Finding the 'living with it' difficult...

owetoomuch

I thought it was me, I still have slight panic attacks when I go shopping as I know I have no plastic enemy to bail me out if I spend too much. The upside is as wdiag says I wont be dreading the post in the new year.

Homework

After a while I began to wonder what I spent the money on. I go into shops that I used to go into and laugh at the prices and then cringe as I remember I used to pay that before I knew better.

betterlatethannever

Don't know if this info will help, but i've just read that 4.4 million people are still paying for LAST christmas!!!
This may not be your best and most memorable Christmas, but theres plenty of time to make it up to those you love.
My Christmas is going to horrid, i have one small present so far for my daughter and at this rate she might get a second small pressie, but thats it. Not sending cards, being fed and watered by parents, soggy, old, dusty plastic tree sits miserable in corner and i cry almost everytime i go out and see all the happy (debt ridden) faces around me and hear Slade,screaming 'Merry Xmas everybody' but come January i'll be smiling and they won't!! and next year WILL be soo much better!

Homework

I don't know what I would say if someone asked me to pay a Christmas Party with a credit card and then wait for the money to get paid back. I think my mouth would be so wide open I would be speechless.

Betterlatethannever - your child will remember a lovely Christmas with mum. when the children were younger I used to get a game usually from a family member who was throwing out for all the new things and we would plan around it. A bottle of fizzy, microwave popcorn in a bowl and we would sit down and play the game for hours. I think we did hot dogs one year and the children still remember the great Christmases and seem to have forgotten we did not get them much.

The thing is that in 12 months time there will be another Christmas so if you are able to get through this one you can have a better shot at it next year. That's what I keep telling myself.

scaredwitless32

The last couple of years I have 'cancelled' christmas, and I can honestly say that they have been THE best ever.........instead of stressing about whether I have brought enough food, drink, presents, I brought the bare necessities and had done with it! It was great, very laid back, great fun, and my OH was made redundant in DEC last year as well. :rotfl:
Christmas is what you MAKE it not what you spend on it, honestly, you can have just a good a time on a very tight budget.................just go visiting ALOT and enjoy other peoples food and drink :T:rotfl:

Save your money for the sales..........:rolleyes:

MammaCas

wherediditallgo wrote: »

I think this is the worst time of years for BRs, because everyone is spending around you & it's hard to do anything celebratory without spending money. For a start, there's no other time of year when you're expected to buy loads of things in one go (gifts, wrapping paper, cards), & the costs plus postage can really add up. My money-saving tips so far are:

• Design your own wrapping paper, cards & gift tags - I printed off some designs onto A4 & A3 paper at work (the place has got to be good for something ).

• I'll be sending e-cards this Christmas except where it's not practical.

• Anyone getting a gift from me will find it accompanied by an IOU for at least three things, & they'll relate to qualities I admire in the person. It's more personal than spending £50 on something they may not like that I can barely afford, & stretches the gift over several months rather than just Christmas Day.

• Most people I know prefer chicken to turkey, so if you're having people round for dinner over Christmas, buy chicken pieces now while they're cheap & freeze them.

There's a chance some people will focus on the negative this year, especially those newly BR & still coming to terms with the new financial constraints of no credit card, cheque book or overdraft. However, there are some positives too.

• If you are newly BR, this will probably be the first time in many years that you won't be dreading the credit cards statements coming in the new year.

• Even if you have an IPA, you have total control over whatever money is left once that's paid. That's got to be better than dealing with unexpected charges for returned direct debits, going over your overdraft limit etc.

• You can actually do a meaningful budget now. My pre-BR budget didn't really mean a lot, because I could still go out & buy things even if I didn't have the physical cash. Now my budget is less varied but it means a lot more, because it's based on what I've actually got. I can't afford to waste money any more on food I won't eat, clothes I won't wear & gadgets I'll hardly use.

• I've had to be more self-reliant & creative, not just because it's Christmas. I've started knitting again (two jumpers done so far :j), & I've bought cheap clothes but have put fancy buttons or trims on them to make them look a bit different from everyone else's. I've also made myself improve my computing knowledge the hard way because I can't afford to keep ringing helplines or buying computer mags. Before, I wouldn't have been so bothered.

• Not having debts on your mind frees up energy for other things. I'm actually planning to go back to my Open University degree in March, as the two biggest things that got in the way before were my health & the cost of materials. Now I can plan for my courses properly, because my health is much better & I won't have Mr & Mrs "I want your money - NOW" on my back. :T

• I don't go out any less than I did before, but I'm far more aware of what's going on locally that's free.

