quickly and it might actually be fun This is an important step on your road to having the holiday you REALLY want - the one thatrsquos in line with your values
Take another look at your list and make sure therersquos nothing left behind Then take a deep breath
Itrsquos time to start planning
5
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
CREATE A PLAN BASED ON YOUR BUDGET
It can seem like an impossible task to sit down and think while there are mountains of gifts to be purchased and wrapped fights to be booked and trees to be dressed In truth though a few minutes of careful planning can save a ton of time down the road Like Benjamin Franklin said ldquoIf you are failing to plan you are plan-ning to failrdquo
A plan doesnrsquot have to be a step-by-step guide to doing everything you need to get done At its core a plan is just an idea of what success looks like and a set of smaller successes that will build to that You could make your holiday plan on one page In fact if you follow along you will
When yoursquore ready take a look at the worksheet towards the bottom of this page Yoursquoll put your big goal at the top then break that down into a couple of smaller goals With each one yoursquoll put an estimate of how much you plan to spend Thatrsquos it - thatrsquos a plan for a successful holiday
A word of caution though A plan shouldnrsquot be is a straitjacket If you fnd the perfect gift for a few dollars more than yoursquod planned spend it You can make up the difer-ence in other places Having a plan lets you see where those other places might be
With those cautionary notes in mind dive right in
1 The most important part of the holidays for me ishellip
2 I want to look back at this yearrsquos holiday season and rememberhellip
6
~ -~ bull _ _ ~~- -shy-~ -4
lt -- -middot 1 ~ -
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3 I want those around me to look back at this holiday season and rememberhellip
4 My overall budget for the holidays is $ _____________
5 Right now that money is (Enter the dollar amount in each line)
$_______ in my credit union checking account
$_______ in my Christmas club account
$_______ under my mattress
$_______ in my wallet or purse
$_______ that Irsquom going to charge to my credit union credit card
6 Herersquos how I want to break up my spending (Enter a percentage and dollar amount for each category)
CATEGORY GIFTS FESTIVE MEALS
DEacuteCOR TRAVEL ENTERTAINING OTHER
PERCENTAGE
DOLLAR AMOUNT
7
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ middotA
MAKE A LIST AND CHECK IT TWICE
Gift giving is probably one of the biggest sources of stress during the holidays Un-fortunately therersquos no quick and easy solution You might fnd it helpful to use a chart like this one to break down your gift-giving budget
Itrsquos also helpful to put a few ldquomysteryrdquo gifts in there Inev-itably someone you werenrsquot expecting will give you a small token of caring Not being able to reciprocate can feel bad in the moment and lead to overspending Grabbing a few scented candles or a few extra cute cards can prevent that impulse down the road
NAME OF PERSON
RECEIVING THE GIFT
AMOUNT PLANNING TO
SPEND
GIFT IDEAS FOR THIS PERSON
ALTERNATIVE GIFT ACTUAL AMOUNT
SPENT +-
8
NAME OF PERSON EIVING TH
GIFT
AMOUNT GIFT IDEAS FOR ALTERNATIVE ACTUAL AMOUNT
PLANNING TO +-REC E THIS PERSON GIFT SPENT
SPEND
9
-------------
ENTERTAIN WITHOUT BREAKING THE BANK
Part of entertaining is putting out a spread for your guests These costs can add up quickly especially if yoursquore forced to do a rushed shopping job the day some-one is coming over Make a plan and buy necessary pantry items in bulk beforehand This can save you a great deal in the long run
Where possible consider a cost-saving option like a potluck Many people feel bad just showing up to a meal and having nothing to ofer You can show of your host-ing by making a main dish and encourage your guests to bring sides desserts and drinks That way everyone feels like they had a part in making a great meal and you donrsquot have to shoulder the whole cost alone
For other meals you may be stuck doing all the cooking yourself Use a chart like this one to help you plan your expenses
DATE PLACE ITEMS ON HAND PLANNED COSTS ALTERNATE
IDEAS ACTUAL COSTS +-
10
~ -~ bull _ _ ~~- -shy-~ -4
lt -- -middot 1 ~ -
BE FESTIVE AND FRUGAL
Nothing is more frustrating to a thrifty holiday celebration planner than single-use deacutecor items Seasonal items are great but they should serve multiple pur-poses throughout the year Getting a box of Santa napkins that will be used once and never be seen again is a waste Focus on multi-purpose items instead like generic green napkins or plates These are useful in the season and you wonrsquot be embar-rassed to pull them out at an impromptu picnic or barbecue later in the year if you have them leftover
Also remember to put your priorities in efect when decorating If family time is most important to you it might make sense to put most of your decorating efort into dressing up common rooms with items that mean something to you and your family
Donrsquot forget to take a look at what you already have on hand and re-use where you can Use this chart to help
ROOMPURPOSE WHAT I
ALREADY HAVE WHAT I CAN
MAKE WHAT I STILL WANT TO BUY
ESTIMATED COSTS
ACTUAL COSTS +-
11
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ middotA
NOT BEING HOME FOR CHRISTMAS
Holiday travel costs can add up quickly especially if yoursquore booking fights that leave on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day If yoursquore planning on staying home for Christmas you can save this page for your next family trip Otherwise you can help keep your travel spending in control with this worksheet
Irsquom going to spend some time this season traveling to ____________________________
Overall Irsquom budgeting to spend a total of $______________ on this trip
Herersquos how itrsquos going to be broken down
Airfare $________________
BusTrain $_____________
Car Rental $____________
Gasoline $_____________
Tolls $_________________
Accommodations
Hotel stay $_______
Hostess Gift $______
Food
Restaurants $_____
Other $__________
12
OVER ALREADY The last of the leftovers has been eaten the wrapping paper is recycled and another holiday season is in the books
The holidays always seem to go by in such a hurry Everything will soon be boxed up and stored away until next year Meanwhile this yearrsquos holiday festivities will be nothing more than fond memories Thatrsquos helpful to remember when it seems like nothing is going right but itrsquos also useful for refection
Once yoursquore done with the holidays itrsquos time to check over your budget one last time before sticking it away for another year Find out what areas of your plan worked re-ally well What unforeseen expenses that you could anticipate next year occurred What problems came up and what could you do to solve them in years to come What areas just felt like they might need a little shaking up just to keep things fresh After the New Year itrsquos great to sit down and refect on these and other questions Talk it over with your family and make note if it
Itrsquos also a good time to take stock of gifts that you donrsquot have a real use for Would anyone else like them Everyone seems to have one friend or family member with a birthday that comes shortly after the holidays Could anything be re-gifted to make those celebrations easier If not could anything be kept for gifting next year
Build a list of ldquosparerdquo gifts along with some ideas of who might get them in the fu-ture This list can serve as the start of your gift giving plan for next year
13
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
Gift Inventory
ITEM WHO ITrsquoS FROM WHO ITrsquoS GOOD FOR IS IT WRAPPED NOTES
14
~~- -shy-~ -4
lt -- -middot 1 ~ -
----
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________
HOLIDAY WRAP-UP QUESTIONS 1) One thing I really loved that we did for this yearrsquos holidays was
2) One thing that didnrsquot work as well as I had hoped was
3) A problem that came up this year and how Irsquod solve it next year was
Additional Notes
15
16
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
Contents 1 THE REASON FOR THE SEASON 3
2 CREATE A PLAN BASED ON YOUR BUDGET 6
3 MAKE A LIST AND CHECK IT TWICE 8
4 ENTERTAIN WITHOUT BREAKING THE BANK 10
5 BE FESTIVE AND FRUGAL 11
6 NOT BEING HOME FOR CHRISTMAS 12
7 OVER ALREADY 13
HOLIDAY WRAP-UP QUESTIONS 1 5
2
~ -~ bull _ _ ~~- -shy-~ -4
lt -- -middot 1 ~ -
----
THE REASON FOR THE SEASON
In our most hectic moments we might call the holidays a giant bundle of stress Therersquos family to coordinate guests to entertain kids to shop for and meals to plan It all has to get done in the span of a few days Those days are supposed to be a chance to unwind from the crush of work and school but they instead become something to dread
Throw a tightened budget on top of all that stress and it just gets worse Consumers spent $626 billion on holiday gift-giving in 2015 Thatrsquos about three times more than what Americans gave to charity during the whole year Stats like that really make it seem like holiday priorities may be a little out of whack
Itrsquos also a big part of whatrsquos contributing to that bundle of stress And yet we still feel like wersquore missing out on something So every year we plan to do more for the next year More presents more travel more out-of-town guests bigger meals bigger trees and add another dozen cookies to the holiday pile With so much stuf sur-rounding them itrsquos easy to lose track of the joy that we receive during the season
Itrsquos supposed to be fun to celebrate These are supposed to be times to build memo-ries tell stories and celebrate the things that are important to us The holidays are supposed to be meaningful
Thatrsquos the goal of this book to empower you to make your holidays meaningful to you and your family Along the way therersquoll be tips on budgeting gift giving travel-ing on the cheap and other fnancial matters Those are an easy way to think about all the stuf that goes into the holiday season but the point isnrsquot just to save money
The point is to sepa-rate the stuf that mat-ters from the stuf that doesnrsquot Cut out the stuf that doesnrsquot matter and spend time and money on stuf that does A bud-get is just a way of fgur-ing out one from the oth-er
3
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
Plus yoursquoll save a little money too That never hurts
As an exercise towards the bottom of this page therersquos space to write down all the holiday activities and to-dos on your list Therersquos a space next to each line to put in how much joy it gives you on a scale of 1-10 There are also columns to estimate how much money and time you spend on each item Think of this as a descriptive budget Itrsquos where you are right now Itrsquos also the frst step to fguring out where your holiday priorities actually lie
You might fnd theyrsquore pretty much in line with where you want them to be All the items on your list bring you joy and you spend time and energy in ways that give you the best holiday you can have Thatrsquos great The rest of this book will provide a quick tune-up to make sure yoursquore not missing any easy ways to spruce up your holiday plan
