Last Minute Holiday Shopping on a Budget

With Christmas just around the corner, you may be squeezing in some last minute shopping.  But, who has a lot of money to shell out for expensive gifts?  I'm paying two mortgages, my house and daycare.  If you're on a budget like me, here are some cool gift ideas to consider.

 7.  If your loved ones are out of town, you don't have to stand on that long line at the post office to mail their presents.  Act fast and take advantage of some pretty nice deals online.  Many stores offer free delivery before Christmas.  You'd probably have to spend a minimum of 50 to 100 dollars at most places.  But you can luck out and get something for much less.  For instance, Children's Place is guaranteeing delivery before Christmas Day until 11am on the 23rd.  However, there is a delivery charge of 5 bucks, if you spend under 75 dollars.  It's worth it because you can buy your kid an entire outfit for 10 dollars.  You'd only end up spending 15 which includes shipping.

 6.  Photos are priceless, and make wonderful presents.  I wanted to get a digital frame for a family member.  It seemed like every store sold them for around 100 bucks!  My budget was 50 dollars.  I ended up copping this one at Staples for less than 30.

It was easy to drag and drop photos of Princess onto a memory card, and upload these pics into the frame.  It didn't take long to set up!  There's also rebate which I filled out online.

 5.  If you're technology challenged (like me sometimes) and have trouble uploading pics,  here's another neat idea.  Most people have cell phones.  We take photos all the time, but rarely print them out.  Stores like Walgreens, CVS, and Rite Aid offer photo printing.  If you check the circular, you can get some pretty good steals.  After giving birth last year, my hubby and I were tight on cash.  FYI, having a baby can cost a pretty penny.  Rather than spending money we didn't have, we did some practical gift giving.  We gave our moms a photo album filled with pictures of Princess from the time she was born up until her first Christmas.  They both loved it!  We paid only 7 dollars for the album and printed the pics ourselves from our PC.  We were even able to add cute captions along side each photo.

 4.  Another alternative to this idea is to reuse an old album you already have.  Some may say "that's ghetto."  But, I completely disagree.  I have so many old photos lying around.  I also have half empty albums.  All I'd have to do is spend some time organizing and adding the photos to the album.  You just have to take time and go through what ya got.  You can also pick one up from your local dollar store, which leads me to my next point.

 3.  Don't sleep on the dollar store! You'd be amazed at the things you find.  My hubby and I bought some gift cards for Princess's teachers, as well as our nieces and nephew.  I went to the Dollar Tree and found cute little festive gift card holders that came 8 in a pack for just 1 dollar.  I also saw this nice little bag with fur that I know our niece would like for a dollar.

I saw some really nice ornaments that would be a great addition to any Christmas tree.  There's even a matching box to go along with it.  No wrapping necessary!

I also bought some stuff at the mall and couldn't find boxes to put them in.  I got one of these holiday themed bags for only 1 dollar.

If you know a tea or coffee drinker, here's a nice gift idea.  Festive mugs!  There's also ones with candy.  I'd probably toss these sweets and put in my own treats, add clear wrapping with a bow, and I'd be good to go.  All, by the way, can be found at the dollar store.  Four quarters can sure go a long way!

 2.  In the states egg nog and apple cider are popular during the holidays.  In my culture, it's rum cake and a drink called sorrel.  My mom usually gives them to family and friends for Christmas.  So when in doubt, go with food.  I always say, when you give something you've made yourself, you give that person apart of yourself.  Cultural items are a great touch to any festive occasion.

 1.  My number gift idea on a budget is to buy throughout the year.  When I was standing in line at the dollar store I said to my hubby over the phone that next year I'm gonna buy gifts throughout the year, and store them until Christmas.  I didn't realize there was a guy in front of me listening to our conversation.  As he got ready to leave he said to me, "that's such a great idea!"  I had a light bulb moment right there!

I always come across amazing deals.  But, I never think to make the purchase.  I won't wait till the holidays to do my shopping next year.  I'll hit up the stores before then.  That way I won't be scrambling at the last minute, and we'll save big.

I hope my tips help!  Please share your gift ideas!  Have you done all your holiday shopping yet?

Happy Holidays!

Weather Anchor Mama