My holiday shopping funds are holding up, pretty well. Since aimlessly looking around for perfect gifts makes impulse spending more likely, I’ve mad a list of the exact gifts I want for each person on my list. I spend no more than an hour locating each gift. Since I have all of my promotional emails in their own folder, I choose the store most likely to have the gift I seek. If that store doesn’t have what I seek, I buy a similar item. Gifts will be small, but meaningful.
I’m also calculating how much I can spend at each store. My balances cannot go over a fixed amount, which is much less than my credit limit. I can still pay my balances in no more than 6 months, but can pay at least one balance in full before that much time passes. Things are working quite well, so far. My holiday gift giving will not force me to juggle between food and credit card payments!
I found a great article on alternative gift giving, and may propose one of the suggestions to friends, next year. In my drive to live a more frugal life, I’m sharpening my baking skills. I’m considering a Mincemeat Tart recipe for next year’s gifting. I’ll practice it, then wrap a piece for each friend. Since they aren’t great bakers, they’ll love the treat.