Christmas on a Shoe String (Without Looking Like It!)

I admit it. We were cheap this year. However, we gave more gifts this year, than last.

How is that possible?? I'm glad you asked!

First off I played the CVS game faithfully. I stored everything I got and then made my son's teachers baskets with Glade products, pens, pencils, book covers, etc. The rest of the items I put aside for our annual Survivor Style auction that we hold on Christmas Eve! This fun auction allows all the family and friends who show up at our house on Christmas Eve the chance to leave with a load of extras! So, we tone down our giving because the auction items we feel (and I'm know our family does too) count as additional gifts!! If they bid right, they can leave with items totaling more than 20-30 dollars easily!

Next, I checked all of my point oriented sites that I am member of. Survey sites like ZoomPanel, sites like My Points, and even our credit card points program and I look to see what kind of gifts I can grab. With ZoomPanel, I knocked out a CD on my sister's wish list. With My Points, I knocked out a Home Depot and a Subway gift card. Three gifts in total for FREE!

Moving on, I checked my Amazon.com gift card balance. There are plenty of ways to earn Amazon.com gift cards. So many in fact, that I've dedicated a whole post to it!! It includes sites like that Swagbucks and Opinion Outpost to name just two. With just over $60.00 already loaded in my account (which I earned in less than 2 months), I knocked out three more people. Thomas Train tracks for my nephew, a CD of traditional hymns for my mother, and three books and a CD on my sister's wish list. I even managed to sneak in a book for myself! All items qualified for Free Super Saver Shipping and Ta Da! All free with a whopping balance of $0.57 left to add to in my account!

Finally, I utilized coupons and sale ads. You might remember my Target deal and how I got Hungry Hippos travel games for free and Pictureka for $0.24. Two more gifts for friend's children down and 1 gift for my son's pre-school gift exchange down - for $0.24! I also kept receiving $10.00 off $10.00 Kohl's coupons and I utilized those to fill my son's stocking for FREE with Thomas items, window markers, trio blocks, and Imaginext toys, among other things.

One side of our family decided not to do gifts this year, which was a huge help, so beyond a little cash for a teenage nephew, we were Christmas spending free. That same family came to the auction and left with a bunch of goodies!

Except for a few other fill ins, mostly from a dollar store (baskets and candy), we were able to manage our Chirstmas on a Shoestring, that looked like anything but!!