Treat yourself. Christmas is the season of giving and if you give too much you will be stressed out and tired. What you need to do is to relax for at least 15-20 minutes even if it is something as simple as having a cup of tea and a muffin or reading a magazine.

I understand that there are a lot of things that need to be done… Although time will still pass regardless of whether or not you one thing or another.

If you can’t spare that extra few minutes have a cup of tea while doing the Christmas cards. Despite what every manufacturer tries to persuade you,  getting a card will not stop the world and sending them should not cause you undue stress, either.

I went to an office supply store last night to buy some stocking stuffers. I looked at some label tape for a label maker and saw that the price for one was $16.99 and the price for two cartridges of the same size was $34.99. There was no special prize or offer if I purchased the two pack the only incentive was that they were wrapped in one package. So if I wanted to help the environment because I would have less packaging for the two pack my reward would be to pay an additional $1.01. Less packaging is great except when it costs me more money to get it. Who would want to pay more money to be environmentally friendly?

I also made another stop to a local coffee shop and bought a pound bag of coffee. I could have carried the coffee with me without a bag but since they also give you a free cup coffee when you purchase a pound I chose to take my own cloth bag instead of getting the coffee in a plastic bag. That way, I wouldn’t spill hot coffee on my coat. Everything worked out.

Keep these two things in mind when you are shopping: First, make sure that the packaged “deal” that you are getting is really a deal. Second, if you are only buying one or two things take your own bag especially if you are grocery shopping or buying perishables.

Granted taking your own bag for some things doesn’t really work and if there is the possibility that some of the items may be returned. It is easier to return something in a store’s own bag (with the receipt of course) than to bring your own bag.

Happy and attentive shopping!

Twelve days until Christmas and I am almost done with my shopping. I have a couple of things that are stumping me though. I do not know what to get. 

There are still opportunities for free shipping so your gifts will arrive before Christmas. Amazon tells you how many days you have left to take advantage of free shipping in order to get it before Christmas. I got a reminder in my email box today from Smartbargains.com that shipping is free through today. Best Buy has free shipping for items listed in their recent circular.

All of these free shipping opportunities are nothing more than a way to get your business. I understand. When I went shopping the other day the salesclerks in various stores were very available and very friendly. There were not a lot of people out buying or even looking. Things were rather dead. I can understand that. About half of the items I purchased so far were purchased online because I saved money that way.

I saved up before Christmas and I have a spending plan in place. I did go a little over on a couple of gifts because I knew I would considerably spend less on the shipping than on the gift so that actually worked out in my favor. Instead of spending $10 on shipping I was able to send something in a card for less than $1.

Mailing gifts to people unless you are getting free shipping and honestly some places with great things do not offer those free gimmicks to entice you. If you want to order candy or food items these places often do not offer free shipping but if you do not have to wrap and prepare the gift yourself it is often worth it. I saw some wonderful goodies at Mrs. Prindables and Sees and Harry & David and when you factor in shipping some things are over budget. Going over budget is a problem but the closer you get to Christmas, the less time you have to quibble over price if you want an item to arrive on time.

In order to avoid that, look for items that will definitely fit into your budget but with perishables delivery is the biggest factor in price. In that case, you can always send someone a gift card for the place and they can choose their own goodies. There are other ways to get around this… order things like nuts or non-chocolate candies. Even when you go look at fruit and floral baskets in the grocery store or gourmet stores the prices are much higher than the materials that go into them. For candy if you are buying certain candies you can still get a wonderful gift for under $30 but unless the person really likes the type of candy then do you want to spend half the price of the gift in shipping? I don’t.

When shipping a gift, make a selection where the person will be able to use the majority of the gift and not have the value eaten up in shipping.

Rate cut… again

Well that means that now that the interest rate has been cut another quarter of a percent, interest rates for savings accounts may decrease a little. Although in order to entice people to save more money the rates may stay the same. Especially since personal savings accounts are at an all time low.

What will this mean for us is that a housing recession will make a difference in our spending. If you are saving for a house and do not have one that is contingent on you selling an existing property then you will be able to find a great deal. For those who are paying a mortgage if you owe more than your house is worth you probably do not want to pay for an albatross around your neck. If your house is worth more than you paid for it even in the current market you would be more likely to hold on to your investment.

Jackie Castleberry won’t be playing Santa Claus this year.

The interest rate on her four-bedroom home loan shot up in October and she is $6,000 behind on her payments. She now owes $168,000 on her home, which once was worth $220,000 but is now worth about $150,000.

In the past, when times were tough, she would borrow against her home’s equity — that’s no longer possible.

“I was always seen as the person that’s giving, but it’s kind of affected this year,” said Castleberry, a former casino buffet supervisor who now makes $11 an hour, 30 hours a week, supervising children before and after school. “This year, I can’t see anything right now as far as gifts.”

If the interest rates for loans such as mortgages and other forms of credit decrease that means that people can also borrow more which is good in some ways but bad if people are not adequately confronting their debt. Christmastime is difficult for people who do not budget and have adequate savings to fund the Christmas they want. So instead of paring down, people will spend more. A drop in interest rates affects many things such as our comfort that the money we have will be adequate for our needs.

Home equity loans which seemed tempting to some are coming back to haunt them with a vengeance. Having some sort of savings makes a difference when times get tough such as a job loss. Using your home as a piggybank, which is what thousands of people have done has contributed to the housing crisis.

Having enough is based on personal comfort levels and spending levels. One person who earns 100,000 a year may have a different comfort level than a person who earns 25,000 but either way both earners need to save. It is easier to save and live below your means if you make more money than it is if you make less but you can still omit things in order to make little lasting changes.

I did a bit of online shopping last night and one item I couldn’t find but the more I thought about it I think I will pay the few extra dollars to get that item and accessories locally. Sure I will save about 6 or 7 dollars since I will have to pay tax instead of getting a reduced shipping rate. If the person doesn’t like the item, and didn’t specifically ask for it, I would rather buy the item at a store where the person can exchange the item with a gift receipt.

I have exchanged items online before and even when you get free shipping returns aren’t always free especially if the item is not defective.

To me the few extra dollars is worth it especially if the person decided that he doesn’t want the gift or would like it in a different color. When there is no doubt that the person would like this gift or if it is a food/floral item then ordering online versus in person always comes down to cost. When you are not sure whether or not the person would like the gift and know that the person would not use a gift card make sure you can return it.

Cash would be an option, but this person doesn’t really need any cash and I think the person would like the gift.

Unless I can find a place where I will receive free shipping for what I want today because I have exhausted my ususal sources – they are sold out of what I want.

If you are uncertain about the gift like I am, I would say spend the few extra dollars buying an item where the gift recipient can return it without any problems. That is what I am going to do.