• I've rediscovered my love of cooking. I've had to - batch cooking works out a lot cheaper, & also saves time in the long run.

There are loads of negatives that come with being BR, but there are also many positives to look forward to once you've done it. The first Christmas is probably the hardest one, but it can be the nicest one too.

What a fantastic post :T

wherediditallgo

Homework wrote: »

I don't know what I would say if someone asked me to pay a Christmas Party with a credit card and then wait for the money to get paid back. I think my mouth would be so wide open I would be speechless.

I got asked to do that, as I'm organising the do this year. I told the cheeky article who said it that I was trying to keep a zero balance on my card in case I needed it for emergencies, but if they were volunteering their card that was great. I pointed out that if I'm organising it, I could set my own payment terms, which were cash up front for the restaurant deposit (which is non-refundable) & everyone settle their food bills on the night. If they weren't happy with that, they were more than welcome to take over organising the do including sorting out the money side themselves. Everyone has paid.

tigerfeet2006

Good for you WDIAG :beer: . Isn't that how it is done anyway? Was when I did it anyway

madoldbat

What a lot of great ideas and wonderful support you all are:beer:
This will be our 1st Christmas BR also.I find it difficult not to dash out and buy STUFF but like everyone else no money to spare
Thankfully all the decs we have had for years and still look good.
I have for years been cutting back on what we buy to eat simply because we cant eat it all.
Presies well we have always been short of cash so we have also maintained Birthdays are for extra big gifts:rolleyes: Christmas is a small token for all those we love.
Kids have pocket money and this year were told they had to buy pressies themselves:eek: limit of 5.00 per person so only 4 to buy (not a lot of family)they have but like me they have been round all the charity shops and ended up spending avrage of 3.00 per gift.
I have done the same for lots of gifts for all of us but had a limit of 10.00 pcm so been shopping since July.
Not going out to any glitzy places means sold most of my sparkly clothes on ebay & used that to buy a couple of bits.
Have saved stamps for Morrisons & Tesco for food 50.00 not a lot but will do.
Made cakes to give as pressies most people love these saves them having to buy a Christmas cake.
Going to use up all those Christmas cards in the stationery draw (must have at least 60 ) from other years.
I dont look at other shoppers in envey ,rushing round in a panic buying for the sake of it ,noise and crowds not for me thanks.
And best of all I can relax knowing I wont need to worry about the bills:j
Small note best pressie from OH a small ceramic gift box for about 50p contained a note I O U one Big Christmas preasent xx :A I still have it .It means more than a dimond ever could.His fave 5 yards red ribbon I wore one Christmas eve:o
Everyone on this thread has come through so much this year this is only another step.We will love and support each other and help were we can.Now if I remember correctly that was why the first Christmas is celibrated because of a child who came teach us just those values.

Zebedee69

madoldbat wrote: »

What a lot of great ideas and wonderful support you all are:beer:
This will be our 1st Christmas BR also.I find it difficult not to dash out and buy STUFF but like everyone else no money to spare
Thankfully all the decs we have had for years and still look good.
I have for years been cutting back on what we buy to eat simply because we cant eat it all.
Presies well we have always been short of cash so we have also maintained Birthdays are for extra big gifts:rolleyes: Christmas is a small token for all those we love.
Kids have pocket money and this year were told they had to buy pressies themselves:eek: limit of 5.00 per person so only 4 to buy (not a lot of family)they have but like me they have been round all the charity shops and ended up spending avrage of 3.00 per gift.
I have done the same for lots of gifts for all of us but had a limit of 10.00 pcm so been shopping since July.
Not going out to any glitzy places means sold most of my sparkly clothes on ebay & used that to buy a couple of bits.
Have saved stamps for Morrisons & Tesco for food 50.00 not a lot but will do.
Made cakes to give as pressies most people love these saves them having to buy a Christmas cake.
Going to use up all those Christmas cards in the stationery draw (must have at least 60 ) from other years.
I dont look at other shoppers in envey ,rushing round in a panic buying for the sake of it ,noise and crowds not for me thanks.
And best of all I can relax knowing I wont need to worry about the bills:j
Small note best pressie from OH a small ceramic gift box for about 50p contained a note I O U one Big Christmas preasent xx :A I still have it .It means more than a dimond ever could.His fave 5 yards red ribbon I wore one Christmas eve:o
Everyone on this thread has come through so much this year this is only another step.We will love and support each other and help were we can.Now if I remember correctly that was why the first Christmas is celibrated because of a child who came teach us just those values.

Aw I wanna live in your house...... It sounds realy fun:j