December 15, 2025 • 12 mins
Feeling the Christmas squeeze? You’re not alone—and you don’t have to drown in stress or debt to give your kids a magical holiday. In this episode, Justin and Kylie share six practical, heartfelt strategies real families use to make Christmas meaningful without blowing the budget. From essential-only Santa sacks to Secret Santa hacks, secondhand gems, and the power of one great gift, this episode is your permission to simplify and still make it special.
KEY POINTS
- The “Four Gifts of Christmas” method that instantly reduces overwhelm
- How to fill Santa sacks with essentials (and why kids don’t mind!)
- The #1 mindset shift for sticking to a realistic budget
- What to do when your extended family list hits 40+ people
- Secondhand gifts, handmade gifts, and why they often mean more
- Why one high-quality gift beats a pile of cheap ones
- The surprising research on vouchers and experiences
QUOTE OF THE EPISODE
“Giving looks different in different situations—but it can always be meaningful.”
RESOURCES MENTIONED
- Facebook Marketplace & Gumtree for secondhand gift finds
- Secret Santa / Kris Kringle group gifting
- Marketplace categories for bikes, Pokémon cards & kids’ items
ACTION STEPS FOR PARENTS
- Set a real budget (cash only, no credit card creep).
- Choose your gift-giving circle—kids, parents, or Secret Santa only.
- Use the Four Gifts framework: want, need, wear, read.
- Add essentials to stockings to lighten January expenses.
- Try secondhand or handmade for big-ticket or meaningful items.
- Pick one great quality gift instead of many small ones.
- Consider experiences or vouchers when you’re unsure what to buy.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:04):
Hello, this stopped justin Coilson. I'm here with Kylie, my
wife from Mum to our six kids. Kylie, have you
noticed we've been talking about Christmas for the last week
or so on the podcast. Sometimes we're really excited about it,
there's so much to look forward to, and other times
we're like.
Speaker 2 (00:14):
Oh, so hard. I don't want to do Christmas this year.
Speaker 3 (00:18):
I have felt it for the last few years, but
I'm hearing more and more people say to me, I
just don't want to do Christmas this year. There's a
shift in how we want to do Christmas.
Speaker 2 (00:29):
Yeah, yeah, nice. I like the way you've said that.
Speaker 1 (00:31):
So today we're talking about gifts, budgets, how much cash
to spend, how to get it all right. We're not
financial advisors, by the way, so you can take it
or leave it, And we don't want to do as
sort of a boring his hell to budget kind of conversation.
But we've asked our listeners, we've brainstormed together, we've talked
to families and come up with six things that can
help you to do Christmas on a budget.
Speaker 3 (00:51):
One of the things that was a game changer for us,
and you may have heard us talk about this before
is we go by the four gifts of Christmas.
Speaker 2 (01:00):
I always get around the wrong order you do it,
and I'll well.
Speaker 3 (01:02):
You buy them something they want, something they need, something
to wear, and something to read. That literally, with six kids,
having a little box that I can put gifts into
in those four areas revolutionize Christmas for me.
Speaker 2 (01:18):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (01:19):
The only trouble is sometimes when you're on a real
tide budget buying something they want, something they need, something
to wear, and something to read.
Speaker 2 (01:26):
That can be expensive. That can really add up fast.
Speaker 3 (01:28):
But yes it can. But depending on your budget, it
might be new undies and socks. You only get new
undies and socks at Christmas time, that's what you wear.
Speaker 4 (01:35):
Well.
Speaker 1 (01:36):
In fact, we were listening to Jess a little bit
earlier when we're having chat with her, and she said
that's exactly what she does with her Santa sax.
Speaker 4 (01:42):
But we do try to fill the Santa Sacks with
things the kids need anyway for the year ahead, So
a new lunch box and new shoes, undies, chocolates, things
we probably would have bought them anyway, and then to
save them up and put them into the Santa sack.
Speaker 3 (01:56):
So in Jess's situation. It's a new lunch box and
a drink bot.
Speaker 2 (02:00):
We do the same thing the Sata Sax. There's some
fun stuff in there.