On the other hand you might fnd that your priorities arenrsquot quite where you want them to be Thatrsquos OK In fact thatrsquos probably normal It doesnrsquot make you a bad per-son nor does it mean you just donrsquot get the holidays It just means therersquos room for improvement
Making a list checking it twice
ITEMACTIVITY JOY RATING ESTIMATED MONEY ESTIMATED TIME
4
~ -~ bull _ _ ~~- - -~ -t ---
Itrsquos a daunting list isnrsquot it Well donrsquot worry once you get started it should go a little more quickly and it might actually be fun This is an important step on your road to having the holiday you REALLY want - the one thatrsquos in line with your values
Take another look at your list and make sure therersquos nothing left behind Then take a deep breath
Itrsquos time to start planning
5
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
CREATE A PLAN BASED ON YOUR BUDGET
It can seem like an impossible task to sit down and think while there are mountains of gifts to be purchased and wrapped fights to be booked and trees to be dressed In truth though a few minutes of careful planning can save a ton of time down the road Like Benjamin Franklin said ldquoIf you are failing to plan you are plan-ning to failrdquo
A plan doesnrsquot have to be a step-by-step guide to doing everything you need to get done At its core a plan is just an idea of what success looks like and a set of smaller successes that will build to that You could make your holiday plan on one page In fact if you follow along you will
When yoursquore ready take a look at the worksheet towards the bottom of this page Yoursquoll put your big goal at the top then break that down into a couple of smaller goals With each one yoursquoll put an estimate of how much you plan to spend Thatrsquos it - thatrsquos a plan for a successful holiday
A word of caution though A plan shouldnrsquot be is a straitjacket If you fnd the perfect gift for a few dollars more than yoursquod planned spend it You can make up the difer-ence in other places Having a plan lets you see where those other places might be
With those cautionary notes in mind dive right in
1 The most important part of the holidays for me ishellip
2 I want to look back at this yearrsquos holiday season and rememberhellip
6
~ -~ bull _ _ ~~- -shy-~ -4
lt -- -middot 1 ~ -
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3 I want those around me to look back at this holiday season and rememberhellip
4 My overall budget for the holidays is $ _____________
5 Right now that money is (Enter the dollar amount in each line)
$_______ in my credit union checking account
$_______ in my Christmas club account
$_______ under my mattress
$_______ in my wallet or purse
$_______ that Irsquom going to charge to my credit union credit card
6 Herersquos how I want to break up my spending (Enter a percentage and dollar amount for each category)
CATEGORY GIFTS FESTIVE MEALS
DEacuteCOR TRAVEL ENTERTAINING OTHER
PERCENTAGE
DOLLAR AMOUNT
7
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ middotA
MAKE A LIST AND CHECK IT TWICE
Gift giving is probably one of the biggest sources of stress during the holidays Un-fortunately therersquos no quick and easy solution You might fnd it helpful to use a chart like this one to break down your gift-giving budget
Itrsquos also helpful to put a few ldquomysteryrdquo gifts in there Inev-itably someone you werenrsquot expecting will give you a small token of caring Not being able to reciprocate can feel bad in the moment and lead to overspending Grabbing a few scented candles or a few extra cute cards can prevent that impulse down the road
NAME OF PERSON
RECEIVING THE GIFT
AMOUNT PLANNING TO
SPEND
GIFT IDEAS FOR THIS PERSON
ALTERNATIVE GIFT ACTUAL AMOUNT
SPENT +-
8
NAME OF PERSON EIVING TH
GIFT
AMOUNT GIFT IDEAS FOR ALTERNATIVE ACTUAL AMOUNT
PLANNING TO +-REC E THIS PERSON GIFT SPENT
SPEND
9
-------------
ENTERTAIN WITHOUT BREAKING THE BANK
Part of entertaining is putting out a spread for your guests These costs can add up quickly especially if yoursquore forced to do a rushed shopping job the day some-one is coming over Make a plan and buy necessary pantry items in bulk beforehand This can save you a great deal in the long run
Where possible consider a cost-saving option like a potluck Many people feel bad just showing up to a meal and having nothing to ofer You can show of your host-ing by making a main dish and encourage your guests to bring sides desserts and drinks That way everyone feels like they had a part in making a great meal and you donrsquot have to shoulder the whole cost alone
For other meals you may be stuck doing all the cooking yourself Use a chart like this one to help you plan your expenses
DATE PLACE ITEMS ON HAND PLANNED COSTS ALTERNATE
IDEAS ACTUAL COSTS +-
10
~ -~ bull _ _ ~~- -shy-~ -4
lt -- -middot 1 ~ -
BE FESTIVE AND FRUGAL
Nothing is more frustrating to a thrifty holiday celebration planner than single-use deacutecor items Seasonal items are great but they should serve multiple pur-poses throughout the year Getting a box of Santa napkins that will be used once and never be seen again is a waste Focus on multi-purpose items instead like generic green napkins or plates These are useful in the season and you wonrsquot be embar-rassed to pull them out at an impromptu picnic or barbecue later in the year if you have them leftover
Also remember to put your priorities in efect when decorating If family time is most important to you it might make sense to put most of your decorating efort into dressing up common rooms with items that mean something to you and your family
Donrsquot forget to take a look at what you already have on hand and re-use where you can Use this chart to help
ROOMPURPOSE WHAT I
ALREADY HAVE WHAT I CAN
MAKE WHAT I STILL WANT TO BUY
ESTIMATED COSTS
ACTUAL COSTS +-
11
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ middotA
NOT BEING HOME FOR CHRISTMAS
Holiday travel costs can add up quickly especially if yoursquore booking fights that leave on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day If yoursquore planning on staying home for Christmas you can save this page for your next family trip Otherwise you can help keep your travel spending in control with this worksheet
Irsquom going to spend some time this season traveling to ____________________________
Overall Irsquom budgeting to spend a total of $______________ on this trip
Herersquos how itrsquos going to be broken down
Airfare $________________
BusTrain $_____________
Car Rental $____________
Gasoline $_____________
Tolls $_________________
Accommodations
Hotel stay $_______
Hostess Gift $______
Food
Restaurants $_____
Other $__________
12
OVER ALREADY The last of the leftovers has been eaten the wrapping paper is recycled and another holiday season is in the books
The holidays always seem to go by in such a hurry Everything will soon be boxed up and stored away until next year Meanwhile this yearrsquos holiday festivities will be nothing more than fond memories Thatrsquos helpful to remember when it seems like nothing is going right but itrsquos also useful for refection
Once yoursquore done with the holidays itrsquos time to check over your budget one last time before sticking it away for another year Find out what areas of your plan worked re-ally well What unforeseen expenses that you could anticipate next year occurred What problems came up and what could you do to solve them in years to come What areas just felt like they might need a little shaking up just to keep things fresh After the New Year itrsquos great to sit down and refect on these and other questions Talk it over with your family and make note if it
Itrsquos also a good time to take stock of gifts that you donrsquot have a real use for Would anyone else like them Everyone seems to have one friend or family member with a birthday that comes shortly after the holidays Could anything be re-gifted to make those celebrations easier If not could anything be kept for gifting next year
Build a list of ldquosparerdquo gifts along with some ideas of who might get them in the fu-ture This list can serve as the start of your gift giving plan for next year
13
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
Gift Inventory
ITEM WHO ITrsquoS FROM WHO ITrsquoS GOOD FOR IS IT WRAPPED NOTES
14
~~- -shy-~ -4
lt -- -middot 1 ~ -
----
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________
HOLIDAY WRAP-UP QUESTIONS 1) One thing I really loved that we did for this yearrsquos holidays was
2) One thing that didnrsquot work as well as I had hoped was
3) A problem that came up this year and how Irsquod solve it next year was
Additional Notes
15
16
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
~ -~ bull _ _ ~~- -shy-~ -4
lt -- -middot 1 ~ -
----
THE REASON FOR THE SEASON
In our most hectic moments we might call the holidays a giant bundle of stress Therersquos family to coordinate guests to entertain kids to shop for and meals to plan It all has to get done in the span of a few days Those days are supposed to be a chance to unwind from the crush of work and school but they instead become something to dread
Throw a tightened budget on top of all that stress and it just gets worse Consumers spent $626 billion on holiday gift-giving in 2015 Thatrsquos about three times more than what Americans gave to charity during the whole year Stats like that really make it seem like holiday priorities may be a little out of whack
Itrsquos also a big part of whatrsquos contributing to that bundle of stress And yet we still feel like wersquore missing out on something So every year we plan to do more for the next year More presents more travel more out-of-town guests bigger meals bigger trees and add another dozen cookies to the holiday pile With so much stuf sur-rounding them itrsquos easy to lose track of the joy that we receive during the season
Itrsquos supposed to be fun to celebrate These are supposed to be times to build memo-ries tell stories and celebrate the things that are important to us The holidays are supposed to be meaningful
Thatrsquos the goal of this book to empower you to make your holidays meaningful to you and your family Along the way therersquoll be tips on budgeting gift giving travel-ing on the cheap and other fnancial matters Those are an easy way to think about all the stuf that goes into the holiday season but the point isnrsquot just to save money
The point is to sepa-rate the stuf that mat-ters from the stuf that doesnrsquot Cut out the stuf that doesnrsquot matter and spend time and money on stuf that does A bud-get is just a way of fgur-ing out one from the oth-er
3
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
Plus yoursquoll save a little money too That never hurts
As an exercise towards the bottom of this page therersquos space to write down all the holiday activities and to-dos on your list Therersquos a space next to each line to put in how much joy it gives you on a scale of 1-10 There are also columns to estimate how much money and time you spend on each item Think of this as a descriptive budget Itrsquos where you are right now Itrsquos also the frst step to fguring out where your holiday priorities actually lie
