How to Create a Holiday Budget (when YOU’RE BROKE!!) & Save MONEY!

By Dawn, Christmas, Effective Living, Happy Homes, The Minimal Mom

No one wants to talk about money (or lack thereof!) this time of year, but budgeting for Christmas and the Holidays is important!!

One of my favorite lines to save more money during the holiday season is, “We just need to take a break this year.”

It implies that it’s not over – it’s not that I’m never going to spend money on Christmas again, I just need a break!

Even if you haven’t saved a penny for the holiday season, it’s not too late. You can still set a reasonable budget and stay within it without having to put Christmas on a credit card and then worry about it in January.

Here are a few simple steps for how to set a REALISTIC budget that you can actually stick to!!

Or watch this video on YouTube here!

1. List out GIFTS from last year

Write a list of everyone that you bought a gift for last year and how much you spent on them.

It blew me away when I actually sat down and wrote out every single person that I bought gifts for and what I spent. From the mailman to teachers to coaches to co-workers to bosses to family members to the kids….. We spent A LOT!!

When you have an idea of what you spent on Christmas last year, it will help you know how to budget for it.

Side note: I’m NOT against gifts and gift exchanges. I do like to appreciate people during the holidays. But I don’t like gift exchanges where we just give the person we chose a meaningless gift!! Those I think we should opt out of (see more about that here).

2. List out OTHER EXPENSES from last year

Make a list of all the other expenses – food for gatherings, travel expenses, decorations, Christmas cards, Christmas photos, stamps, new clothes, extra eating out and any charitable donations.

I know this can feel a little overwhelming, but once you have these two lists, add everything up to see what you spent!….It’s probably more than you think!

I couldn’t believe it when I added it up — we had spent $1000, even though I’m trying to be very simple with Christmas and keep everything scaled back!!

3. Set a REALISTIC budget

Once you know what you’ve spent in the past, figure out a realistic budget for your family that you could pay in cash this Christmas and NOT have to put it on credit card — because the goal is to not put ANY of this on a credit card!! No one want to start off the New Year in the hole!

If you can find an extra $300 or $400, then that’s your budget and that’s what you’re going to work with.

(If you literally have no extra money, everything is tight and you don’t know where you would come up with ANY cash for this Christmas, that’s okay — keep reading, more on that later!!)

Once you have a realistic budget of what you can actually afford, you can start getting really creative.

4. PRIORITIZE your gift list

Take the list of people that you want to give gifts to and decide who are the most important people that you need to prioritize. It might be your children, other family members or a close friend.

Put them at the top of the list.

You may have spent money last year on people like teachers and coaches, but this year you can write them a nice note and thank them for everything they do.

Just because you cut back this much this year, it doesn’t mean that in the future you can’t do a bit more again!!

I love people that serve us, but I also know that they wouldn’t want us to go in debt to give them a Christmas present just so that we can feel good acknowledging them.

(If you’re wondering what teachers REALLY want for Christmas, check out this post written by a teacher!!)

When you look at your budget and what you actually have to spend, you’ll start looking at this list a lot differently than if you just put it on a credit card.

You might be thinking, But you don’t know my family, you don’t know my in-laws, they wouldn’t understand!

I’ve heard stories from people who mustered up the courage to tell their friends and family that they simply don’t have the money or would like to simplify Christmas for a year.

So often the stories are, I didn’t think they would understand, but they’re okay with it!

And if they don’t understand that, well…. if you need a break from Christmas cards, cookie exchanges, gift exchanges — you need a break!!

There’s so much more to life than gifts. I know we have gifts people for whom gifts are very important (my twin sister is a gift person!!), so I don’t want to slight anybody during the holidays, but I also know how much freedom there is in getting out of debt!!

Just because you’ve spent more than you have in the past, doesn’t mean that this has to be your reality again this Christmas season!!

Ways to save money during the holidays

Once you have your budget, you’ll want to be super careful about the gifts that you do buy.

Use PRICE COMPARISON tools

CamelCamelCamel is an online tool that helps you compare prices on Amazon and third parties.