Speaker 1 (02:03):
There's the ginger beer and the mango that we've already
talked about, but we actually go by the same thing,
and it really it bulks out the Christmas gift giving.
The kids are like, yeah, cool, I needed socks and
nundies anyway, or a lunch box. But it helps you
to say, all right, that's taken care of and now
we don't have to worry about it in January or
February when they go back to school.
Speaker 2 (02:20):
We've already bought it for Christmas.
Speaker 3 (02:22):
Well, the kids get all their tailet trees and there
yes in their Sanda Sax that I would buy them normally,
but I just store it up so it becomes a gift.
Speaker 1 (02:31):
Yeah, yeah, perfect. So that's one idea, one of our
six ideas. The next idea I reckon it's just important
to stick to a budget. So work out how much
money you've got and don't say, well the credit card
max is out at five grand or ten grand or
whatever it is, because that's a bad way to start
the new year.
Speaker 2 (02:47):
New Year's Resolution then has to be.
Speaker 1 (02:49):
Pay off the credit card, and that's not fun work
out how much cash you've got.
Speaker 3 (02:53):
I think it works in any situation, whether it be
the groceries or your shopping list for Christmas or whatever.
If you've got a list and you have a budget,
then you're more likely to stick to that, Whereas when
I would take you shopping, even though I knew what
the budget was and I had my shopping list, you'd
be like, Oh, we just need these chocolate chip cookies,
and we just need these as creams, and we just
(03:15):
need this, and all of a sudden, my budget would
blow out by fifty or seventy dollars.
Speaker 2 (03:20):
I'm really bad at this, just because you.
Speaker 3 (03:22):
Came along and you didn't know how to stick to
what I was trying to achieve.
Speaker 1 (03:26):
I have an inhibition problem. I have a self regulation problem,
Like this is that a bag you out?
Speaker 3 (03:30):
But it's just an acknowledgement. When we don't have a
budget or we don't have a list that we stick to.
What happens is we get caught up in the moment.
Speaker 1 (03:37):
And that happens anyway, So you know, not just with
the groceries, but every year we go through.
Speaker 2 (03:41):
Something they want something, they need, something to wear and
something to read.
Speaker 1 (03:44):
You do that careful, selective gift buying, keeping it to
our budget, and then I look at the gifts. I'm like, oh,
you've done all this great gift buying, Colylie, and I
haven't done anything. And then I go down to the
shops pull out the credit ye and then.
Speaker 3 (03:57):
I go, hang on a sec. Now, Abby and our
I have got like major gifts, and you've left out
these two kids over here.
Speaker 1 (04:04):
And I reckon, I've done it half a dozen times
over the last decade, and it always costs us and
we don't need it because you've done such thoughtful gift giving,
and I go and blow it all the time.
Speaker 2 (04:12):
My impulsiveness is you know that the other.
Speaker 3 (04:15):
Day we talked about how being on the same page
is really helpful and you know, sharing that cognitive load.
Speaker 1 (04:22):
Maybe if you and I sat down and talked, I know,
I know, I know I've got to do.
Speaker 3 (04:25):
Better, then you could go and buy some gifts because
off my list, I love to buy things and do
the giving myself, and I feel like, because you do
all of this on your own, I feel like I'm
not part of it.
Speaker 2 (04:36):
And therefore I haven't given it to them. You have.
It's always a surprised to me when I see what
the kids get. Let's just be.
Speaker 3 (04:40):
Clear, everybody, Let's just be clear. I beg for your involvement.
I know, and I have asked, and what's your what's
your normal response to me?
Speaker 2 (04:50):
I've just got to finish this email.
Speaker 3 (04:51):
I don't have the headspace.
Speaker 2 (04:52):
Don't have the head space.
Speaker 3 (04:54):
Just take care of it.
Speaker 2 (04:55):
Do you have any idea? How much work I've got?
Speaker 3 (04:56):
What? Whatever you want, honey, just you do it. I'll
be really grateful, all right.
Speaker 2 (05:01):
So that's the second ideas.
Speaker 1 (05:02):
First idea is by essentials and use them in the
Sanda sack or find other ways to give them as
part of something to wear, something they need, something they want,
something to read. I got around the wrong way, didn't I.