You might fnd theyrsquore pretty much in line with where you want them to be All the items on your list bring you joy and you spend time and energy in ways that give you the best holiday you can have Thatrsquos great The rest of this book will provide a quick tune-up to make sure yoursquore not missing any easy ways to spruce up your holiday plan
On the other hand you might fnd that your priorities arenrsquot quite where you want them to be Thatrsquos OK In fact thatrsquos probably normal It doesnrsquot make you a bad per-son nor does it mean you just donrsquot get the holidays It just means therersquos room for improvement
Making a list checking it twice
ITEMACTIVITY JOY RATING ESTIMATED MONEY ESTIMATED TIME
4
~ -~ bull _ _ ~~- - -~ -t ---
Itrsquos a daunting list isnrsquot it Well donrsquot worry once you get started it should go a little more quickly and it might actually be fun This is an important step on your road to having the holiday you REALLY want - the one thatrsquos in line with your values
Take another look at your list and make sure therersquos nothing left behind Then take a deep breath
Itrsquos time to start planning
5
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
CREATE A PLAN BASED ON YOUR BUDGET
It can seem like an impossible task to sit down and think while there are mountains of gifts to be purchased and wrapped fights to be booked and trees to be dressed In truth though a few minutes of careful planning can save a ton of time down the road Like Benjamin Franklin said ldquoIf you are failing to plan you are plan-ning to failrdquo
A plan doesnrsquot have to be a step-by-step guide to doing everything you need to get done At its core a plan is just an idea of what success looks like and a set of smaller successes that will build to that You could make your holiday plan on one page In fact if you follow along you will
When yoursquore ready take a look at the worksheet towards the bottom of this page Yoursquoll put your big goal at the top then break that down into a couple of smaller goals With each one yoursquoll put an estimate of how much you plan to spend Thatrsquos it - thatrsquos a plan for a successful holiday
A word of caution though A plan shouldnrsquot be is a straitjacket If you fnd the perfect gift for a few dollars more than yoursquod planned spend it You can make up the difer-ence in other places Having a plan lets you see where those other places might be
With those cautionary notes in mind dive right in
1 The most important part of the holidays for me ishellip
2 I want to look back at this yearrsquos holiday season and rememberhellip
6
~ -~ bull _ _ ~~- -shy-~ -4
lt -- -middot 1 ~ -
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3 I want those around me to look back at this holiday season and rememberhellip
4 My overall budget for the holidays is $ _____________
5 Right now that money is (Enter the dollar amount in each line)
$_______ in my credit union checking account
$_______ in my Christmas club account
$_______ under my mattress
$_______ in my wallet or purse
$_______ that Irsquom going to charge to my credit union credit card
6 Herersquos how I want to break up my spending (Enter a percentage and dollar amount for each category)
CATEGORY GIFTS FESTIVE MEALS
DEacuteCOR TRAVEL ENTERTAINING OTHER
PERCENTAGE
DOLLAR AMOUNT
7
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ middotA
MAKE A LIST AND CHECK IT TWICE
Gift giving is probably one of the biggest sources of stress during the holidays Un-fortunately therersquos no quick and easy solution You might fnd it helpful to use a chart like this one to break down your gift-giving budget
Itrsquos also helpful to put a few ldquomysteryrdquo gifts in there Inev-itably someone you werenrsquot expecting will give you a small token of caring Not being able to reciprocate can feel bad in the moment and lead to overspending Grabbing a few scented candles or a few extra cute cards can prevent that impulse down the road
NAME OF PERSON
RECEIVING THE GIFT
AMOUNT PLANNING TO
SPEND
GIFT IDEAS FOR THIS PERSON
ALTERNATIVE GIFT ACTUAL AMOUNT
SPENT +-
8
NAME OF PERSON EIVING TH
GIFT
AMOUNT GIFT IDEAS FOR ALTERNATIVE ACTUAL AMOUNT
PLANNING TO +-REC E THIS PERSON GIFT SPENT
SPEND
9
-------------
ENTERTAIN WITHOUT BREAKING THE BANK
Part of entertaining is putting out a spread for your guests These costs can add up quickly especially if yoursquore forced to do a rushed shopping job the day some-one is coming over Make a plan and buy necessary pantry items in bulk beforehand This can save you a great deal in the long run
Where possible consider a cost-saving option like a potluck Many people feel bad just showing up to a meal and having nothing to ofer You can show of your host-ing by making a main dish and encourage your guests to bring sides desserts and drinks That way everyone feels like they had a part in making a great meal and you donrsquot have to shoulder the whole cost alone
For other meals you may be stuck doing all the cooking yourself Use a chart like this one to help you plan your expenses
DATE PLACE ITEMS ON HAND PLANNED COSTS ALTERNATE
IDEAS ACTUAL COSTS +-
10
~ -~ bull _ _ ~~- -shy-~ -4
lt -- -middot 1 ~ -
BE FESTIVE AND FRUGAL
Nothing is more frustrating to a thrifty holiday celebration planner than single-use deacutecor items Seasonal items are great but they should serve multiple pur-poses throughout the year Getting a box of Santa napkins that will be used once and never be seen again is a waste Focus on multi-purpose items instead like generic green napkins or plates These are useful in the season and you wonrsquot be embar-rassed to pull them out at an impromptu picnic or barbecue later in the year if you have them leftover
Also remember to put your priorities in efect when decorating If family time is most important to you it might make sense to put most of your decorating efort into dressing up common rooms with items that mean something to you and your family
Donrsquot forget to take a look at what you already have on hand and re-use where you can Use this chart to help
ROOMPURPOSE WHAT I
ALREADY HAVE WHAT I CAN
MAKE WHAT I STILL WANT TO BUY
ESTIMATED COSTS
ACTUAL COSTS +-
11
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ middotA
NOT BEING HOME FOR CHRISTMAS
Holiday travel costs can add up quickly especially if yoursquore booking fights that leave on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day If yoursquore planning on staying home for Christmas you can save this page for your next family trip Otherwise you can help keep your travel spending in control with this worksheet
Irsquom going to spend some time this season traveling to ____________________________
Overall Irsquom budgeting to spend a total of $______________ on this trip
Herersquos how itrsquos going to be broken down
Airfare $________________
BusTrain $_____________
Car Rental $____________
Gasoline $_____________
Tolls $_________________
Accommodations
Hotel stay $_______
Hostess Gift $______
Food
Restaurants $_____
Other $__________
12
OVER ALREADY The last of the leftovers has been eaten the wrapping paper is recycled and another holiday season is in the books
The holidays always seem to go by in such a hurry Everything will soon be boxed up and stored away until next year Meanwhile this yearrsquos holiday festivities will be nothing more than fond memories Thatrsquos helpful to remember when it seems like nothing is going right but itrsquos also useful for refection
Once yoursquore done with the holidays itrsquos time to check over your budget one last time before sticking it away for another year Find out what areas of your plan worked re-ally well What unforeseen expenses that you could anticipate next year occurred What problems came up and what could you do to solve them in years to come What areas just felt like they might need a little shaking up just to keep things fresh After the New Year itrsquos great to sit down and refect on these and other questions Talk it over with your family and make note if it
Itrsquos also a good time to take stock of gifts that you donrsquot have a real use for Would anyone else like them Everyone seems to have one friend or family member with a birthday that comes shortly after the holidays Could anything be re-gifted to make those celebrations easier If not could anything be kept for gifting next year
Build a list of ldquosparerdquo gifts along with some ideas of who might get them in the fu-ture This list can serve as the start of your gift giving plan for next year
13
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
Gift Inventory
ITEM WHO ITrsquoS FROM WHO ITrsquoS GOOD FOR IS IT WRAPPED NOTES
14
~~- -shy-~ -4
lt -- -middot 1 ~ -
----
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________
HOLIDAY WRAP-UP QUESTIONS 1) One thing I really loved that we did for this yearrsquos holidays was
2) One thing that didnrsquot work as well as I had hoped was
3) A problem that came up this year and how Irsquod solve it next year was
Additional Notes
15
16
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
Plus yoursquoll save a little money too That never hurts
As an exercise towards the bottom of this page therersquos space to write down all the holiday activities and to-dos on your list Therersquos a space next to each line to put in how much joy it gives you on a scale of 1-10 There are also columns to estimate how much money and time you spend on each item Think of this as a descriptive budget Itrsquos where you are right now Itrsquos also the frst step to fguring out where your holiday priorities actually lie
You might fnd theyrsquore pretty much in line with where you want them to be All the items on your list bring you joy and you spend time and energy in ways that give you the best holiday you can have Thatrsquos great The rest of this book will provide a quick tune-up to make sure yoursquore not missing any easy ways to spruce up your holiday plan
On the other hand you might fnd that your priorities arenrsquot quite where you want them to be Thatrsquos OK In fact thatrsquos probably normal It doesnrsquot make you a bad per-son nor does it mean you just donrsquot get the holidays It just means therersquos room for improvement
Making a list checking it twice
ITEMACTIVITY JOY RATING ESTIMATED MONEY ESTIMATED TIME
4
~ -~ bull _ _ ~~- - -~ -t ---
Itrsquos a daunting list isnrsquot it Well donrsquot worry once you get started it should go a little more quickly and it might actually be fun This is an important step on your road to having the holiday you REALLY want - the one thatrsquos in line with your values
Take another look at your list and make sure therersquos nothing left behind Then take a deep breath
Itrsquos time to start planning
5
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
CREATE A PLAN BASED ON YOUR BUDGET