If you search for an item, it will show you what the current price is on Amazon and what the lowest price has been. This gives you an indication that it could go that low again during the holiday season.

Buy USED items

Look on Facebook Marketplace or other online shops where you might be able to find brand new items still in the box.

When you commit to this lesser budget, you’ll be so surprised at the things that come your way!

STOP using your credit card

When you use your debit card or cash instead of your credit card, you won’t be as tempted by all the other deals that are going on this time of year.

WATCH OUT for all the little extras!

When you have a limited budget, pay attention to all the extras that you purchase during the holiday season too.

When you pay only with cash or debit, you’ll probably find that it’s less tempting to stop at Starbucks, buy stuff for yourself or stock up on things that you don’t actually need. You’ll probably also find you’re a lot more careful about not eating out.

If you have NO extra money

If you really have no extra money, take a hard look at the gifts and things you spend money on and cut out absolutely everything that you possibly can because it’s not Christmas if you’re going into debt for it.

That’s just not what Christmas is about.

I think most of us would probably agree that it’s important for us to acknowledge our kids during this time, but beyond that… I think we really have to cut everything else out.

Instead of making Christmas about gifts, you can focus on doing more fun things together like ice skating together, sledding, baking cookies, or any other low-cost or no-cost activity.

The average parent spends only THREE MINUTES a day engaging with their children. If you ask kids what they really want, they want time with their parents.

But you won’t find many commercials, flyers or catalogues marketing free family activities or fun things you could do with your kids.

It might feel like your kids expect a big, elaborate Christmas and that you can’t go back now. But doing things with your kids is going to have such a greater impact on them and their emotional and mental health than anything that you can buy them.

I don’t want to get to preachy or tell your you’re doing everything wrong.

I just want to give you permission to scale back your Christmas. It’s too stressful to spend money we don’t have.

Maybe not everybody will understand, but that’s okay! You do what’s best for you and your family!!

I hope this helpful! I’d love to know what your holiday budget plans are for this year! Are you planning to scale back your gifts? What kind of fun family activities do you enjoy doing together?

Here are some other posts you might like!

5 Things It’s Important to Declutter BEFORE Christmas (& tips to do it QUICKLY!!)

DIY Complete Gingerbread House Kit in a Bag!

Pre-Christmas Worksheet to reduce Stress & Anxiety

5 Creative DIY Christmas Gift Basket Ideas for friends, family & office!

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Minimalist House Tour: Simple Living as a Family of 6

Dawn's House, Effective Living, Happy Homes, The Minimal Mom

Minimalist Family Home: Come on in! We’re excited to give you a tour of our home and show you what family minimalism (or really simple living) looks like for us. Minimalism has changed our lives and we can’t wait to share our story with you today!

Or watch this video on YouTube here!

When you first come into our house you might notice that it’s tidy and clean, but you might not be able to put your finger on what makes our home different.
But if you open the drawers and cabinets, you will notice that nothing is more than half full. It feels SO good not to have them stuffed full of things we don’t need and aren’t using!

Why I Became a Minimalist

In the beginning, it was a house cleaning tactic. I wanted to be able to keep the house clean AND still be able to do work on projects I was excited about.

At first I didn’t even tell my husband what I was doing. Eventually I had to let Tom know what I was up to and he said, “Just don’t make us look weird!”

As we’ve simplified our house, it has also spilled over to improve every area of our life, including:

finances
eating healthier
parenting
our relationship
more effective employees
better ability to prioritize

What started as merely a strategy to keep the house clean has turned into so much more!

Watch this video to learn more about why I became a minimalist!

What Makes Our House Different?

We’ve gotten rid of a lot of furniture and things that tend to collect clutter. We don’t actually have any bookcases or china cabinets – they were just too much for us to keep clean and free of clutter.

Over the last five years we’ve gotten rid of about 80% of our stuff and we don’t miss ANY of it!

Minimalist Bedrooms

Our bedroom is tiny, but the great thing about that is we don’t keep as much stuff. The more space we have, the more we tend to fill it up with things we don’t even need!!