And the second thing is actually stick to a budget.
Work out what your budget's going to be and stick
to it. Now, this leads into.
Speaker 2 (05:20):
Its sort of dovetails with our third.
Speaker 3 (05:22):
Idea, determining who you're going to give to.
Speaker 1 (05:24):
Right, so, you want to give to everybody, but if
you've only got a budget, let's say a thousand dollars
for argument's sake, you just can't give to everybody.
Speaker 3 (05:31):
Well you can, but giving looks different in different situations.
Speaker 2 (05:35):
I like the way you said that. That's great.
Speaker 3 (05:37):
So if you want to stick to your budget, then
you need to look at who are the most important
people in this scenario that you want to give to.
Hu As a parent, I'm going to suggest it's going
to be your children that you want to give to.
Speaker 2 (05:51):
I can't believe you didn't see me.
Speaker 3 (05:52):
Oh, you're hilarious, mister. I'll just go and buy what
I want when I need.
Speaker 2 (05:56):
Stop it. Don't be like that. I get in trouble
for that all the time.
Speaker 3 (05:59):
Okay, But then you've got extended family members.
Speaker 1 (06:04):
Just on extended family, so there are twenty grandkids on
my parents' side.
Speaker 3 (06:09):
So that's twenty nephews and nieces, well it's four of them,
six of them of ours.
Speaker 1 (06:12):
Yeah, and then on your parents' side it's fifteen, which
takes down to nine. So we would be buying for
twenty three nieces and nephews as well as two sets
of parents, as well as you and I as well
as our six kids. We're literally up to forty or
fifty gifts or forty or fifty people that are buying
for like that is, it's astronomical, So when you're making the.
Speaker 2 (06:35):
List, you kind of need to work out.
Speaker 1 (06:38):
Well, in our family, our extended families, we do like
a what do you call it, a Chris Kringle Secret
Santa szod Santa, So the kids buy for one another.
Speaker 3 (06:46):
Well, in the beginning, it was the adults brought for adults.
But as we've gained more children in the family, what
we determined was that we wanted the kids to be
a part of the giving.
Speaker 2 (06:54):
Yeah, and the adults were all too hard to buy
for anyway.
Speaker 3 (06:57):
Yeah, we all decided when we want something, we get
what we want anyway, So let's let the kids be
a part of the giving process. And that's been fantastic.
But another couple of things that I've seen other people
do is Aunties have just brought every child a T shirt.
They get a brand new T shirt from Auntie Sarah
or a brand new book.
Speaker 2 (07:16):
Rachel, one of our listeners, said, this is what she does.
Speaker 3 (07:19):
We also have a good understanding with extended family that
we don't buy them presents and they don't buy for us.
Jess had a really good idea as well. When we're
trying to stick to a budget.
Speaker 4 (07:29):
We've organized a system where all the siblings get together
and buy a combined present for the other siblings, which
means we can all contribute a little bit less money,
but it's still collectively a large amount of money and
we can buy a decent present.
Speaker 1 (07:42):
So let's just do a quick recap on that. We've
got Chris Tringle and Secret Santa. Not everybody has to
buy something for everybody. It can just be one person
buying for one other person. That way, everyone gets a
gift from the nieces, nephew's, cousins, whoever it is.
Speaker 2 (07:54):
There's the idea of combining.
Speaker 1 (07:56):
Funds, which we've done many times for especially for the parents,
right for your parents or my parents or whoever. It's
really hard, so you can buy them with your siblings
and you can buy something really substantial, something that's really
really diightful, and still keep it within budget.
Speaker 2 (08:10):
The third thing that we need to talk about is
just making the list of gifts.
Speaker 3 (08:13):
Let's talk about that after the break. It's the Happy
Families podcast, the podcast for the time poor parent who
just wants answers now, and today we're talking about gifts, budgeting,
No gifts. That's what we're talking about, all right. So
we've got so much more exciting than budgets.
Speaker 1 (08:32):
We've covered off the power of making sure that we
know who we're buying for, know how much we've got
to spend, and we're giving essentials where we can and
turning them into really fun gifts like stuff in the
Santa Sack. But Kylie, you want to talk about how
you get the list of gifts right, especially when you're
on a budget.
