How much we spent on Christmas gifts this year!

[@TheAshesvondust]

I just learned a tip from my mom that blew my mind! She was a single mom of 3, worked full time, AND volunteered her time so we could live in a co op development. So money was always tight. I knew she would buy little presents throughout the year and hide them for Christmas (and sometimes forget where she hid them, lol) but one thing I never realized when I was a kid was her trick for giving me a larger number of gifts: She would buy gift sets or toys with lots of parts, and break them down and wrap parts separately. So, she might buy an arts and crafts kit, but wrap the paints in one package, pastels in another, etc. So I always got to open many gifts and felt like I got 8 gifts when it was really just one gift xD That woman is a genius, I tell you.

[@ridita5221]

It's a great idea. The kids usually don't care with the price, they just want to open a lot of gifts.

[@plilly1003]

Ashes B Please thank your mom for me. I’m totally doing this next year. 👍🏼

[@elisimming5191]

Brilliant. Truly.

[@Cece_who]

Ashes B i am also doing that with my husband So the big kid is happy too :D

[@Miateut]

Mind. Blown!

[@youvegotmel7719]

.........someone said there isn't a handbook on parenting or life, but from the last 3 hours of your videos, I have watched you have proved them wrong! You have given me so much guidance and I am happy to have stumbled upon your videos! OMG, my eyes are burning. After each one, I say 'last one', but then there's another great video !! You are amazing Jordan Page!!! I am a single mom to a 2-year-old and I cannot wait to apply a lot of the things I've learned tonight... Now, the last one lol

[@skyed105]

Omg I couldn't have said that better! That is exactly me since lastnight. I can't stop watching her videos and I just want to apply everything I've learned. 💗

[@gracetomuri]

Couldn’t agree more! I’m Obsessed with this chick and her Channel now . what a awesome lady helping us all out with stuff we may not have thought of or just making us feel in general we aren’t alone. and that you sometimes still have to budget things out even if you have good incomes etc . :)

[@TanaMakes]

I'm not even a parent yet and that taking a picture with a gift tip has blown my mind. I'm about to be in stores taking selfies with stuff to see if I end up really needing it 😂

[@MsDianaJean]

Tanairí I’ll be right there with you. I’m just like a kid in that I can get caught up & be blinded by a good deal.

[@Iheart2cook]

Tanairí That’s really wise of you 😀

[@ArtyAntics]

I do that too, esp with my crafting items. I store it at the store till i have a project in mind then flick through my pics to find the one to match my project. Saves me a fortune lol!

[@MadeleineHenderson]

haha!

[@J-B-P]

Same lol!!

[@HeatherOdeh]

Thank you for actually doing low cost stocking stuffers! I am sick of bloggers who encourage stocking stuffers that are like $50 Plus dollars!

[@jordanhopehinshaw114]

Heather Odeh yeah, the most expensive thing i ever got was still under $10, all i've ever know was little things like candy and tooth brushes!!

[@hannahslife8157]

Jordan H the most expensive thing I’ve got in my stocking was $60 which was a gift card

[@mercedesd3944]

I used to get candy and a nose piercing ring usually was between $10-15 (cad) for the stocking

[@doctorwholover1012]

Yep, my parents always do a silly toy under 10 quid, funny shape soap, a cute decoration for the tree, chocolate coins or animals, socks and gloves in festive or silly colours, and little things like nail polish or cute travel toiletries or stationary. Meanwhile the girl I worked with's dad bought her 200 quid worth of jewelry just for her stocking ! Crazy 🤯

[@annaskywords9633]

It takes a brave family to share so many details of your lives. I do learn a lot so from the bottom of my heart thank you !

[@emilyjean222]

When I was little, once the Sears catalog arrived in the mail.. it was on. I'll go through and circle all the stuff I wanted and put stars near the stuff I really really wanted. ;)

[@EmeryShae]

Emily Jean sears in Canada is now closed forever... no more Wish Book!

[@bay32b]

Yes!! LOL, I did the same thing has a kid! Wow how time goes by...I forgot all about that! 💕

[@CouponStar]

I did too!!!! I’m dated myself to say I did the Consumers catalogue too lol.

[@brroookkeee]

Emily Jean That’s exactly what I did! :)

[@livingwithhart9911]

I used to do that too! I would cut out the pictures and glue them to a “list” and my brother would cut out the descriptions and glue them to his!

[@granitemoss1451]

Love that you put out, up front, no shaming of ANYONE. While I have not seen any shaming for those spending less, on some vlogs, people seem to feel free to shame the big spenders. And like you say, it's different for every household, and if a household can afford and chooses to go big, that's their business.

[@celesteschannel374]

@H K It's their business, you don't need to shame others. They can buy that many toys if they want to for their kids.

[@mckinleywillis3545]

My mom and dad does something you want, something you need, something to wear, and something to read, from each parent! An easy way to keep it simple.

[@jarodfalk3078]

My parents do that as well!!!!