All four of our kids share a room right now and they actually really enjoy it, but we plan to remodel the upstairs to make it into two bedrooms.

It’s amazing how 1,500 square feet is MORE than enough space for a family of six when our home isn’t cluttered with stuff!

Do I Have to Get Rid of Everything to Be a Minimalist?

You don’t have to sell all your stuff to become a minimalist. Just start with questioning things…

Do the kids really need this many toys?
Do we need this extra furniture in this room?
Does our wardrobe need to be this big?

Every item that comes into the house is something that I have to manage. Having fewer things makes it so much EASIER to manage and keep clean, it practically manages itself!!

Is Minimalism Weird?

Minimalism doesn’t feel weird, it just feels natural and peaceful. This is how we were meant to live!

The way we were living before was weird – being stressed out by all the stuff in our house that we didn’t need or even use!

So what does Tom REALLY think about our minimalist home now?? Watch to the end of the video to find out!

How Do I Know If Minimalism is for Me?

Can you relate to any of these things?

I have too much paper clutter!
My closet is overflowing!
My kitchen is always a mess!
My big house / new vehicle / fancy clothes aren’t making me happy!

If any of that sounds familiar, hang around with us for awhile and find out if minimalism might be the answer!! We’ve been there too, and we love sharing tips and tricks of how we simplified our house.

It’s SO REWARDING to be content in a simplified house. We have the time to do the things we want to do now like building a garden and spending quality time with our kids. We would love for you to experience the JOY that minimalism has to offer as well!!

If you enjoyed our minimalist home tour, here are some other videos you might like!

Minimalist Property Tour (Story of it being my dream home!)
Best Place to start with minimalism
Millennials NEED Minimalism more than ever before!
15 Minute Guided Declutter – I’ll Help you declutter!!
Incredibly Thankful for Minimalism…it just keeps getting better

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Decluttering Questions to ask Yourself (FREE Printable!!)

By Dawn, Effective Living, Happy Homes, The Minimal Mom

Decluttering is NOT always easy! We get started with really good intentions but then quickly get side-lined by our possessions.

What if I paid “good money” for the item or if I’m just not sure if I’ll need it in the future? These are valid questions and where we quickly get hung up in the decluttering process. So today let’s talk about how we can truly evaluate whether an item is worth keeping or if it’s time to let it go!

Overview: If we have the right questions to ask ourselves while decluttering, it can make the entire process easier! Below you’ll find guided decluttering worksheets for general items, kitchens and sentimental items.

GENERAL DECLUTTERING QUESTIONS

You can find a FREE PRINTABLE of these questions right here! It may be helpful to keep it in front of you when you’re decluttering.

Here are a handful of questions you can ask yourself when decluttering:

Have I used or admired this in the last year? This is the oldest one in the book…but it works! Chances are if you haven’t used it in the past year you will have no use for it in the coming year. This can be especially useful when going through things like clothing, sporting equipment and kitchen gadgets.
Can it be replaced for $20 or less? Or can it be borrowed? The number one reason we hang on to things is because we just don’t know if we’ll need it again in the future. But, this causes our homes to function more like storage units than peaceful havens for our families to recharge in. If the item could be replaced for $20 or less it may be time to cut your losses and take the chance that you may decide to replace it again in the future!
Would I purchase this again? SO often we purchase items hoping they’ll meet a need and we either never get around to using them or they simply don’t meet the need as we had hoped. Kitchen appliances, electronics and specialized clothing and footwear can often fall into this category. If when you hold up an item you know you regret buying it and would never purchase it again, let it go! Keeping it will not cause it to suddenly start meeting your needs!
Is it living out the purpose it was created for? If you have 20 coffee mugs, I can almost guarantee that they aren’t fulfilling the purpose they were created for. Unless you have a careful system to rotate your mugs and appreciate a new one each day, why not pass them on to someone who could actually use them? In a way, it is selfish of us to hold on to items “just in case” when there are other people in the world who could actually use them.
Am I keeping this out of guilt? We keep SO many things because we feel guilty over purchasing them and just hope someday we will find a use for them. But, unfortunately, that day rarely comes and the item taunts us every time we look at it!! We don’t deserve to be ridiculed in our own house! So get rid of the item so that you no longer have to feel guilty about it. After all, we all make mistakes!
If someone gave me $ would I part with it? This question is a GREAT litmus test for an item you just can’t decide what to do with. If we ask ourselves if we’d part with it if we were paid, and the answer is YES, then we need to let it go (whether someone actually gives us money in exchange for it or not!)
Could someone else use or love it more? How many items waste away in storage when someone else could have made really good use out of them? Water or pest damage, and just the passage of time, things are not meant to be stored, they’re meant to be USED! So if someone else could actually make use of an item, why not let them have it?
Do I want to have to handle this item again? This is also known as “deferred decision making”…we can’t decide what to do so we put the item back and put off the decision for another day. But how many times do we want to have to handle the same item!?! It’s best to make the decision now, even if it’s difficult, than to have to look at the same item and re-contemplate the decision a year from now.