Speaker 3 (08:49):
Rachel actually had a really good idea. We use Marketplace
or gum Tree to buy secondhand if needed. Our kids
know and they don't mind. So how do you feel
about secondhand gifts?
Speaker 2 (08:59):
I think it.
Speaker 1 (09:00):
I mean, if it's for me, I'm going to be
upset about it, But if for someone else, probably you're
so bad.
Speaker 2 (09:05):
I think it just depends on what it is.
Speaker 1 (09:07):
Like let's say you want to buy a bike and
somebody wants a really nice bike, then chances are that's
going to beyond most people's budgets.
Speaker 2 (09:14):
And I'd say, if you can get yourself a really.
Speaker 1 (09:16):
Nice secondhand bike, it's probably going to be fantastic, and
you'll get it for less than half price, Like you'll
save an absolute bundle. We've got a daughter who wants
Pokemon cards, and you can buy box sets of poker.
You can get the whole lot secondhand, really really well
priced on Facebook Marketplace.
Speaker 3 (09:31):
So thousand cards for one hundred and fifty.
Speaker 2 (09:33):
Dollars, not that you want to give away too much.
Speaker 3 (09:36):
I think I want a thousand cards.
Speaker 1 (09:38):
No, I don't want a thousand Pokemon cards in our
house either, but we've got a daughter who wants them.
So I reckon that that could be an idea. It
could be an option for some people in some circumstance.
Probably not always.
Speaker 3 (09:49):
I actually probably would have really struggled with secondhand until
a few years ago. One of my friends, she's really
really conscious about the environment, and she loves buying secondhand,
and so I wanted to give her a gift. And
I thought, it's going to feel a little bit like
a slap in the face if I go and buy
her something brand new, because it's not what she usually does.
And I knew that her family wanted a so to stream,
(10:10):
and so I got on Marketplace and somebody literally had
brought a brand new soda stream maker and realized that
they actually just didn't like it. So I decided I'd
get it. That it didn't come in a box, but
I got to wrap it up in a pretty parcel
for her and gift it to her family. And she
loved the fact that I had gone to the effort
of going secondhand.
Speaker 1 (10:29):
I love how it's harder to get stuff secondhand, and
yet it made a bigger impact. She was grateful that.
So I guess it comes down to value systems and
what people's expectations are. But secondhand's an option in terms
of making that list of gifts. You could also go handmade,
especially if you're on a budget. We've talked about that
in previous podcasts. But taking the time to make something
when you haven't got the cash to spend.
Speaker 2 (10:48):
Can be really, really meaningful. And something else that I
want to talk about.
Speaker 1 (10:52):
Science tells us that giving experiences is much better than
giving gifts as a general rule, when you get to
share the experience with somebody because you create those memories together.
Speaker 2 (11:03):
But if you can't give an experience.
Speaker 1 (11:05):
Or you're not quite sure what to give, especially if
you don't know them well, some researchers have discovered that
giving a voucher is incredibly effective. People love it when
they get a voucher, because then they can go and
spend the money on something that they really value and they.
Speaker 2 (11:18):
Still know that you've thought of them.
Speaker 1 (11:19):
Plus, if you give vouchers, you get to allow them
to take advantage of the Boxing day sales and that
kind of thing. So when you're making that list of gifts,
don't discount the power of a voucher, especially for somebody
that you might not be really well acquainted with or
just not sure what to get them.
Speaker 3 (11:35):
Well, Lisa had a really good point. When it comes
to gift giving.
Speaker 5 (11:40):
We try and buy one good gift that we know
that they're going to use, enjoy, and will create an
experience for our family.
Speaker 3 (11:50):
Ever since our kids were young, that has been our motto,
one hundred percent. I would rather our children get one
beautiful gift that's great quality. Might have cost us a
little bit more, but knowing that I could pass that one.
Speaker 2 (12:03):
Down, right, Yeah exactly, there were more than one.
Speaker 3 (12:05):
Kid who's going to enjoy this.
