How to Find the Perfect Holiday Gift at a Great Price

It is now December and the days are going by very quickly. You are still wondering what to do about all the gifts you would like to get for the people you love and care about, but the budget isn’t stretching quite as far as you would like. This realization is zapping the peace, love, joy and goodwill you should be feeling. With a little bit of thought and a little creativity we can put the joy back into the holidays. Let’s look at several things we can do to stretch that budget and give meaningful gifts.

Almost all stores that sell books have clearance or bargain books even the local grocery store. Large book sellers like Borders and Barnes and Nobles have bargain book aisles where you can purchase books very inexpensively--for as low as $1.00 and usually not more than $10.00.

Dollar Stores like Dollar Tree, Family Dollar and General Dollar, etc have a great selection of books for people of all ages. You may not find the latest NY Times bestseller but I’ll bet you will find really good books. Some of my greatest treasures were found in stores like these.

Amazon has a very large selection of bargain books as does other online bookselllers.

Garage/yard sales and used book stores are great places to find wonderful books, especially hardcover classics, for as little as 25 cents each.

Heart print gifts are those we give out of sincerety and love.

Gift Baskets - Easy to put together and who doesn’t like receiving a gift basket. Many of the places mentioned above are great places to find toys, books, DVDs, games, power tools, etc. that can be beautifully arranged for some special person in your life.

Candy, Cookies, etc. - There are large selections of inexpensive boxed candy available almost everywhere--my favorite is the Queen Anne Chocolate-covered Cherries (less than $2.00). Use your favorite recipe or purchase refrigerator cookies bake them, put them on a colorful plate or platter and take to office parties, give to neighbors, use as hostess gifts, distribute to elderly, homeless shelters, etc.

Hostess Gifts - You can find great baskets, ornaments, glassware and other small trinkets at the dollar stores and with the right card (handwritten) they make perfect gifts that will never break the bank or budget.

Department Stores - Of course all the high-end stores, outlet malls and department stores have bargain and clearance areas.

Year-round Shopping - Look for things throughout the year. Almost all stores have clearance bins and or items on the ends of aisles that are great bargains.

Make a list of your family and friends and the kinds of things they like. Keep it close so that you can refer to it as you shop.

Thrift Stores - Thrift Stores including Goodwill and Salvation Army and any variety of others have used, barely used and sometimes new items that can satisfy the bargain hunter in all of us.

• Set a limit, i.e, nothing over $5.00 and make sure everyone stick to the rules.
• Pull names and instead of buying 25 gifts--just one (you get the picture)
• Gather the family together and instead of exchanging gifts become a Secret Santa for a homeless family, the local women and children’s shelter, etc. The local United Way can give you names of organizations that will help you connect with a family or a child to "adopt" or sponsor for Christmas.
• Volunteer to read to children in the hospital (be sure to include your own children)
• Volunteer to help at the local food bank or some of the many shelters where food is being served (again include your own children--this is not only a memory but a valuable lesson.
• Have an old fashion Christmas by making some, if not all, the decorations for the tree. The kids will love this one and think about years from now and the stories they will tell.
• Extend the above idea to a new rule this year --- instead of buying a gift--the gift must be something the person find, make or do for someone else.
• Let the children color or paint a picture of anything they want, frame it, and begin a, “masterpiece” wall. Like the museums do--unveil their artwork on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day.
• Have a night of hot chocolate, cookies and music and sit around the tree talking, singing and sharing stories as a family.--or--have a picnic dinner under the tree.
• Bring out the sleeping bags and have a “sleep-around-the-tree.
• Watch a Christmas movie together as a family.
• Provide breakfast in bed for a your spouse or significate other.
• Make coupons and use as stocking stuffers redeemable for things like an evening of babysitting for a friend, help a friend clean house, run errands for an elderly neighbor, etc.
• Get a tablecloth or a flat sheet and ask everyone who enters your home to sign their name. If you want to used this all years for family and friend gatherings use a white or solid (neutral) color. If you only want it to be used for the holidays use a holiday color--like green, red, white of silver--on a white cloth or sheet use markers in the holiday colors. NOTE: make sure the signature doesn't bleed through… so use some type of backing.

These are only a few ideas so put on your thinking caps and be creative. You may be surprised how many more your may come up with.

The idea is to stay within your budget while letting those you love know that you remembered them and that you want to wish them peace, love and goodwill.

My spin on a little saying that made the rounds some years ago is “be blessed, not stressed.

Remember, the most precious gifts are priceless because they are from the heart. "You give but little when you give of your possessions. It is when you give of yourself that you truly give." Kahhil Gibran, The Prophet