KITCHEN DECLUTTERING QUESTIONS

There are several things that often hold us up in the kitchen like expensive appliances and gadgets and the fear of not knowing if we’ll need them in the future! Here are questions that you can ask yourself while decluttering your kitchen:

How do I NEED my kitchen to FUNCTION?
Am I keeping this just in case?
Could we completely clear the counters?
Am I OVER VALUING appliances & gadgets?
Is it taking up valuable space?
Could I put this in storage to see if I miss it?
Could I borrow or replace this inexpensively?
Would our WHOLE HOUSE feel more peaceful and enjoyable to live in if the kitchen were simplified?

You can find the free printable with kitchen decluttering questions here!

SENTIMENTAL DECLUTTERING QUESTIONS

Sentimental items are the HARDEST to declutter because often, they are irreplaceable. But don’t worry! We can help you through these items, too, by focusing on the absolute most important things and letting the rest go.

Here are questions to ask yourself when decluttering sentimental items:

How do I want my house to FEEL?
Why did I invite this into my home?
Am I keeping it out of guilt?
Does it bring up HAPPY MEMORIES?
Is it deteriorating in storage?
If someone gave me $ would I part with it?
Could someone else use or love it more?
Do I want to have to handle this item again?

You can print the decluttering sentimental items worksheet HERE!

YOU CAN DO IT!

The good news, friend? IT GETS EASIER!! Every time you part with an item you’re flexing your decluttering muscles and you reinforce the fact that very few physical items actually bring us happiness or joy, but they do cause us STRESS. And by decluttering and simplifying, we’re able to focus on the things that truly matter most.

We hope you find these questions helpful! We know it isn’t always easy to declutter, but for our own family, it has been INCREDIBLY worthwhile!

All our best to you as you simplify your home!!

If you’re on Pinterest or other social media, we’d love it if you shared this! THANK YOU, thank you, thank you!!!! :)

Simplest Meal Planning Yet!!! Minimalist Meal Planning System with Free Worksheet

By Dawn, Effective Living, Happy Homes, Mom Life, Most Popular, The Minimal Mom

Meal planning doesn’t have to be difficult! This simple meal planning system is aimed to solving these common problems with groceries and cooking:

1. Easy: Meal plan AND compile your grocery list in 5 minutes per week

2. Maintain a smaller inventory: Having cupboards stuffed with food is STRESSFUL, learn how to get just what you need and keep less on hand

3. Waste LESS: with these simple ideas, you can virtually eliminate wasted food

4. Stick with it: this system is designed for busy people, if that’s you, keep reading!!

THE BASICS OF THIS MEAL PLANNING SYSTEM

This system is EASY, but you’ll need to spend a few extra minutes on the front end setting everything up. Here is what you’ll need:

1. Grocery Inventory: I’m including links to the spreadsheet that I use, but of course you can make your own!

Free Downloads:
Excel Meal Planning Worksheet
Numbers Meal Planning Worksheet
PDF Meal Planning Worksheet (unfortunately, this is not a version that can be edited)

And for those interested in my filled-in sheet, you can see that here: Dawn’s Grocery Inventory & Meal Plan

…if you have a problem downloading any version, simply leave a comment and I will get back to you right away!!