Speaker 1 (12:06):
We'll get multiple childhoods out of that one gift rather
than getting something that's going to be ruined by.
Speaker 2 (12:10):
New Year's Day.
Speaker 3 (12:11):
Yeah, totally.
Speaker 1 (12:12):
So I'm with Lisa on that one quality versus quantity.
When it comes to Christmas on a budget, sometimes worth
spending a touch more even if you end up with
a little less because of the longevity of it, and.
Speaker 3 (12:21):
Our last idea, utilizing sales and laybys can really help
when you're trying to manage your budget at Christmas time.
Speaker 1 (12:27):
Well, we really hope that these ideas are helpful for
you if you're doing Christmas on a budget like most
of us. The Happy Families podcast is produced by Justin
Rowland from Bridge Media, and if you would like more
info about making your family happier, check it all out
at happy families dot com dot i
Hello, this stopped justin Coilson. I'm here with Kylie, my
wife from Mum to our six kids. Kylie, have you
noticed we've been talking about Christmas for the last week
or so on the podcast. Sometimes we're really excited about it,
there's so much to look forward to, and other times
we're like.
Speaker 2 (00:14):
Oh, so hard. I don't want to do Christmas this year.
Speaker 3 (00:18):
I have felt it for the last few years, but
I'm hearing more and more people say to me, I
just don't want to do Christmas this year. There's a
shift in how we want to do Christmas.
Speaker 2 (00:29):
Yeah, yeah, nice. I like the way you've said that.
Speaker 1 (00:31):
So today we're talking about gifts, budgets, how much cash
to spend, how to get it all right. We're not
financial advisors, by the way, so you can take it
or leave it, And we don't want to do as
sort of a boring his hell to budget kind of conversation.
But we've asked our listeners, we've brainstormed together, we've talked
to families and come up with six things that can
help you to do Christmas on a budget.
Speaker 3 (00:51):
One of the things that was a game changer for us,
and you may have heard us talk about this before
is we go by the four gifts of Christmas.
Speaker 2 (01:00):
I always get around the wrong order you do it,
and I'll well.
Speaker 3 (01:02):
You buy them something they want, something they need, something
to wear, and something to read. That literally, with six kids,
having a little box that I can put gifts into
in those four areas revolutionize Christmas for me.
Speaker 2 (01:18):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (01:19):
The only trouble is sometimes when you're on a real
tide budget buying something they want, something they need, something
to wear, and something to read.
Speaker 2 (01:26):
That can be expensive. That can really add up fast.
Speaker 3 (01:28):
But yes it can. But depending on your budget, it
might be new undies and socks. You only get new
undies and socks at Christmas time, that's what you wear.
Speaker 4 (01:35):
Well.
Speaker 1 (01:36):
In fact, we were listening to Jess a little bit
earlier when we're having chat with her, and she said
that's exactly what she does with her Santa sax.
Speaker 4 (01:42):
But we do try to fill the Santa Sacks with
things the kids need anyway for the year ahead, So
a new lunch box and new shoes, undies, chocolates, things
we probably would have bought them anyway, and then to
save them up and put them into the Santa sack.
Speaker 3 (01:56):
So in Jess's situation. It's a new lunch box and
a drink bot.
Speaker 2 (02:00):
We do the same thing the Sata Sax. There's some
fun stuff in there.
Speaker 1 (02:03):
There's the ginger beer and the mango that we've already
talked about, but we actually go by the same thing,
and it really it bulks out the Christmas gift giving.
The kids are like, yeah, cool, I needed socks and
nundies anyway, or a lunch box. But it helps you
to say, all right, that's taken care of and now
we don't have to worry about it in January or
February when they go back to school.
Speaker 2 (02:20):
We've already bought it for Christmas.
Speaker 3 (02:22):
Well, the kids get all their tailet trees and there
yes in their Sanda Sax that I would buy them normally,
but I just store it up so it becomes a gift.
Speaker 1 (02:31):
Yeah, yeah, perfect. So that's one idea, one of our
six ideas. The next idea I reckon it's just important
to stick to a budget. So work out how much
money you've got and don't say, well the credit card
max is out at five grand or ten grand or
whatever it is, because that's a bad way to start
the new year.