It can seem like an impossible task to sit down and think while there are mountains of gifts to be purchased and wrapped fights to be booked and trees to be dressed In truth though a few minutes of careful planning can save a ton of time down the road Like Benjamin Franklin said ldquoIf you are failing to plan you are plan-ning to failrdquo
A plan doesnrsquot have to be a step-by-step guide to doing everything you need to get done At its core a plan is just an idea of what success looks like and a set of smaller successes that will build to that You could make your holiday plan on one page In fact if you follow along you will
When yoursquore ready take a look at the worksheet towards the bottom of this page Yoursquoll put your big goal at the top then break that down into a couple of smaller goals With each one yoursquoll put an estimate of how much you plan to spend Thatrsquos it - thatrsquos a plan for a successful holiday
A word of caution though A plan shouldnrsquot be is a straitjacket If you fnd the perfect gift for a few dollars more than yoursquod planned spend it You can make up the difer-ence in other places Having a plan lets you see where those other places might be
With those cautionary notes in mind dive right in
1 The most important part of the holidays for me ishellip
2 I want to look back at this yearrsquos holiday season and rememberhellip
6
~ -~ bull _ _ ~~- -shy-~ -4
lt -- -middot 1 ~ -
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3 I want those around me to look back at this holiday season and rememberhellip
4 My overall budget for the holidays is $ _____________
5 Right now that money is (Enter the dollar amount in each line)
$_______ in my credit union checking account
$_______ in my Christmas club account
$_______ under my mattress
$_______ in my wallet or purse
$_______ that Irsquom going to charge to my credit union credit card
6 Herersquos how I want to break up my spending (Enter a percentage and dollar amount for each category)
CATEGORY GIFTS FESTIVE MEALS
DEacuteCOR TRAVEL ENTERTAINING OTHER
PERCENTAGE
DOLLAR AMOUNT
7
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ middotA
MAKE A LIST AND CHECK IT TWICE
Gift giving is probably one of the biggest sources of stress during the holidays Un-fortunately therersquos no quick and easy solution You might fnd it helpful to use a chart like this one to break down your gift-giving budget
Itrsquos also helpful to put a few ldquomysteryrdquo gifts in there Inev-itably someone you werenrsquot expecting will give you a small token of caring Not being able to reciprocate can feel bad in the moment and lead to overspending Grabbing a few scented candles or a few extra cute cards can prevent that impulse down the road
NAME OF PERSON
RECEIVING THE GIFT
AMOUNT PLANNING TO
SPEND
GIFT IDEAS FOR THIS PERSON
ALTERNATIVE GIFT ACTUAL AMOUNT
SPENT +-
8
NAME OF PERSON EIVING TH
GIFT
AMOUNT GIFT IDEAS FOR ALTERNATIVE ACTUAL AMOUNT
PLANNING TO +-REC E THIS PERSON GIFT SPENT
SPEND
9
-------------
ENTERTAIN WITHOUT BREAKING THE BANK
Part of entertaining is putting out a spread for your guests These costs can add up quickly especially if yoursquore forced to do a rushed shopping job the day some-one is coming over Make a plan and buy necessary pantry items in bulk beforehand This can save you a great deal in the long run
Where possible consider a cost-saving option like a potluck Many people feel bad just showing up to a meal and having nothing to ofer You can show of your host-ing by making a main dish and encourage your guests to bring sides desserts and drinks That way everyone feels like they had a part in making a great meal and you donrsquot have to shoulder the whole cost alone
For other meals you may be stuck doing all the cooking yourself Use a chart like this one to help you plan your expenses
DATE PLACE ITEMS ON HAND PLANNED COSTS ALTERNATE
IDEAS ACTUAL COSTS +-
10
~ -~ bull _ _ ~~- -shy-~ -4
lt -- -middot 1 ~ -
BE FESTIVE AND FRUGAL
Nothing is more frustrating to a thrifty holiday celebration planner than single-use deacutecor items Seasonal items are great but they should serve multiple pur-poses throughout the year Getting a box of Santa napkins that will be used once and never be seen again is a waste Focus on multi-purpose items instead like generic green napkins or plates These are useful in the season and you wonrsquot be embar-rassed to pull them out at an impromptu picnic or barbecue later in the year if you have them leftover
Also remember to put your priorities in efect when decorating If family time is most important to you it might make sense to put most of your decorating efort into dressing up common rooms with items that mean something to you and your family
Donrsquot forget to take a look at what you already have on hand and re-use where you can Use this chart to help
ROOMPURPOSE WHAT I
ALREADY HAVE WHAT I CAN
MAKE WHAT I STILL WANT TO BUY
ESTIMATED COSTS
ACTUAL COSTS +-
11
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ middotA
NOT BEING HOME FOR CHRISTMAS
Holiday travel costs can add up quickly especially if yoursquore booking fights that leave on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day If yoursquore planning on staying home for Christmas you can save this page for your next family trip Otherwise you can help keep your travel spending in control with this worksheet
Irsquom going to spend some time this season traveling to ____________________________
Overall Irsquom budgeting to spend a total of $______________ on this trip
Herersquos how itrsquos going to be broken down
Airfare $________________
BusTrain $_____________
Car Rental $____________
Gasoline $_____________
Tolls $_________________
Accommodations
Hotel stay $_______
Hostess Gift $______
Food
Restaurants $_____
Other $__________
12
OVER ALREADY The last of the leftovers has been eaten the wrapping paper is recycled and another holiday season is in the books
The holidays always seem to go by in such a hurry Everything will soon be boxed up and stored away until next year Meanwhile this yearrsquos holiday festivities will be nothing more than fond memories Thatrsquos helpful to remember when it seems like nothing is going right but itrsquos also useful for refection
Once yoursquore done with the holidays itrsquos time to check over your budget one last time before sticking it away for another year Find out what areas of your plan worked re-ally well What unforeseen expenses that you could anticipate next year occurred What problems came up and what could you do to solve them in years to come What areas just felt like they might need a little shaking up just to keep things fresh After the New Year itrsquos great to sit down and refect on these and other questions Talk it over with your family and make note if it
Itrsquos also a good time to take stock of gifts that you donrsquot have a real use for Would anyone else like them Everyone seems to have one friend or family member with a birthday that comes shortly after the holidays Could anything be re-gifted to make those celebrations easier If not could anything be kept for gifting next year
Build a list of ldquosparerdquo gifts along with some ideas of who might get them in the fu-ture This list can serve as the start of your gift giving plan for next year
13
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
Gift Inventory
ITEM WHO ITrsquoS FROM WHO ITrsquoS GOOD FOR IS IT WRAPPED NOTES
14
~~- -shy-~ -4
lt -- -middot 1 ~ -
----
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________
HOLIDAY WRAP-UP QUESTIONS 1) One thing I really loved that we did for this yearrsquos holidays was
2) One thing that didnrsquot work as well as I had hoped was
3) A problem that came up this year and how Irsquod solve it next year was
Additional Notes
15
16
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
~ -~ bull _ _ ~~- - -~ -t ---
Itrsquos a daunting list isnrsquot it Well donrsquot worry once you get started it should go a little more quickly and it might actually be fun This is an important step on your road to having the holiday you REALLY want - the one thatrsquos in line with your values
Take another look at your list and make sure therersquos nothing left behind Then take a deep breath
Itrsquos time to start planning
5
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
CREATE A PLAN BASED ON YOUR BUDGET
It can seem like an impossible task to sit down and think while there are mountains of gifts to be purchased and wrapped fights to be booked and trees to be dressed In truth though a few minutes of careful planning can save a ton of time down the road Like Benjamin Franklin said ldquoIf you are failing to plan you are plan-ning to failrdquo
A plan doesnrsquot have to be a step-by-step guide to doing everything you need to get done At its core a plan is just an idea of what success looks like and a set of smaller successes that will build to that You could make your holiday plan on one page In fact if you follow along you will
When yoursquore ready take a look at the worksheet towards the bottom of this page Yoursquoll put your big goal at the top then break that down into a couple of smaller goals With each one yoursquoll put an estimate of how much you plan to spend Thatrsquos it - thatrsquos a plan for a successful holiday
A word of caution though A plan shouldnrsquot be is a straitjacket If you fnd the perfect gift for a few dollars more than yoursquod planned spend it You can make up the difer-ence in other places Having a plan lets you see where those other places might be
With those cautionary notes in mind dive right in
1 The most important part of the holidays for me ishellip
2 I want to look back at this yearrsquos holiday season and rememberhellip
6
~ -~ bull _ _ ~~- -shy-~ -4
lt -- -middot 1 ~ -
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3 I want those around me to look back at this holiday season and rememberhellip
4 My overall budget for the holidays is $ _____________
5 Right now that money is (Enter the dollar amount in each line)
$_______ in my credit union checking account
$_______ in my Christmas club account
$_______ under my mattress
$_______ in my wallet or purse
$_______ that Irsquom going to charge to my credit union credit card
6 Herersquos how I want to break up my spending (Enter a percentage and dollar amount for each category)
CATEGORY GIFTS FESTIVE MEALS
DEacuteCOR TRAVEL ENTERTAINING OTHER
PERCENTAGE
DOLLAR AMOUNT
7
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ middotA
MAKE A LIST AND CHECK IT TWICE
Gift giving is probably one of the biggest sources of stress during the holidays Un-fortunately therersquos no quick and easy solution You might fnd it helpful to use a chart like this one to break down your gift-giving budget
Itrsquos also helpful to put a few ldquomysteryrdquo gifts in there Inev-itably someone you werenrsquot expecting will give you a small token of caring Not being able to reciprocate can feel bad in the moment and lead to overspending Grabbing a few scented candles or a few extra cute cards can prevent that impulse down the road
NAME OF PERSON
RECEIVING THE GIFT
AMOUNT PLANNING TO
SPEND
GIFT IDEAS FOR THIS PERSON
ALTERNATIVE GIFT ACTUAL AMOUNT
SPENT +-
8
NAME OF PERSON EIVING TH
GIFT
AMOUNT GIFT IDEAS FOR ALTERNATIVE ACTUAL AMOUNT
