WFMW: Fewer Gifts + More Thought = Nicer Christmas (I hope!)

Okay, I'll admit, I'm here with yet another untested Christmas Works for Me Wednesday tip. (The first of those was the tip about a great way to help siblings shop for each other. But, darn it, I just wanted others to be able to test it out this year as well.)

So, here's my partially untested theory. I am placing all bets on this equation for our Christmas this year:

Fewer Gifts + More Thought = Nicer Christmas

I have always been one to just shop like mad up until Christmas for my kids. I have picked them up dancing robots, toy chocolate fountains, not so wonderful dollhouses, and a bevy of other toys and items along these lines. Of course, there have been toys we have bought for them that they have loved over the long term, but it seems so many gifts are played with for a few days or maybe even until the kids go back to school. And, then the toys find themselves in the closet, never to see the light of day again.

After a homily by one of our priests this year (that included a brief discussion on number of Christmas gifts), it would seem that I am running into several people from church that are going the three gifts per child route this year (and to continue to do in the future).

We actually opted to tell the kids that we would be getting them just three gifts this year, and that Santa would continue to get them one gift each. So, we set our number at four gifts total (plus some goodies in a stocking).

I came to notice something very interesting as I got ready to do my shopping for the kids this year -- I didn't go out and just buy every new item or a bunch of sale items. I sat down and planned out their gifts. I poured over reviews online. I causally asked the kids about their thoughts about various items. I thought about their gifts some more. I looked through our budget and figured out generally what to spend. I thought deeply about their gifts yet agin. I finally bought bigger things that I turned my nose up at in previous years because I had been too busy buying lots of small things. (Mind you, that, for instance, with Molly who will be getting the American Girls Bitty Baby Twins, this extra big gift is being broken up, and each Twin counts as a gift, not as one gift total.)

When I finally figured out what to buy my kids, I was proud. I looked at my list, and I finally felt that this year, I was really thinking of each child and evaluating what was best for them.

And, so I realized -- perhaps buying fewer gifts is not just a blessing because it helps with less clutter and gives my kids appreciative hearts, perhaps it is also a blessing because it forces a person to really think about their child before shopping. I have to admit -- I don't know if I ever would have gone with a gift that I think will be a HUGE hit with Noah, if I hadn't had to really sit down and plan my shopping so thoroughly.

And, really, I do think this will make for our best Christmas ever (I hope!).

Is it really frugal to bake from scratch?

I have been kicking around this idea, as I make some goodies for Christmas baskets from scratch.

Yes, yes, I know. It *is* very much more budget minded to cook from scratch. (Well...typically anyway. There will always be exceptions to rules.) But, for the most part, when whipping up some dinner, you are going to make your budget happier by serving up lasagna that you have made rather than a big pan of lasagna that you purchased frozen at the grocery store. (In my opinion, it's also going to be a lot tastier. But, that's neither here nor there. Although, really -- lasagna and I haven't had the best relationship since I had to be sick while pregnant with Jack after a lasagna dinner and for reasons that I care not to share -- trust me, you don't want to know -- my only available place to get sick was in the kitchen sink. After that, it's really hard to think lasagna is a tasty choice for dinner, even 7 years later.)

So...back to the budget and baking.

Is it frugal to bake from scratch? I whipped up some homemade frosting, and, yes, I could see how the milk, powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and butter all together were cheaper than a can of frosting. (And so, so, so much tastier!) But, what about when I was making cupcakes? Cupcakes that called for a variety of goodies. Cupcakes, where the price alone of the bittersweet chocolate that I coarsely chopped for the sweet goodness was more than a boxed mix is on sale, not to mention all of the other ingredients.

Yes, I have read from time to time when someone blogs and says that if they buy flour in bulk, and run to Aldi's for this, and get that other thing on sale with double coupons...well...then it's just about as cheap as a box mix. But, I just don't do all that. I have been trying to do better with my grocery budget, but I am still not a bargain hunting maven.

And, so I have come to a conclusion. Sometimes I will spend more to bake from scratch. Sometimes, I will spend an extra couple of dollars for the better taste of Pure Vanilla Extract instead of Imitation Vanilla Extract. (I have to admit, for probably about 10 years of marriage, I had no idea there was such a difference between those. But, when I bought the Pure stuff one time, I was hooked.) And, sometimes, I will buy flour and sugar and cocoa powder and bittersweet chocolate bars and all of the other ingredients in a long list, when I could have just made a box mix of cupcakes. They would have been cheaper and faster. But, there is a certain sense of accomplishment, I think, to look at a finished cupcake and think, "I made that frosting and I made that cupcake. I didn't use anything prepared ahead of time. I am truly blessed to have the time, money, and resources to do this."

More often than not, those blessings are then passed on. Even with five of us at home, we rarely can eat a whole batch of any homemade thing. And, so then we are doubly blessed when we know that the goodies are enjoyed by neighbors and quickly snatched up at Eric's work.

I'm going to guess that for me, it, indeed, is not better on my budget to bake from scratch. But, I think I'll do it anyway.

Menu Plan Monday: December 10th Edition

We only have one roll over from last week, so I'm very pleased! We are usually much worse about grabbing food from out, but I am trying to be better this month, just to see if we can do it. Wish me luck!

This week is a SUPER busy week for us, with me being busy on almost every night. (Yuck!) So, this is a less than stellar menu this week. Sorry!

Monday: Teriyaki Chicken and Vegetable Fried Rice (both from Market Day)

Tuesday: Chili (per Eric's request)

Wednesday: Frozen Pizza (it's a busy night, so it's nice to have something quick and easy)

Thursday: Eric's choice (This means that I'll just make him scrounge around for whatever looks good on Thursday night.)

Friday: Spaghetti with Homemade Bread (I'm having dinner out with my social group!)

Saturday: lunch ---> Something with Steak (LOL)...maybe steak and eggs, since Eric was talking about that just tonight; dinner ---> Food from Out

Sunday: lunch ---> Turkey (yep...I have a turkey in the freezer, and I'm ready to cook it); dinner ---> Leftovers from Lunch

Buying Gifts for Those Who Need Them

Our family participated this year in a program where you can buy gifts for families in need. It is a neat program, and is quite large in our area. It is run through a Christian organization, and then there are TONS of churches (of all kinds of denominations) that participate as host sites. A host site is responsible for getting people in their church to buy gifts, clothes, etc. for the children whose parents will be coming to their church to get gifts.

The neat thing, I think, about this particular program is that each parent gets to "shop" for the gifts for their kids. For example, we bought gifts for an 8 year old girl. But, that's not really to say that an 8 year old will be getting our gifts, or that all the same child will get the gifts we bought. The parents will get to pick the gifts from what is available (in an orderly manner, of course), and then there is a gift wrapping table. The parents then get to write on the gift tags themselves, etc. I think it's nice and it gives the parents more of a sense that they had some say in the gifts their children get.

We dropped our gifts off at church last night (I will be helping next weekend during the actual event). Noah and I got to talking about it tonight. He was commenting that he really thought "that girl" would like her gifts.

I told him that I hoped she would. I told him that even though we don't have a lot of money, we do have more than some people. And, it's nice when maybe we can skip having a meal out and instead help buy something for someone else.

I then went on to say, "Did you see all those gifts at church?!? I think that by us helping to buy some of those gifts, it will make some family's Christmas much nicer!"

He was silent for a moment, and then his eyes twinkled. He hugged me and said, "I think it will make our Christmas much nicer too!"

Kids sure are insightful sometimes, aren't they?