Speaker 2 (02:47):
New Year's Resolution then has to be.
Speaker 1 (02:49):
Pay off the credit card, and that's not fun work
out how much cash you've got.
Speaker 3 (02:53):
I think it works in any situation, whether it be
the groceries or your shopping list for Christmas or whatever.
If you've got a list and you have a budget,
then you're more likely to stick to that, Whereas when
I would take you shopping, even though I knew what
the budget was and I had my shopping list, you'd
be like, Oh, we just need these chocolate chip cookies,
and we just need these as creams, and we just
(03:15):
need this, and all of a sudden, my budget would
blow out by fifty or seventy dollars.
Speaker 2 (03:20):
I'm really bad at this, just because you.
Speaker 3 (03:22):
Came along and you didn't know how to stick to
what I was trying to achieve.
Speaker 1 (03:26):
I have an inhibition problem. I have a self regulation problem,
Like this is that a bag you out?
Speaker 3 (03:30):
But it's just an acknowledgement. When we don't have a
budget or we don't have a list that we stick to.
What happens is we get caught up in the moment.
Speaker 1 (03:37):
And that happens anyway, So you know, not just with
the groceries, but every year we go through.
Speaker 2 (03:41):
Something they want something, they need, something to wear and
something to read.
Speaker 1 (03:44):
You do that careful, selective gift buying, keeping it to
our budget, and then I look at the gifts. I'm like, oh,
you've done all this great gift buying, Colylie, and I
haven't done anything. And then I go down to the
shops pull out the credit ye and then.
Speaker 3 (03:57):
I go, hang on a sec. Now, Abby and our
I have got like major gifts, and you've left out
these two kids over here.
Speaker 1 (04:04):
And I reckon, I've done it half a dozen times
over the last decade, and it always costs us and
we don't need it because you've done such thoughtful gift giving,
and I go and blow it all the time.
Speaker 2 (04:12):
My impulsiveness is you know that the other.
Speaker 3 (04:15):
Day we talked about how being on the same page
is really helpful and you know, sharing that cognitive load.
Speaker 1 (04:22):
Maybe if you and I sat down and talked, I know,
I know, I know I've got to do.
Speaker 3 (04:25):
Better, then you could go and buy some gifts because
off my list, I love to buy things and do
the giving myself, and I feel like, because you do
all of this on your own, I feel like I'm
not part of it.
Speaker 2 (04:36):
And therefore I haven't given it to them. You have.
It's always a surprised to me when I see what
the kids get. Let's just be.
Speaker 3 (04:40):
Clear, everybody, Let's just be clear. I beg for your involvement.
I know, and I have asked, and what's your what's
your normal response to me?
Speaker 2 (04:50):
I've just got to finish this email.
Speaker 3 (04:51):
I don't have the headspace.
Speaker 2 (04:52):
Don't have the head space.
Speaker 3 (04:54):
Just take care of it.
Speaker 2 (04:55):
Do you have any idea? How much work I've got?
Speaker 3 (04:56):
What? Whatever you want, honey, just you do it. I'll
be really grateful, all right.
Speaker 2 (05:01):
So that's the second ideas.
Speaker 1 (05:02):
First idea is by essentials and use them in the
Sanda sack or find other ways to give them as
part of something to wear, something they need, something they want,
something to read. I got around the wrong way, didn't I.
And the second thing is actually stick to a budget.
Work out what your budget's going to be and stick
to it. Now, this leads into.
Speaker 2 (05:20):
Its sort of dovetails with our third.
Speaker 3 (05:22):
Idea, determining who you're going to give to.
Speaker 1 (05:24):
Right, so, you want to give to everybody, but if
you've only got a budget, let's say a thousand dollars
for argument's sake, you just can't give to everybody.
Speaker 3 (05:31):
Well you can, but giving looks different in different situations.
Speaker 2 (05:35):
I like the way you said that. That's great.
Speaker 3 (05:37):
So if you want to stick to your budget, then
you need to look at who are the most important
people in this scenario that you want to give to.
Hu As a parent, I'm going to suggest it's going
to be your children that you want to give to.