PLANNING TO +-REC E THIS PERSON GIFT SPENT
SPEND
9
-------------
ENTERTAIN WITHOUT BREAKING THE BANK
Part of entertaining is putting out a spread for your guests These costs can add up quickly especially if yoursquore forced to do a rushed shopping job the day some-one is coming over Make a plan and buy necessary pantry items in bulk beforehand This can save you a great deal in the long run
Where possible consider a cost-saving option like a potluck Many people feel bad just showing up to a meal and having nothing to ofer You can show of your host-ing by making a main dish and encourage your guests to bring sides desserts and drinks That way everyone feels like they had a part in making a great meal and you donrsquot have to shoulder the whole cost alone
For other meals you may be stuck doing all the cooking yourself Use a chart like this one to help you plan your expenses
DATE PLACE ITEMS ON HAND PLANNED COSTS ALTERNATE
IDEAS ACTUAL COSTS +-
10
~ -~ bull _ _ ~~- -shy-~ -4
lt -- -middot 1 ~ -
BE FESTIVE AND FRUGAL
Nothing is more frustrating to a thrifty holiday celebration planner than single-use deacutecor items Seasonal items are great but they should serve multiple pur-poses throughout the year Getting a box of Santa napkins that will be used once and never be seen again is a waste Focus on multi-purpose items instead like generic green napkins or plates These are useful in the season and you wonrsquot be embar-rassed to pull them out at an impromptu picnic or barbecue later in the year if you have them leftover
Also remember to put your priorities in efect when decorating If family time is most important to you it might make sense to put most of your decorating efort into dressing up common rooms with items that mean something to you and your family
Donrsquot forget to take a look at what you already have on hand and re-use where you can Use this chart to help
ROOMPURPOSE WHAT I
ALREADY HAVE WHAT I CAN
MAKE WHAT I STILL WANT TO BUY
ESTIMATED COSTS
ACTUAL COSTS +-
11
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ middotA
NOT BEING HOME FOR CHRISTMAS
Holiday travel costs can add up quickly especially if yoursquore booking fights that leave on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day If yoursquore planning on staying home for Christmas you can save this page for your next family trip Otherwise you can help keep your travel spending in control with this worksheet
Irsquom going to spend some time this season traveling to ____________________________
Overall Irsquom budgeting to spend a total of $______________ on this trip
Herersquos how itrsquos going to be broken down
Airfare $________________
BusTrain $_____________
Car Rental $____________
Gasoline $_____________
Tolls $_________________
Accommodations
Hotel stay $_______
Hostess Gift $______
Food
Restaurants $_____
Other $__________
12
OVER ALREADY The last of the leftovers has been eaten the wrapping paper is recycled and another holiday season is in the books
The holidays always seem to go by in such a hurry Everything will soon be boxed up and stored away until next year Meanwhile this yearrsquos holiday festivities will be nothing more than fond memories Thatrsquos helpful to remember when it seems like nothing is going right but itrsquos also useful for refection
Once yoursquore done with the holidays itrsquos time to check over your budget one last time before sticking it away for another year Find out what areas of your plan worked re-ally well What unforeseen expenses that you could anticipate next year occurred What problems came up and what could you do to solve them in years to come What areas just felt like they might need a little shaking up just to keep things fresh After the New Year itrsquos great to sit down and refect on these and other questions Talk it over with your family and make note if it
Itrsquos also a good time to take stock of gifts that you donrsquot have a real use for Would anyone else like them Everyone seems to have one friend or family member with a birthday that comes shortly after the holidays Could anything be re-gifted to make those celebrations easier If not could anything be kept for gifting next year
Build a list of ldquosparerdquo gifts along with some ideas of who might get them in the fu-ture This list can serve as the start of your gift giving plan for next year
13
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
Gift Inventory
ITEM WHO ITrsquoS FROM WHO ITrsquoS GOOD FOR IS IT WRAPPED NOTES
14
~~- -shy-~ -4
lt -- -middot 1 ~ -
----
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________
HOLIDAY WRAP-UP QUESTIONS 1) One thing I really loved that we did for this yearrsquos holidays was
2) One thing that didnrsquot work as well as I had hoped was
3) A problem that came up this year and how Irsquod solve it next year was
Additional Notes
15
16
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
CREATE A PLAN BASED ON YOUR BUDGET
It can seem like an impossible task to sit down and think while there are mountains of gifts to be purchased and wrapped fights to be booked and trees to be dressed In truth though a few minutes of careful planning can save a ton of time down the road Like Benjamin Franklin said ldquoIf you are failing to plan you are plan-ning to failrdquo
A plan doesnrsquot have to be a step-by-step guide to doing everything you need to get done At its core a plan is just an idea of what success looks like and a set of smaller successes that will build to that You could make your holiday plan on one page In fact if you follow along you will
When yoursquore ready take a look at the worksheet towards the bottom of this page Yoursquoll put your big goal at the top then break that down into a couple of smaller goals With each one yoursquoll put an estimate of how much you plan to spend Thatrsquos it - thatrsquos a plan for a successful holiday
A word of caution though A plan shouldnrsquot be is a straitjacket If you fnd the perfect gift for a few dollars more than yoursquod planned spend it You can make up the difer-ence in other places Having a plan lets you see where those other places might be
With those cautionary notes in mind dive right in
1 The most important part of the holidays for me ishellip
2 I want to look back at this yearrsquos holiday season and rememberhellip
6
~ -~ bull _ _ ~~- -shy-~ -4
lt -- -middot 1 ~ -
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3 I want those around me to look back at this holiday season and rememberhellip
4 My overall budget for the holidays is $ _____________
5 Right now that money is (Enter the dollar amount in each line)
$_______ in my credit union checking account
$_______ in my Christmas club account
$_______ under my mattress
$_______ in my wallet or purse
$_______ that Irsquom going to charge to my credit union credit card
6 Herersquos how I want to break up my spending (Enter a percentage and dollar amount for each category)
CATEGORY GIFTS FESTIVE MEALS
DEacuteCOR TRAVEL ENTERTAINING OTHER
PERCENTAGE
DOLLAR AMOUNT
7
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ middotA
MAKE A LIST AND CHECK IT TWICE
Gift giving is probably one of the biggest sources of stress during the holidays Un-fortunately therersquos no quick and easy solution You might fnd it helpful to use a chart like this one to break down your gift-giving budget
Itrsquos also helpful to put a few ldquomysteryrdquo gifts in there Inev-itably someone you werenrsquot expecting will give you a small token of caring Not being able to reciprocate can feel bad in the moment and lead to overspending Grabbing a few scented candles or a few extra cute cards can prevent that impulse down the road
NAME OF PERSON
RECEIVING THE GIFT
AMOUNT PLANNING TO
SPEND
GIFT IDEAS FOR THIS PERSON
ALTERNATIVE GIFT ACTUAL AMOUNT
SPENT +-
8
NAME OF PERSON EIVING TH
GIFT
AMOUNT GIFT IDEAS FOR ALTERNATIVE ACTUAL AMOUNT
PLANNING TO +-REC E THIS PERSON GIFT SPENT
SPEND
9
-------------
ENTERTAIN WITHOUT BREAKING THE BANK
Part of entertaining is putting out a spread for your guests These costs can add up quickly especially if yoursquore forced to do a rushed shopping job the day some-one is coming over Make a plan and buy necessary pantry items in bulk beforehand This can save you a great deal in the long run
Where possible consider a cost-saving option like a potluck Many people feel bad just showing up to a meal and having nothing to ofer You can show of your host-ing by making a main dish and encourage your guests to bring sides desserts and drinks That way everyone feels like they had a part in making a great meal and you donrsquot have to shoulder the whole cost alone
For other meals you may be stuck doing all the cooking yourself Use a chart like this one to help you plan your expenses
DATE PLACE ITEMS ON HAND PLANNED COSTS ALTERNATE
IDEAS ACTUAL COSTS +-
10
~ -~ bull _ _ ~~- -shy-~ -4
lt -- -middot 1 ~ -
BE FESTIVE AND FRUGAL
Nothing is more frustrating to a thrifty holiday celebration planner than single-use deacutecor items Seasonal items are great but they should serve multiple pur-poses throughout the year Getting a box of Santa napkins that will be used once and never be seen again is a waste Focus on multi-purpose items instead like generic green napkins or plates These are useful in the season and you wonrsquot be embar-rassed to pull them out at an impromptu picnic or barbecue later in the year if you have them leftover
Also remember to put your priorities in efect when decorating If family time is most important to you it might make sense to put most of your decorating efort into dressing up common rooms with items that mean something to you and your family
Donrsquot forget to take a look at what you already have on hand and re-use where you can Use this chart to help
ROOMPURPOSE WHAT I
ALREADY HAVE WHAT I CAN
MAKE WHAT I STILL WANT TO BUY
ESTIMATED COSTS
ACTUAL COSTS +-
11
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ middotA
NOT BEING HOME FOR CHRISTMAS
Holiday travel costs can add up quickly especially if yoursquore booking fights that leave on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day If yoursquore planning on staying home for Christmas you can save this page for your next family trip Otherwise you can help keep your travel spending in control with this worksheet
Irsquom going to spend some time this season traveling to ____________________________
Overall Irsquom budgeting to spend a total of $______________ on this trip
Herersquos how itrsquos going to be broken down
Airfare $________________
BusTrain $_____________
Car Rental $____________
Gasoline $_____________
Tolls $_________________
Accommodations
Hotel stay $_______
Hostess Gift $______
Food
Restaurants $_____
Other $__________
12
OVER ALREADY The last of the leftovers has been eaten the wrapping paper is recycled and another holiday season is in the books
The holidays always seem to go by in such a hurry Everything will soon be boxed up and stored away until next year Meanwhile this yearrsquos holiday festivities will be nothing more than fond memories Thatrsquos helpful to remember when it seems like nothing is going right but itrsquos also useful for refection