2. Populate your form: roughly fill in your grocery inventory and a set of meals that you know you can stick to (it doesn’t have to be perfect, you can revise it as you go!!

3. Marker Board: I created sections for “Use Up”, “Leftovers” and our meals for the week (mine was from the Dollar Tree!)

VIDEO MEAL PLANNING INSTRUCTIONS HERE:

OUR MEALS:

…and if you’re curious what I have for meals, you can see it here:

“IP” means that it is a meal that I make in our Instant Pot. I’ve really come to appreciate my Instant Pot, especially in the summer when I don’t want to heat up the whole kitchen! But year round, I love that it creates minimal dishes. I will be sure to create a video on it, along with our favorite instant pot meals, in the future!

Please don’t hesitate to let me know if you have any questions (or suggestions!) and best wishes with your meal planning!!!

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Toddlers to teens: tips for successful bedtimes

Happy Homes, Mom Life

This is part of a series on getting kids to bed at night and keeping them in their rooms. To read the first part of the article, please click here. Maureen is a stay at home mom and here are her best bedtime tips from years of experience!

I have a feeling I’m the one with older kids here–so let me say from the start: it really DOES get easier! Our years of bedtime experiences, including tending to a child with special needs, have left us feeling grateful that things are going smoothly now that they’re older (and healthier).

What is the age range of your children?

17, 15, and 12

How long does it take to put your kids to bed at night?

Depends on the homework load and the general level of exhaustion (harder to get them to bed when they’re overtired). We’re really trying to get our teens in bed at a reasonable hour, as research indicates that 9-10 hours of sleep are optimal for teens.

What does your bedtime routine consist of/look like on a regular night?

We try to pray together. Our 12-year-old (who has Down syndrome) needs a slightly different routine (i.e. very structured), and he usually goes to bed at 9 on school nights. It takes about 15 minutes to get him ready (potty, teeth brushing, pj’s, etc.)

What does it look like if you get home late?

We generally stick to the same routine.

Do you have children that share a room? Does that work for your family?

Our children each have their own bedroom (they are living my childhood fantasy, as I’m one of 7 and always shared a bedroom with a sister). I certainly don’t think kids need their own bedroom, and I’m grateful for the years that our girls shared a room in our former home. But as teenagers, they have valued their own space (and I value it for them).

What excuses do your children use to stay up later or to get out of bed?

At this age, our problem isn’t keeping them in bed, it’s getting them OUT of bed in the morning! But if the girls tend to stay up too late, it’s generally because they’re on SnapChat or some other online site (though we don’t do Facebook).

How do you respond if your child gets up after you have put them to bed?

We try to remain calm and patient, as expressing frustration simply gets them more agitated and keeps them up longer. With our son, one of us goes back into his room with him, prays with him, and sings him a song.

What do you do if one of your children wakes up in the middle of the night and would like to sleep in your room or bed?

We have never allowed our children to sleep in our room or our bed. It’s a boundary we set when our kids were first born. We respect that others see this differently. However, since we set that boundary years ago, the kids never even ask to sleep in our room or in our bed.

Have you had concerns that seemed out of your child’s control (like nightmares, wetting the bed at an older age, working themselves up to the point of throwing up)? How did you handle these?

Given our son’s special needs, he presents many concerns that have required lots of trial and error. At age 12, he still wears Pull-Ups, wakes up in the middle of the night about 50% of the time, and can occasional soak the bed. In addition, when he is sick (particularly stomach virus), he doesn’t know how to get himself to the bathroom, so he requires lots of attention in the middle of the night. How do we handle all of this? With lots of prayer!

If my kids are not currently used to going to bed when they are asked and get up frequently, or if they are used to me rocking them or laying with them to go to sleep, what would be your best advice?

One of the ways we managed to get our son out of the habit of having us stay in the room with him is to leave the room while he’s drowsy (but not asleep) and say, “I’m going to brush my teeth and then I’ll come back to check on you.” Nine times out of ten, he’s sound asleep when I return.