Speaker 2 (05:51):
I can't believe you didn't see me.
Speaker 3 (05:52):
Oh, you're hilarious, mister. I'll just go and buy what
I want when I need.
Speaker 2 (05:56):
Stop it. Don't be like that. I get in trouble
for that all the time.
Speaker 3 (05:59):
Okay, But then you've got extended family members.
Speaker 1 (06:04):
Just on extended family, so there are twenty grandkids on
my parents' side.
Speaker 3 (06:09):
So that's twenty nephews and nieces, well it's four of them,
six of them of ours.
Speaker 1 (06:12):
Yeah, and then on your parents' side it's fifteen, which
takes down to nine. So we would be buying for
twenty three nieces and nephews as well as two sets
of parents, as well as you and I as well
as our six kids. We're literally up to forty or
fifty gifts or forty or fifty people that are buying
for like that is, it's astronomical, So when you're making the.
Speaker 2 (06:35):
List, you kind of need to work out.
Speaker 1 (06:38):
Well, in our family, our extended families, we do like
a what do you call it, a Chris Kringle Secret
Santa szod Santa, So the kids buy for one another.
Speaker 3 (06:46):
Well, in the beginning, it was the adults brought for adults.
But as we've gained more children in the family, what
we determined was that we wanted the kids to be
a part of the giving.
Speaker 2 (06:54):
Yeah, and the adults were all too hard to buy
for anyway.
Speaker 3 (06:57):
Yeah, we all decided when we want something, we get
what we want anyway, So let's let the kids be
a part of the giving process. And that's been fantastic.
But another couple of things that I've seen other people
do is Aunties have just brought every child a T shirt.
They get a brand new T shirt from Auntie Sarah
or a brand new book.
Speaker 2 (07:16):
Rachel, one of our listeners, said, this is what she does.
Speaker 3 (07:19):
We also have a good understanding with extended family that
we don't buy them presents and they don't buy for us.
Jess had a really good idea as well. When we're
trying to stick to a budget.
Speaker 4 (07:29):
We've organized a system where all the siblings get together
and buy a combined present for the other siblings, which
means we can all contribute a little bit less money,
but it's still collectively a large amount of money and
we can buy a decent present.
Speaker 1 (07:42):
So let's just do a quick recap on that. We've
got Chris Tringle and Secret Santa. Not everybody has to
buy something for everybody. It can just be one person
buying for one other person. That way, everyone gets a
gift from the nieces, nephew's, cousins, whoever it is.
Speaker 2 (07:54):
There's the idea of combining.
Speaker 1 (07:56):
Funds, which we've done many times for especially for the parents,
right for your parents or my parents or whoever. It's
really hard, so you can buy them with your siblings
and you can buy something really substantial, something that's really
really diightful, and still keep it within budget.
Speaker 2 (08:10):
The third thing that we need to talk about is
just making the list of gifts.
Speaker 3 (08:13):
Let's talk about that after the break. It's the Happy
Families podcast, the podcast for the time poor parent who
just wants answers now, and today we're talking about gifts, budgeting,
No gifts. That's what we're talking about, all right. So
we've got so much more exciting than budgets.
Speaker 1 (08:32):
We've covered off the power of making sure that we
know who we're buying for, know how much we've got
to spend, and we're giving essentials where we can and
turning them into really fun gifts like stuff in the
Santa Sack. But Kylie, you want to talk about how
you get the list of gifts right, especially when you're
on a budget.
Speaker 3 (08:49):
Rachel actually had a really good idea. We use Marketplace
or gum Tree to buy secondhand if needed. Our kids
know and they don't mind. So how do you feel
about secondhand gifts?
Speaker 2 (08:59):
I think it.
Speaker 1 (09:00):
I mean, if it's for me, I'm going to be
upset about it, But if for someone else, probably you're
so bad.
Speaker 2 (09:05):
I think it just depends on what it is.
Speaker 1 (09:07):
Like let's say you want to buy a bike and
somebody wants a really nice bike, then chances are that's
going to beyond most people's budgets.
Speaker 2 (09:14):
And I'd say, if you can get yourself a really.