Once yoursquore done with the holidays itrsquos time to check over your budget one last time before sticking it away for another year Find out what areas of your plan worked re-ally well What unforeseen expenses that you could anticipate next year occurred What problems came up and what could you do to solve them in years to come What areas just felt like they might need a little shaking up just to keep things fresh After the New Year itrsquos great to sit down and refect on these and other questions Talk it over with your family and make note if it
Itrsquos also a good time to take stock of gifts that you donrsquot have a real use for Would anyone else like them Everyone seems to have one friend or family member with a birthday that comes shortly after the holidays Could anything be re-gifted to make those celebrations easier If not could anything be kept for gifting next year
Build a list of ldquosparerdquo gifts along with some ideas of who might get them in the fu-ture This list can serve as the start of your gift giving plan for next year
13
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
Gift Inventory
ITEM WHO ITrsquoS FROM WHO ITrsquoS GOOD FOR IS IT WRAPPED NOTES
14
~~- -shy-~ -4
lt -- -middot 1 ~ -
----
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________
HOLIDAY WRAP-UP QUESTIONS 1) One thing I really loved that we did for this yearrsquos holidays was
2) One thing that didnrsquot work as well as I had hoped was
3) A problem that came up this year and how Irsquod solve it next year was
Additional Notes
15
16
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
~ -~ bull _ _ ~~- -shy-~ -4
lt -- -middot 1 ~ -
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3 I want those around me to look back at this holiday season and rememberhellip
4 My overall budget for the holidays is $ _____________
5 Right now that money is (Enter the dollar amount in each line)
$_______ in my credit union checking account
$_______ in my Christmas club account
$_______ under my mattress
$_______ in my wallet or purse
$_______ that Irsquom going to charge to my credit union credit card
6 Herersquos how I want to break up my spending (Enter a percentage and dollar amount for each category)
CATEGORY GIFTS FESTIVE MEALS
DEacuteCOR TRAVEL ENTERTAINING OTHER
PERCENTAGE
DOLLAR AMOUNT
7
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ middotA
MAKE A LIST AND CHECK IT TWICE
Gift giving is probably one of the biggest sources of stress during the holidays Un-fortunately therersquos no quick and easy solution You might fnd it helpful to use a chart like this one to break down your gift-giving budget
Itrsquos also helpful to put a few ldquomysteryrdquo gifts in there Inev-itably someone you werenrsquot expecting will give you a small token of caring Not being able to reciprocate can feel bad in the moment and lead to overspending Grabbing a few scented candles or a few extra cute cards can prevent that impulse down the road
NAME OF PERSON
RECEIVING THE GIFT
AMOUNT PLANNING TO
SPEND
GIFT IDEAS FOR THIS PERSON
ALTERNATIVE GIFT ACTUAL AMOUNT
SPENT +-
8
NAME OF PERSON EIVING TH
GIFT
AMOUNT GIFT IDEAS FOR ALTERNATIVE ACTUAL AMOUNT
PLANNING TO +-REC E THIS PERSON GIFT SPENT
SPEND
9
-------------
ENTERTAIN WITHOUT BREAKING THE BANK
Part of entertaining is putting out a spread for your guests These costs can add up quickly especially if yoursquore forced to do a rushed shopping job the day some-one is coming over Make a plan and buy necessary pantry items in bulk beforehand This can save you a great deal in the long run
Where possible consider a cost-saving option like a potluck Many people feel bad just showing up to a meal and having nothing to ofer You can show of your host-ing by making a main dish and encourage your guests to bring sides desserts and drinks That way everyone feels like they had a part in making a great meal and you donrsquot have to shoulder the whole cost alone
For other meals you may be stuck doing all the cooking yourself Use a chart like this one to help you plan your expenses
DATE PLACE ITEMS ON HAND PLANNED COSTS ALTERNATE
IDEAS ACTUAL COSTS +-
10
~ -~ bull _ _ ~~- -shy-~ -4
lt -- -middot 1 ~ -
BE FESTIVE AND FRUGAL
Nothing is more frustrating to a thrifty holiday celebration planner than single-use deacutecor items Seasonal items are great but they should serve multiple pur-poses throughout the year Getting a box of Santa napkins that will be used once and never be seen again is a waste Focus on multi-purpose items instead like generic green napkins or plates These are useful in the season and you wonrsquot be embar-rassed to pull them out at an impromptu picnic or barbecue later in the year if you have them leftover
Also remember to put your priorities in efect when decorating If family time is most important to you it might make sense to put most of your decorating efort into dressing up common rooms with items that mean something to you and your family
Donrsquot forget to take a look at what you already have on hand and re-use where you can Use this chart to help
ROOMPURPOSE WHAT I
ALREADY HAVE WHAT I CAN
MAKE WHAT I STILL WANT TO BUY
ESTIMATED COSTS
ACTUAL COSTS +-
11
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ middotA
NOT BEING HOME FOR CHRISTMAS
Holiday travel costs can add up quickly especially if yoursquore booking fights that leave on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day If yoursquore planning on staying home for Christmas you can save this page for your next family trip Otherwise you can help keep your travel spending in control with this worksheet
Irsquom going to spend some time this season traveling to ____________________________
Overall Irsquom budgeting to spend a total of $______________ on this trip
Herersquos how itrsquos going to be broken down
Airfare $________________
BusTrain $_____________
Car Rental $____________
Gasoline $_____________
Tolls $_________________
Accommodations
Hotel stay $_______
Hostess Gift $______
Food
Restaurants $_____
Other $__________
12
OVER ALREADY The last of the leftovers has been eaten the wrapping paper is recycled and another holiday season is in the books
The holidays always seem to go by in such a hurry Everything will soon be boxed up and stored away until next year Meanwhile this yearrsquos holiday festivities will be nothing more than fond memories Thatrsquos helpful to remember when it seems like nothing is going right but itrsquos also useful for refection
Once yoursquore done with the holidays itrsquos time to check over your budget one last time before sticking it away for another year Find out what areas of your plan worked re-ally well What unforeseen expenses that you could anticipate next year occurred What problems came up and what could you do to solve them in years to come What areas just felt like they might need a little shaking up just to keep things fresh After the New Year itrsquos great to sit down and refect on these and other questions Talk it over with your family and make note if it
Itrsquos also a good time to take stock of gifts that you donrsquot have a real use for Would anyone else like them Everyone seems to have one friend or family member with a birthday that comes shortly after the holidays Could anything be re-gifted to make those celebrations easier If not could anything be kept for gifting next year
Build a list of ldquosparerdquo gifts along with some ideas of who might get them in the fu-ture This list can serve as the start of your gift giving plan for next year
13
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
Gift Inventory
ITEM WHO ITrsquoS FROM WHO ITrsquoS GOOD FOR IS IT WRAPPED NOTES
14
~~- -shy-~ -4
lt -- -middot 1 ~ -
----
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________
HOLIDAY WRAP-UP QUESTIONS 1) One thing I really loved that we did for this yearrsquos holidays was
2) One thing that didnrsquot work as well as I had hoped was
3) A problem that came up this year and how Irsquod solve it next year was
Additional Notes
15
16
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ middotA
MAKE A LIST AND CHECK IT TWICE
Gift giving is probably one of the biggest sources of stress during the holidays Un-fortunately therersquos no quick and easy solution You might fnd it helpful to use a chart like this one to break down your gift-giving budget
Itrsquos also helpful to put a few ldquomysteryrdquo gifts in there Inev-itably someone you werenrsquot expecting will give you a small token of caring Not being able to reciprocate can feel bad in the moment and lead to overspending Grabbing a few scented candles or a few extra cute cards can prevent that impulse down the road
NAME OF PERSON
RECEIVING THE GIFT
AMOUNT PLANNING TO
SPEND
GIFT IDEAS FOR THIS PERSON
ALTERNATIVE GIFT ACTUAL AMOUNT
SPENT +-
8
NAME OF PERSON EIVING TH
GIFT
AMOUNT GIFT IDEAS FOR ALTERNATIVE ACTUAL AMOUNT
PLANNING TO +-REC E THIS PERSON GIFT SPENT
SPEND
9
-------------
ENTERTAIN WITHOUT BREAKING THE BANK
Part of entertaining is putting out a spread for your guests These costs can add up quickly especially if yoursquore forced to do a rushed shopping job the day some-one is coming over Make a plan and buy necessary pantry items in bulk beforehand This can save you a great deal in the long run
Where possible consider a cost-saving option like a potluck Many people feel bad just showing up to a meal and having nothing to ofer You can show of your host-ing by making a main dish and encourage your guests to bring sides desserts and drinks That way everyone feels like they had a part in making a great meal and you donrsquot have to shoulder the whole cost alone
For other meals you may be stuck doing all the cooking yourself Use a chart like this one to help you plan your expenses
DATE PLACE ITEMS ON HAND PLANNED COSTS ALTERNATE
IDEAS ACTUAL COSTS +-
10
~ -~ bull _ _ ~~- -shy-~ -4
lt -- -middot 1 ~ -
BE FESTIVE AND FRUGAL
Nothing is more frustrating to a thrifty holiday celebration planner than single-use deacutecor items Seasonal items are great but they should serve multiple pur-poses throughout the year Getting a box of Santa napkins that will be used once and never be seen again is a waste Focus on multi-purpose items instead like generic green napkins or plates These are useful in the season and you wonrsquot be embar-rassed to pull them out at an impromptu picnic or barbecue later in the year if you have them leftover
Also remember to put your priorities in efect when decorating If family time is most important to you it might make sense to put most of your decorating efort into dressing up common rooms with items that mean something to you and your family
Donrsquot forget to take a look at what you already have on hand and re-use where you can Use this chart to help
ROOMPURPOSE WHAT I
ALREADY HAVE WHAT I CAN
MAKE WHAT I STILL WANT TO BUY
ESTIMATED COSTS
ACTUAL COSTS +-
11
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ middotA
NOT BEING HOME FOR CHRISTMAS
Holiday travel costs can add up quickly especially if yoursquore booking fights that leave on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day If yoursquore planning on staying home for Christmas you can save this page for your next family trip Otherwise you can help keep your travel spending in control with this worksheet
