You might be surprised to learn what your family members passionately
feel is an important part of Thanksgiving or Christmas celebrations.
Plan for Sale Shopping
If you decide ahead of time what you will
make this year and create a master list, you
can begin to stock up when the sales occur.
Normally, groceries go on sale every four
to eight weeks. During the holidays, there
will be sales aplenty!
Watch for the “loss leaders,” which are
great prices that draw shoppers in—at a
loss to the store. Stock up on the loss
leaders you need for your master list, and
be sure to check them off as you buy them.
Continue to mark and store items for
holiday feasts.
Plan for Coupons
Coupons can be a great way to save money,
if you purpose to buy only things you will
use or donate! If you use coupons, organize
your coupons in a pretty box. Better yet,
just hole punch the entire coupon section of
the Sunday paper and put it in a notebook.
Check out some of the wonderful new
savings tools available on the web. Not only
do they track the sales at grocery stores in
the area, but they also tell you which
coupons to use to get things for next to
nothing. Many consumers use the Grocery
Game ( www.thegrocerygame.com), which
charges a fee for their services.
Better yet, help stamp out hunger with
the Coupon Mom and her great
( www.CutOutHunger.com) site. Similar
to the Grocery Game, the point is to fill the
shelves at your local church or food shelter
with the free, extra things you get but that
your family won’t use. This is a super
project in which your kids can participate
to help bless other families this Christmas.
The more food prices increase, the fewer
donations are received at food pantries, so
your donations can be a huge help to families in need.
Dollar Plan
Have you been to the Dollar Store lately?
In between the aisles of clutter, there are
treasures. Recently, I found five boxes of
name-brand organic mushroom broth for
$1 each, organic green tea, scrapbooks,
and some beautiful gift books for $1 each.
Paper supplies, napkins, plates, cups, and
cleaning supplies can be found at the
Dollar Store. The trick is to walk in with a
set budget and stick to it. Overspending on
“good deals” is not saving money; it is
spending money you don’t have.
Plan to Succeed
We all know the old adage, “If you fail to
plan, you plan to fail.” If you take that to
heart during the holidays this year, you can
manage to squeeze some wonderful celebrations out of a tight budget simply by
submitting your needs to the Lord, planning ahead, shopping deliberately, and
sticking to your budget. Your kids will
learn great lessons about being a careful
steward of what the Lord has provided, and
you will be able to confidently plan for the
holidays, knowing you are staying within
your budget.
You can do this! Your family will be
richer in holiday spirit because of it! May
the Lord bless you and keep you, as you
celebrate His provision and mercy at
Thanksgiving and celebrate His glorious,
perfect birth!
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TOS1007
Overspending on “good deals” is not saving money;
it is spending money you don’t have.