Speaker 1 (09:16):
Nice secondhand bike, it's probably going to be fantastic, and
you'll get it for less than half price, Like you'll
save an absolute bundle. We've got a daughter who wants
Pokemon cards, and you can buy box sets of poker.
You can get the whole lot secondhand, really really well
priced on Facebook Marketplace.
Speaker 3 (09:31):
So thousand cards for one hundred and fifty.
Speaker 2 (09:33):
Dollars, not that you want to give away too much.
Speaker 3 (09:36):
I think I want a thousand cards.
Speaker 1 (09:38):
No, I don't want a thousand Pokemon cards in our
house either, but we've got a daughter who wants them.
So I reckon that that could be an idea. It
could be an option for some people in some circumstance.
Probably not always.
Speaker 3 (09:49):
I actually probably would have really struggled with secondhand until
a few years ago. One of my friends, she's really
really conscious about the environment, and she loves buying secondhand,
and so I wanted to give her a gift. And
I thought, it's going to feel a little bit like
a slap in the face if I go and buy
her something brand new, because it's not what she usually does.
And I knew that her family wanted a so to stream,
(10:10):
and so I got on Marketplace and somebody literally had
brought a brand new soda stream maker and realized that
they actually just didn't like it. So I decided I'd
get it. That it didn't come in a box, but
I got to wrap it up in a pretty parcel
for her and gift it to her family. And she
loved the fact that I had gone to the effort
of going secondhand.
Speaker 1 (10:29):
I love how it's harder to get stuff secondhand, and
yet it made a bigger impact. She was grateful that.
So I guess it comes down to value systems and
what people's expectations are. But secondhand's an option in terms
of making that list of gifts. You could also go handmade,
especially if you're on a budget. We've talked about that
in previous podcasts. But taking the time to make something
when you haven't got the cash to spend.
Speaker 2 (10:48):
Can be really, really meaningful. And something else that I
want to talk about.
Speaker 1 (10:52):
Science tells us that giving experiences is much better than
giving gifts as a general rule, when you get to
share the experience with somebody because you create those memories together.
Speaker 2 (11:03):
But if you can't give an experience.
Speaker 1 (11:05):
Or you're not quite sure what to give, especially if
you don't know them well, some researchers have discovered that
giving a voucher is incredibly effective. People love it when
they get a voucher, because then they can go and
spend the money on something that they really value and they.
Speaker 2 (11:18):
Still know that you've thought of them.
Speaker 1 (11:19):
Plus, if you give vouchers, you get to allow them
to take advantage of the Boxing day sales and that
kind of thing. So when you're making that list of gifts,
don't discount the power of a voucher, especially for somebody
that you might not be really well acquainted with or
just not sure what to get them.
Speaker 3 (11:35):
Well, Lisa had a really good point. When it comes
to gift giving.
Speaker 5 (11:40):
We try and buy one good gift that we know
that they're going to use, enjoy, and will create an
experience for our family.
Speaker 3 (11:50):
Ever since our kids were young, that has been our motto,
one hundred percent. I would rather our children get one
beautiful gift that's great quality. Might have cost us a
little bit more, but knowing that I could pass that one.
Speaker 2 (12:03):
Down, right, Yeah exactly, there were more than one.
Speaker 3 (12:05):
Kid who's going to enjoy this.
Speaker 1 (12:06):
We'll get multiple childhoods out of that one gift rather
than getting something that's going to be ruined by.
Speaker 2 (12:10):
New Year's Day.
Speaker 3 (12:11):
Yeah, totally.
Speaker 1 (12:12):
So I'm with Lisa on that one quality versus quantity.
When it comes to Christmas on a budget, sometimes worth
spending a touch more even if you end up with
a little less because of the longevity of it, and.
Speaker 3 (12:21):
Our last idea, utilizing sales and laybys can really help
when you're trying to manage your budget at Christmas time.
Speaker 1 (12:27):
Well, we really hope that these ideas are helpful for
you if you're doing Christmas on a budget like most
of us. The Happy Families podcast is produced by Justin
Rowland from Bridge Media, and if you would like more
info about making your family happier, check it all out
at happy families dot com dot i
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