Irsquom going to spend some time this season traveling to ____________________________
Overall Irsquom budgeting to spend a total of $______________ on this trip
Herersquos how itrsquos going to be broken down
Airfare $________________
BusTrain $_____________
Car Rental $____________
Gasoline $_____________
Tolls $_________________
Accommodations
Hotel stay $_______
Hostess Gift $______
Food
Restaurants $_____
Other $__________
12
OVER ALREADY The last of the leftovers has been eaten the wrapping paper is recycled and another holiday season is in the books
The holidays always seem to go by in such a hurry Everything will soon be boxed up and stored away until next year Meanwhile this yearrsquos holiday festivities will be nothing more than fond memories Thatrsquos helpful to remember when it seems like nothing is going right but itrsquos also useful for refection
Once yoursquore done with the holidays itrsquos time to check over your budget one last time before sticking it away for another year Find out what areas of your plan worked re-ally well What unforeseen expenses that you could anticipate next year occurred What problems came up and what could you do to solve them in years to come What areas just felt like they might need a little shaking up just to keep things fresh After the New Year itrsquos great to sit down and refect on these and other questions Talk it over with your family and make note if it
Itrsquos also a good time to take stock of gifts that you donrsquot have a real use for Would anyone else like them Everyone seems to have one friend or family member with a birthday that comes shortly after the holidays Could anything be re-gifted to make those celebrations easier If not could anything be kept for gifting next year
Build a list of ldquosparerdquo gifts along with some ideas of who might get them in the fu-ture This list can serve as the start of your gift giving plan for next year
13
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
Gift Inventory
ITEM WHO ITrsquoS FROM WHO ITrsquoS GOOD FOR IS IT WRAPPED NOTES
14
~~- -shy-~ -4
lt -- -middot 1 ~ -
----
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________
HOLIDAY WRAP-UP QUESTIONS 1) One thing I really loved that we did for this yearrsquos holidays was
2) One thing that didnrsquot work as well as I had hoped was
3) A problem that came up this year and how Irsquod solve it next year was
Additional Notes
15
16
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
NAME OF PERSON EIVING TH
GIFT
AMOUNT GIFT IDEAS FOR ALTERNATIVE ACTUAL AMOUNT
PLANNING TO +-REC E THIS PERSON GIFT SPENT
SPEND
9
-------------
ENTERTAIN WITHOUT BREAKING THE BANK
Part of entertaining is putting out a spread for your guests These costs can add up quickly especially if yoursquore forced to do a rushed shopping job the day some-one is coming over Make a plan and buy necessary pantry items in bulk beforehand This can save you a great deal in the long run
Where possible consider a cost-saving option like a potluck Many people feel bad just showing up to a meal and having nothing to ofer You can show of your host-ing by making a main dish and encourage your guests to bring sides desserts and drinks That way everyone feels like they had a part in making a great meal and you donrsquot have to shoulder the whole cost alone
For other meals you may be stuck doing all the cooking yourself Use a chart like this one to help you plan your expenses
DATE PLACE ITEMS ON HAND PLANNED COSTS ALTERNATE
IDEAS ACTUAL COSTS +-
10
~ -~ bull _ _ ~~- -shy-~ -4
lt -- -middot 1 ~ -
BE FESTIVE AND FRUGAL
Nothing is more frustrating to a thrifty holiday celebration planner than single-use deacutecor items Seasonal items are great but they should serve multiple pur-poses throughout the year Getting a box of Santa napkins that will be used once and never be seen again is a waste Focus on multi-purpose items instead like generic green napkins or plates These are useful in the season and you wonrsquot be embar-rassed to pull them out at an impromptu picnic or barbecue later in the year if you have them leftover
Also remember to put your priorities in efect when decorating If family time is most important to you it might make sense to put most of your decorating efort into dressing up common rooms with items that mean something to you and your family
Donrsquot forget to take a look at what you already have on hand and re-use where you can Use this chart to help
ROOMPURPOSE WHAT I
ALREADY HAVE WHAT I CAN
MAKE WHAT I STILL WANT TO BUY
ESTIMATED COSTS
ACTUAL COSTS +-
11
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ middotA
NOT BEING HOME FOR CHRISTMAS
Holiday travel costs can add up quickly especially if yoursquore booking fights that leave on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day If yoursquore planning on staying home for Christmas you can save this page for your next family trip Otherwise you can help keep your travel spending in control with this worksheet
Irsquom going to spend some time this season traveling to ____________________________
Overall Irsquom budgeting to spend a total of $______________ on this trip
Herersquos how itrsquos going to be broken down
Airfare $________________
BusTrain $_____________
Car Rental $____________
Gasoline $_____________
Tolls $_________________
Accommodations
Hotel stay $_______
Hostess Gift $______
Food
Restaurants $_____
Other $__________
12
OVER ALREADY The last of the leftovers has been eaten the wrapping paper is recycled and another holiday season is in the books
The holidays always seem to go by in such a hurry Everything will soon be boxed up and stored away until next year Meanwhile this yearrsquos holiday festivities will be nothing more than fond memories Thatrsquos helpful to remember when it seems like nothing is going right but itrsquos also useful for refection
Once yoursquore done with the holidays itrsquos time to check over your budget one last time before sticking it away for another year Find out what areas of your plan worked re-ally well What unforeseen expenses that you could anticipate next year occurred What problems came up and what could you do to solve them in years to come What areas just felt like they might need a little shaking up just to keep things fresh After the New Year itrsquos great to sit down and refect on these and other questions Talk it over with your family and make note if it
Itrsquos also a good time to take stock of gifts that you donrsquot have a real use for Would anyone else like them Everyone seems to have one friend or family member with a birthday that comes shortly after the holidays Could anything be re-gifted to make those celebrations easier If not could anything be kept for gifting next year
Build a list of ldquosparerdquo gifts along with some ideas of who might get them in the fu-ture This list can serve as the start of your gift giving plan for next year
13
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
Gift Inventory
ITEM WHO ITrsquoS FROM WHO ITrsquoS GOOD FOR IS IT WRAPPED NOTES
14
~~- -shy-~ -4
lt -- -middot 1 ~ -
----
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________
HOLIDAY WRAP-UP QUESTIONS 1) One thing I really loved that we did for this yearrsquos holidays was
2) One thing that didnrsquot work as well as I had hoped was
3) A problem that came up this year and how Irsquod solve it next year was
Additional Notes
15
16
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
-------------
ENTERTAIN WITHOUT BREAKING THE BANK
Part of entertaining is putting out a spread for your guests These costs can add up quickly especially if yoursquore forced to do a rushed shopping job the day some-one is coming over Make a plan and buy necessary pantry items in bulk beforehand This can save you a great deal in the long run
Where possible consider a cost-saving option like a potluck Many people feel bad just showing up to a meal and having nothing to ofer You can show of your host-ing by making a main dish and encourage your guests to bring sides desserts and drinks That way everyone feels like they had a part in making a great meal and you donrsquot have to shoulder the whole cost alone
For other meals you may be stuck doing all the cooking yourself Use a chart like this one to help you plan your expenses
DATE PLACE ITEMS ON HAND PLANNED COSTS ALTERNATE
IDEAS ACTUAL COSTS +-
10
~ -~ bull _ _ ~~- -shy-~ -4
lt -- -middot 1 ~ -
BE FESTIVE AND FRUGAL
Nothing is more frustrating to a thrifty holiday celebration planner than single-use deacutecor items Seasonal items are great but they should serve multiple pur-poses throughout the year Getting a box of Santa napkins that will be used once and never be seen again is a waste Focus on multi-purpose items instead like generic green napkins or plates These are useful in the season and you wonrsquot be embar-rassed to pull them out at an impromptu picnic or barbecue later in the year if you have them leftover
Also remember to put your priorities in efect when decorating If family time is most important to you it might make sense to put most of your decorating efort into dressing up common rooms with items that mean something to you and your family
Donrsquot forget to take a look at what you already have on hand and re-use where you can Use this chart to help
ROOMPURPOSE WHAT I
ALREADY HAVE WHAT I CAN
MAKE WHAT I STILL WANT TO BUY
ESTIMATED COSTS
ACTUAL COSTS +-
11
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ middotA
NOT BEING HOME FOR CHRISTMAS
Holiday travel costs can add up quickly especially if yoursquore booking fights that leave on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day If yoursquore planning on staying home for Christmas you can save this page for your next family trip Otherwise you can help keep your travel spending in control with this worksheet
Irsquom going to spend some time this season traveling to ____________________________
Overall Irsquom budgeting to spend a total of $______________ on this trip
Herersquos how itrsquos going to be broken down
Airfare $________________
BusTrain $_____________
Car Rental $____________
Gasoline $_____________
Tolls $_________________
Accommodations
Hotel stay $_______
Hostess Gift $______
Food
Restaurants $_____
Other $__________
12
OVER ALREADY The last of the leftovers has been eaten the wrapping paper is recycled and another holiday season is in the books
The holidays always seem to go by in such a hurry Everything will soon be boxed up and stored away until next year Meanwhile this yearrsquos holiday festivities will be nothing more than fond memories Thatrsquos helpful to remember when it seems like nothing is going right but itrsquos also useful for refection
Once yoursquore done with the holidays itrsquos time to check over your budget one last time before sticking it away for another year Find out what areas of your plan worked re-ally well What unforeseen expenses that you could anticipate next year occurred What problems came up and what could you do to solve them in years to come What areas just felt like they might need a little shaking up just to keep things fresh After the New Year itrsquos great to sit down and refect on these and other questions Talk it over with your family and make note if it
