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Christmas 2022

10K views 66 replies 12 participants last post by  hikr00 
#1 ·
Yes, I said it. 11 shopping months 'til Christmas Eve, and I am starting this thread!!!

Some people (like me) feel a little better having some idea of a plan wayyyyy in advance, and it is fun to see how those plans change and evolve. Others won't pop on until November (assuming the world and the internet still exist by then...)

So for those who are willing, with last Christmas now a month behind us, what were your take-aways? Is there something you want to do different this year? Any plans already in mind?
 
Discussion starter · #2 · (Edited)
I'll go first. I have created my Christmas22 secret amazon shopping list and added my first item.I have a niece who enjoys wine, but is the black sheep of her (religious) tea-totaler family... She'll think it is hilarious, and the rest of the family all says we're going to hell anyway...
Tableware Drinkware Dishware Liquid White


I may ask a friend's wife if she can make one for me (local artisan and all) that says "blessed" instead of "touched."
 
Discussion starter · #13 ·
HALFWAY THERE!!!

I know people talk about "Christmas in July," but technically today is the 6-month mark, not July...

Currently it looks like we will be travelling to the in-laws (NC/SC border) for Thanksgiving, then doing Christmas up here-- however I will probably be working that day, so the big family meal might end up being on Christmas eve or something... no way to know if even that will work out yet...

I have my secret list on Amazon that I have added a couple of things to, both things I might buy for the family and 2 things I might want for myself if the in-laws ask for ideas. I also have list on my phone, but no real ideas yet...

I gave 2 of my local nieces (old/used) kitchen-aid mixers last year and we discussed possibly getting together and using all three of our mixers with my attachments to make a bunch of homemade pastas for homemade gifts/gifts in a jar, and today I picked up 3 Christmas-y baskets from the "free" bin at a local thrift that I thought one of my nieces might want for packaging her jar-gifts. (I am proud to say that I did NOT pick up any of the gift wrap/cutesy decorations I saw today.)

But overall, I haven't had any brilliant ideas yet,,,
 
Discussion starter · #34 ·
The holiday catalogs have started arriving here, and I have gone through and done some comparison shopping.
There are several things I have seen in catalogs, then found for cheaper on Amazon with free shipping (H has a prime membership.) I don't love making Amazon any richer, but it is very convenient that I can add everything to lists now and then it is all ready to push "buy" when I (hopefully) have the money around Thanksgiving-- and the cheaper prices are nice, too.

But I had a little holiday pay in my check today, so I literally spent it on "holiday" stuff :) Here are the things I bought just now that AREN'T available on Amazon...

For H:
Jersey Textile Sleeve Sportswear T-shirt
Rectangle Automotive lighting Automotive tire Automotive exterior Auto part


A self-explanatory sweatshirt and a puzzle-toy thing that when you put it together is a marble-coaster, where you put a marble at the top and watch it go down-- that makes it a present for ME, too, because he likes assembling things like that, and I like marble coasters and have always wanted one...

For DD19:
Sleeve Creative arts Rectangle Magenta Pattern

A whole lotta pajama shorts. I think she can probably use them as regular shorts in the summer, too, but we'll see. I've been eyeing these all year and finally pushed the button. They had similar fabrics in long lounge pants, but those were $35/pr and I didn't feel like spending that much (she doesn't take care of her things...)

I also found some stocking stuffers at Five Below yesterday, so I need to figure out where I am going to start stashing this stuff for the next few weeks until we get the tree up after Thanksgiving.
 
Discussion starter · #39 ·
Ok, so big OUCH Christmas present just purchased... DD15 expressed the other day that she has an interest in "going to the theater"-- specifically Les Mis... turns out they will be nearby after Christmas, so I bought 5 tickets (our little family +1 for a friend of DD15's choosing.)

Ouch. Even buying "discounted" tickets, ouch. But the show is on Feb 12th, so I am counting it as a Valentine's day gift, too!!!
 
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Discussion starter · #42 ·
Hello Frugals!

A while back, DD15 had circled some things in a Victorian trading company catalog, and I got a lovely surprise just now when I went to order and pretty much EVERY. THING. on the list has gone cheaper. I ended up buying an extra pair of socks to get the $25 off deal-- which more than covered the cost of the socks and put a dent in the shipping cost...

I have DD19's "big" gift, which is headphones, and she has told me there is a video game she wants, but that is a download, not something you can wrap. I will also give her some gift cards to places she likes to eat... she is tricky to shop for some years... Her advent calendar this year is candles (SO heavy) and she is excited like a toddler about it and keeps sneaking peeks at the drawers.

So I am pretty much done for my little group, but open to other things if the universe puts them in my path... Wishlist is done and emailed off to the in-laws... and later today (Sunday,) I hope to go pick up some of the gift cards I am planning for extended family types (nieces, MIL, FIL) On 3 December there is a big local craft show I usually attend, as well as a flea market where I usually am able to buy paperwhite bulbs from a local man, so I am hoping to wrap everything up that weekend, literally :) and get the send-away gifts sent away...

I was looking at another board to see if they had any insights on if there were any good gift card promos going on, and it never fails to shock me how those people are talking about "stocking stuffers" and "cutting back this year" and its the kind of things I would categorize as "nice gifts..." It makes me appreciate my lower-middle-class family where a $25-$50 gift card is a gift, not a stocking stuffer!!! 🤣:whistle::unsure:
 
Discussion starter · #56 ·
One of my nieces asked specifically for Home Depot gift cards this year (with the blissfully naive idea that her husband will do projects around the house <gigglesnort>), and I was able to get one off Raise for 17% off, so that was a good deal.

I put H in charge of buying the gift cards his Mom said to get for her and FIL... It is really awkward when we give them $$ and they give us $$+ in the same brands :rolleyes: For whatever reason, I feel better about it if he's the one who picked it out... not to mention I buy/wrap EVERYTHING else... :LOL: So while those cards were also available at Raise for a discount, I didn't buy them... it is worth the extra cost for me to feel like he is "participating 🤣

Christmas is s-l-o-w-l-y starting to appear here... This year the presents have been the least-difficult part, if you can believe it!!! But the tree is up and decorated, and little-by-little I am getting SOME of the decorations out. We never go crazy to start with, but this year I don't think I'll do the Christmas village, just the silly musical houses we have that the kids still love after all these years.

I had planned to do a lot tonight, since I am not working (but am nocturnal lately), but DD19 asked if her bestie could crash over because he had a fight with his family... now they are camped out in the living room and I am trying not to make a lot of noise... so argh!!!
 
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