What if my child is scared to sleep in their own room at night?

One of our daughters has struggled with this. We try to talk her through the fear, and we pray with her. We invite her to ask her guardian angel to watch over her, and we assure her that Jesus is with her.

What do you do when your kids are sick?

Because they each have their own room, we have them stay in their room and tend to them there. Because I’m not currently working outside the home (and can grab a nap the next day while they’re at school) I do most of the “night watch.”

What age do you think is best to transition kids from a crib to toddler bed?

It differed for each of our children. Our eldest moved when she was about 2 (because her little sister was born and we needed the crib for the baby), and our middle daughter moved at about the same age, because that seemed to work for her elder sister. Our son stayed in longer due to his special needs. Short answer: it depends on the child.

Of course, our situation may be different in that our kids rarely battled to stay up past bedtime (maybe we managed to tucker them out?). In any case, hang in there, have confidence, and don’t forget to pray! For “He pours gifts on his beloved while they slumber” (Ps. 127:2).

Return to the bedtime routine article main page –>
Related: How we easily transition our babies from co-sleeping to crib –>

No pain, no gain: Declutter and organize your home

Happy Homes

Keeping your home tidy and clean can be achieved after you declutter and organize it properly. Here you will learn some smart ways to get rid of the clutter piling in your rooms. They will save you space, make sure you use it wisely and help you reduce the time you spend cleaning it. Check the ideas and apply the ones that are most applicable for your home.

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Before organizing your rooms make sure you remove all items which don’t serve you. Free more space by piling unnecessary items in baskets or bins. After you gather the items you don’t need in one place sort them out in 4 piles. These should be for donating, giving away, sale and throwing away. Once you designate where each item will go, be brave and go ahead to get rid of the items you don’t need.

Organize a garage or an online sale, recycle items that are broken and non-functioning by putting them into the designated bins. You can give away some of your possessions which function and can be used to any of your friends. Multiple items of the same type only take space in your cabinets and shelves and should be removed.

Prompt Cleaners in Clapham are advising you to use tall shelves to maximize the space you have and take advantage of it. Shelves that are high enough gather a lot of book, photos and decorative items. You can put tall shelves in your home office, living rooms and bedrooms.

Be creative when organizing your home and make the necessary changes to transform rooms that don’t serve you into such which you actually need. If you can’t do the work alone hire an interior designer to make the innovations and changes.

Use decorative storage items which can serve for multiple purposes. Antique pieces of furniture not only add spirit to the room but can be used to store your glassware, sets of porcelain and items you want out of sight.

Instead of hiding your kitchen sets of glasses and stylish porcelain pieces you can show them off in your living room or kitchen in cabinets or shelves with glass fronts.

You can use baskets in your kitchen to store different types of food products. Each basket can contain similar or products of the same type. Position them one over the other (if there aren’t eggs or other breakables) under your kitchen island.

To maximize your space without putting too many cabinets in the room, mount shelves on its walls. Paint the shelves the same colour as the walls and they will look stylish and like built-in. You can place two symmetrical shelves on both sides of the focal point in your room which may be the fireplace or anything else. Feel free to add more shelves up and down the walls depending on the space you have and the size of the room. This is very appropriate for living rooms.

Use multi-purpose pieces of furniture to save space and have more functional home. A stool which can be opened and provides storage space can be used to keep various items. Sofas which can be pulled out and used as beds are perfect for guests.

You can keep your bathroom towels under the sink in baskets or other mesh containers. Store the towels in dry and airy containers to protect them from molds and germs.

Keeping your home properly organized and tidy will help you with the cleaning work. Overcrowded and cluttered rooms get filled with dust, look unattractive and look smaller than they actually are. Save you free time for better things than cleaning by setting a system for organizing and decluttering your home and make sure everybody sticks to it.

~ Katherine

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Katherine is a small business owner. She is from London and she loves writing and reading. In her spare time she likes reading blogs about home organization, cleaning and decoration.