Itrsquos also a good time to take stock of gifts that you donrsquot have a real use for Would anyone else like them Everyone seems to have one friend or family member with a birthday that comes shortly after the holidays Could anything be re-gifted to make those celebrations easier If not could anything be kept for gifting next year
Build a list of ldquosparerdquo gifts along with some ideas of who might get them in the fu-ture This list can serve as the start of your gift giving plan for next year
13
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
Gift Inventory
ITEM WHO ITrsquoS FROM WHO ITrsquoS GOOD FOR IS IT WRAPPED NOTES
14
~~- -shy-~ -4
lt -- -middot 1 ~ -
----
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________
HOLIDAY WRAP-UP QUESTIONS 1) One thing I really loved that we did for this yearrsquos holidays was
2) One thing that didnrsquot work as well as I had hoped was
3) A problem that came up this year and how Irsquod solve it next year was
Additional Notes
15
16
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
~ -~ bull _ _ ~~- -shy-~ -4
lt -- -middot 1 ~ -
BE FESTIVE AND FRUGAL
Nothing is more frustrating to a thrifty holiday celebration planner than single-use deacutecor items Seasonal items are great but they should serve multiple pur-poses throughout the year Getting a box of Santa napkins that will be used once and never be seen again is a waste Focus on multi-purpose items instead like generic green napkins or plates These are useful in the season and you wonrsquot be embar-rassed to pull them out at an impromptu picnic or barbecue later in the year if you have them leftover
Also remember to put your priorities in efect when decorating If family time is most important to you it might make sense to put most of your decorating efort into dressing up common rooms with items that mean something to you and your family
Donrsquot forget to take a look at what you already have on hand and re-use where you can Use this chart to help
ROOMPURPOSE WHAT I
ALREADY HAVE WHAT I CAN
MAKE WHAT I STILL WANT TO BUY
ESTIMATED COSTS
ACTUAL COSTS +-
11
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ middotA
NOT BEING HOME FOR CHRISTMAS
Holiday travel costs can add up quickly especially if yoursquore booking fights that leave on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day If yoursquore planning on staying home for Christmas you can save this page for your next family trip Otherwise you can help keep your travel spending in control with this worksheet
Irsquom going to spend some time this season traveling to ____________________________
Overall Irsquom budgeting to spend a total of $______________ on this trip
Herersquos how itrsquos going to be broken down
Airfare $________________
BusTrain $_____________
Car Rental $____________
Gasoline $_____________
Tolls $_________________
Accommodations
Hotel stay $_______
Hostess Gift $______
Food
Restaurants $_____
Other $__________
12
OVER ALREADY The last of the leftovers has been eaten the wrapping paper is recycled and another holiday season is in the books
The holidays always seem to go by in such a hurry Everything will soon be boxed up and stored away until next year Meanwhile this yearrsquos holiday festivities will be nothing more than fond memories Thatrsquos helpful to remember when it seems like nothing is going right but itrsquos also useful for refection
Once yoursquore done with the holidays itrsquos time to check over your budget one last time before sticking it away for another year Find out what areas of your plan worked re-ally well What unforeseen expenses that you could anticipate next year occurred What problems came up and what could you do to solve them in years to come What areas just felt like they might need a little shaking up just to keep things fresh After the New Year itrsquos great to sit down and refect on these and other questions Talk it over with your family and make note if it
Itrsquos also a good time to take stock of gifts that you donrsquot have a real use for Would anyone else like them Everyone seems to have one friend or family member with a birthday that comes shortly after the holidays Could anything be re-gifted to make those celebrations easier If not could anything be kept for gifting next year
Build a list of ldquosparerdquo gifts along with some ideas of who might get them in the fu-ture This list can serve as the start of your gift giving plan for next year
13
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
Gift Inventory
ITEM WHO ITrsquoS FROM WHO ITrsquoS GOOD FOR IS IT WRAPPED NOTES
14
~~- -shy-~ -4
lt -- -middot 1 ~ -
----
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________
HOLIDAY WRAP-UP QUESTIONS 1) One thing I really loved that we did for this yearrsquos holidays was
2) One thing that didnrsquot work as well as I had hoped was
3) A problem that came up this year and how Irsquod solve it next year was
Additional Notes
15
16
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ middotA
NOT BEING HOME FOR CHRISTMAS
Holiday travel costs can add up quickly especially if yoursquore booking fights that leave on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day If yoursquore planning on staying home for Christmas you can save this page for your next family trip Otherwise you can help keep your travel spending in control with this worksheet
Irsquom going to spend some time this season traveling to ____________________________
Overall Irsquom budgeting to spend a total of $______________ on this trip
Herersquos how itrsquos going to be broken down
Airfare $________________
BusTrain $_____________
Car Rental $____________
Gasoline $_____________
Tolls $_________________
Accommodations
Hotel stay $_______
Hostess Gift $______
Food
Restaurants $_____
Other $__________
12
OVER ALREADY The last of the leftovers has been eaten the wrapping paper is recycled and another holiday season is in the books
The holidays always seem to go by in such a hurry Everything will soon be boxed up and stored away until next year Meanwhile this yearrsquos holiday festivities will be nothing more than fond memories Thatrsquos helpful to remember when it seems like nothing is going right but itrsquos also useful for refection
Once yoursquore done with the holidays itrsquos time to check over your budget one last time before sticking it away for another year Find out what areas of your plan worked re-ally well What unforeseen expenses that you could anticipate next year occurred What problems came up and what could you do to solve them in years to come What areas just felt like they might need a little shaking up just to keep things fresh After the New Year itrsquos great to sit down and refect on these and other questions Talk it over with your family and make note if it
Itrsquos also a good time to take stock of gifts that you donrsquot have a real use for Would anyone else like them Everyone seems to have one friend or family member with a birthday that comes shortly after the holidays Could anything be re-gifted to make those celebrations easier If not could anything be kept for gifting next year
Build a list of ldquosparerdquo gifts along with some ideas of who might get them in the fu-ture This list can serve as the start of your gift giving plan for next year
13
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
Gift Inventory
ITEM WHO ITrsquoS FROM WHO ITrsquoS GOOD FOR IS IT WRAPPED NOTES
14
~~- -shy-~ -4
lt -- -middot 1 ~ -
----
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________
HOLIDAY WRAP-UP QUESTIONS 1) One thing I really loved that we did for this yearrsquos holidays was
2) One thing that didnrsquot work as well as I had hoped was
3) A problem that came up this year and how Irsquod solve it next year was
Additional Notes
15
16
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
OVER ALREADY The last of the leftovers has been eaten the wrapping paper is recycled and another holiday season is in the books
The holidays always seem to go by in such a hurry Everything will soon be boxed up and stored away until next year Meanwhile this yearrsquos holiday festivities will be nothing more than fond memories Thatrsquos helpful to remember when it seems like nothing is going right but itrsquos also useful for refection
Once yoursquore done with the holidays itrsquos time to check over your budget one last time before sticking it away for another year Find out what areas of your plan worked re-ally well What unforeseen expenses that you could anticipate next year occurred What problems came up and what could you do to solve them in years to come What areas just felt like they might need a little shaking up just to keep things fresh After the New Year itrsquos great to sit down and refect on these and other questions Talk it over with your family and make note if it
Itrsquos also a good time to take stock of gifts that you donrsquot have a real use for Would anyone else like them Everyone seems to have one friend or family member with a birthday that comes shortly after the holidays Could anything be re-gifted to make those celebrations easier If not could anything be kept for gifting next year
Build a list of ldquosparerdquo gifts along with some ideas of who might get them in the fu-ture This list can serve as the start of your gift giving plan for next year
13
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
Gift Inventory
ITEM WHO ITrsquoS FROM WHO ITrsquoS GOOD FOR IS IT WRAPPED NOTES
14
~~- -shy-~ -4
lt -- -middot 1 ~ -
----
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________
HOLIDAY WRAP-UP QUESTIONS 1) One thing I really loved that we did for this yearrsquos holidays was
2) One thing that didnrsquot work as well as I had hoped was
3) A problem that came up this year and how Irsquod solve it next year was
Additional Notes
15
16
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
Gift Inventory
ITEM WHO ITrsquoS FROM WHO ITrsquoS GOOD FOR IS IT WRAPPED NOTES
14
~~- -shy-~ -4
lt -- -middot 1 ~ -
----
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________
HOLIDAY WRAP-UP QUESTIONS 1) One thing I really loved that we did for this yearrsquos holidays was
2) One thing that didnrsquot work as well as I had hoped was
3) A problem that came up this year and how Irsquod solve it next year was
Additional Notes
15
16
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
~~- -shy-~ -4
lt -- -middot 1 ~ -
----
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________
HOLIDAY WRAP-UP QUESTIONS 1) One thing I really loved that we did for this yearrsquos holidays was
2) One thing that didnrsquot work as well as I had hoped was
3) A problem that came up this year and how Irsquod solve it next year was
Additional Notes
15
16
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
16
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
middot~middot-middot bull I __
~ -middotJ
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