Trying to think ahead... Christmas

I know it's pretty early already, but I need to think ahead... and St. Nicholas Day is 7 short paychecks away. (Stockings are for then; Christmas is reserved for Jesus) It looks like my husband may be having surgery really soon & we'll have to live off of his short-term disability for one job, and the other job... yeah, he may just have to take a 6-week leave. I'm probably gonna have to go back to delivering newspapers for awhile to keep up with all of these doctor bills, and may only have whatever money I can make from reselling outgrown clothes & school books to get us through the Holidays. For Christmas I've already got a set of pink legos & a set of pirate mega blocks set aside, but that's it. I've got my eye on a couple stamp sets they've been asking for that I'm holding out for that 50% off post-Thanksgiving coupon. But it's the little things that I always have problems with.

What do y'all put in your kids' Christmas stockings? We've tried to stick to roughly $25 per kiddie, and that usually includes a few candies, (trust me... when you're buying all-natural candy it adds up fast!) a new pair of fun Christmas socks & new mittens, and one or two small fun things.

Does anyone have any "fun thing" ideas for about $5 apiece??? Oh... for anyone that doesn't already know, I need ideas for a (will be) 11yo boy and an almost 7yo girl.
love,
mom

 

Do they like stickers? We always got fruit and stickers and nuts in our stockings. Sometimes some fun coins. Like did you know that usually around Christmas time you can get one dollar bills with santa on them? (Its like a little sticker over George Washington's face, but it looks totally really) Or sometimes we would get $2 bills. You can get those kinds of things at most banks. You can get small packages of "fridge poetry" for under a buck. Harmonicas and kazoos are fun, but they are very loud .

 

You could get your girl some jacks and a bouncy ball.


10 year old boys are hard - too old for marbles, huh?

 

We put matchbox cars in stockings...
crayons or markers
finger paints
mini books
we find this stuff at the dollar store usually too

how about...
cds (more expensive though)
beads or other craft sulplies(sp?) like wiring or patches
what about home-made doll clothes for your daugther's favorite stuffed animal or doll?
funky shoelaces (I STILL remember getting a really cool pair when I was younger )
I say check out the different dollar stores in your area (we have quite a few) and see what you can find. I often find really neat little trinkets for my kids for x-mas stockings.

btw I wanted to add your not the only crazy one, lol I am buying x-mas stuff all year round.

 

don't worry, you're not the only one worrying about christmas now. I've started, too. We're also on a REALLY tight income and have to stretch it out. Sadily, when ever I buy something for someone ahread of time, I just get too excited and give it to them right away. I have to stop that.
Anywhooooo, on the the ideas........
earthy mama has got the right idea with the dollar store. I love that place. We have one here where absolutly NOTHING is over a dollar and you can find the most awsome stuff there. There's all kindsa craft things, building supplies, scrapbooking stuff, sewing stuff, coloring books, markers, paints, body stuff, funky towels and face clothes. All kindsa cool things.
we usually would get stuff like candy, a tooth brush (of course, with all that candy), a CD (cost permitting), body wash, hair stuff, and other little meaningful trinkets. Maybe an ordament (sp?) signifying something important.
That's about all the ideas I have for now. I'll post some more if I can come up with some new ideas.

 

Silly Putty was always a hit in my house, and it's cheap. Slinkies, colorful chalk (for driveway art), or crayons and colorbooks. You could get the little girl some cute barrets or hair clips, and all boys like little toy cars or trucks or planes (I even liked the micro machines when I was a little girl). All these things you could probably pick up at the dollar store too.

 

Two of my favorite stocking gifts were, cool christmas cookie cutters ( because I got to make cookies with Mom) and a homemade ginger bread house kit. THey are both fun things to do and you can spend time wtih them!

 

If there are good thrift stores in your area don't overlook them as a possibility. It's amazing what people get rid of in good condition. Also you could just make up little coupons for special treats, like a tea party with Mom,etc. things that are about spending time together instead of spending money. I've been broke a long time and sometimes the Holiday season can be a huge drag,you can get really down on yourself for not having $, please remember that this is a trick of our commercial materialistic society,they are trying to guilt trip you to get your money. Spending time with your kids, doing special stuff together is way way more meaningful than what you can buy. Don't let the greed machine get you down

 

What about colored pencils and art stuff?

 

make them some play-doh... free recipes all over the net

 

Some of the things I made last year...my boys are 7 and 4...

-bean bags from flannel and filled them with lentils. We also made a target board from a piece of wood, their dad cut holes and painted it.

-Superman capes...I made a bib-like front piece, sewed a cape to the shoulders and long ties to the bottom of the bib to tie around the waist. I also appliqued the "S" on the front.

-a set of 3 bib-style aprons each from tea towels and bias tape. Good for eating messy food, or helping in the kitchen...

edit: I just saw the ages you posted...

Does your daughter like dolls? How about a good old fashioned rag doll with a couple of outfits? There are patterns available on the net...

Shaped throw pillows for their beds? I was going to make a few road sign types for my boys...

 

Aww, thank you ALL so much It turns out that my husband isn't gonna need that surgery after all, but I'm so woefully behind in gift-buying this year that I really could use the ideas anyway. We have pretty “strict” guidelines to help us from getting stuck in the commercial aspects of the Holidays, but sometimes even they don’t help much. Sometimes it feels like we’re swimming upstream towards a waterfall, but then I see a glimmer of hope when my son says the only thing he wants for Christmas this year is a hand saw & a woodworking project to do with Daddy.

I think I’m going to be making my granddaughter (DD’s Waldorf doll Pretty Flower) a new dress or two. My daughter has a few dolls, but doesn’t really like taking on new children so a new doll might not interest her as much as new clothes for her current babies would. I’ve been measuring & going over fabric scraps for the past few ideas and brainstorming the possibilities.

As for my son, I’m working on it. I am gonna HAVE to make a gingerbread house with them this year. We talk about it every year, but we haven’t actually gotten around to doing it yet. That might be a fun project… maybe for the 1st day of winter!

Yeah Drumminmama; Renaissance isn’t quite their “thing.” We keep hoping, but don’t want to force our interests on them & so far we’ve seen only a passing interest. I know I can think like this too, it’s just that lately I feel like I’m running on empty. But THANKS for all the ideas 
love,
mom

 

how about having them make things for each other. make salt wter taffy and licorice and things...wrap them up in pretty ribbons and they can stuff each others stockings with them.