[@meganellis748]

We were a college family when I was little. We lived in the family housing at BYU. My mom didn't work and my dad was a full time student who worked over night. We would get food from Santa. It was usually special food that was more expensive then our every day things. Large boxes of cereal or special shaped macaroni and cheese. We then spent weeks bartering with our food. If I wanted a bowl of my sisters cereal I had to give her some of mine. If mom asked what we wanted for dinner someone would say, "make my mac n cheese" It was a fun way to learn to share and it didn't feel like we were missing any gifts. We did the same thing for long road trips. Each of us would have our own box of snacks and books that we would trade and share on the long rides across country to visit family.

[@Daringtobemyself]

That is so sweet. I remember buying my brother a 12 pack of Coca Cola as a birthday or Christmas gift when we were teen agers. He loved it!

[@divine34j]

This makes me cry...

[@andreareddorkinghood1371]

I watched this video 2 years ago when you uploaded it, but didn't implement your advice that year. I was already a gazillion presents deep for each kid but was feeling frustrated and kind of grumpy about the holidays. This year I implemented my own version of your advice, and we stuck to getting each of our 4 kids 1 large/expensive gift from their wishlist's and then 3 smaller/inexpensive gifts to go with it. We woke up Christmas morning with 12 presents under the tree. It was the best and most stress free Christmas we have ever had. My kids LOVED just getting the 4 gifts, and never complained once. I wasn't stressed out trying to buy a bunch of filler crap gifts just for the sake of buying more stuff and it made my shopping a breeze. Now if only I could get my extended family on board to scale back for our larger family Christmas, things would be mint! THANK YOU for the great ideas and advice. This is something anyone can implement no matter if your Christmas budget is $50 a child or $500.

[@i_said_ello5023]

Honestly you have the best tips, but I also love your relationship dynamic. I know it isnt always the same off camera but it makes me really happy that he seems really interested in every part of parenting even stuff that is "traditionally" for moms. You guys support each other in your interests and I love it. Thats how it should be.

[@acountrylife]

My 6 year old was watching with me and said, "Really? Santa can bring cash? I want cash." I burst out laughing. Love this and love that you set a very reasonable budget. We have 7 kids, 4 of which are 13 and older so their wants are pretty big. We budget $200 each for our older kids and the 3 younger ones we budgeted $150, but so far we've come way under. Have a very Merry Christmas Jordan, Bubba and family.

[@orangeradios]

Smart Kid! 😉

[@findingaway5512]

Santa can bring me some cash! 😉

[@ThePiscesgirl318]

A Country Life that's adorable he's ahead of the curve!! I want 🏧 too buddy!!

[@nkwart]

Yeah big fail. My son heard about the "Santa presents ". He's bummed now.

[@jessmorthiele]

A Country Life d😑😑😑😑😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😊😊😋😎🤗🤗🙂😋😎😍

[@opchick0597]

Taking a pic with your kids and stuff they want...thats the best idea i've heard in a loooong time.

[@melissamadorma4989]

For our kids, I buy my toilet paper and paper towels at Target when they offer the gift cards. By thanksgiving I normally have $150-200 in cards. We divide them up between the four kids, and have them buy for each other. I will also use old navy cash, Kohl’s cash, meijer perks, and any Ebates payments. Oh, we have a survey company here, so I will go do taste testing or product testing, those gift cards go into my Christmas funds also. Yes, we do Santa- but it is normally a family present. Last year it was the WiiU, but this year it is restocking our board games and a few little extras.

[@mrsmorales121]

Smart lady!!!!!!!!!!

[@HaleyCairo]

Love this!

[@msjkramey]

That's so sweet

[@SevenSproutsFarmstead]

Melissa Madorma I do the SAME thing!!! Target is great bc of those gift cards!

[@ashleyallen6479]

Awesome idea!!!!

[@mikaelasegal8242]

Who else is here in 2019?

[@gracehillxx7210]

mikaela segal meh

[@elclubespanoldelcolegioasj5417]

Stap

[@seretamage4547]

Yup. Just got here.

[@sarahjane9526]

Me and having 11 children and 3 grandchildren so needs plenty of tips

[@mimir3070]

Ha! And I don't know why I decided to watch this one right now.

[@mariaholidayhomes285]

I'm not a parent I'm just watching this because your awsome

[@GBunnyG]

I would love to see an updated version with the three new babies 😊

[@SingAAAAAlong]

Do this video again this year! I’d love to see how it’s changed wit more kids.

[@amandanicole7955]

I wish from day one that I started Santa gets a medium size gift because he has been getting all the credit!!!

[@Trythish]

We rarely buy gifts for our kids but my husband has 6 brothers and a lot of cousins and they give my two kids a lot of gifts. We told our kids Santa doesnt exist since they were very little so they are thankful to the uncles and cousins for every gift. And we give our nieces and nephews gifts as well. It has worked for us . Thank you for all your tips.

[@jenniferHeley]

You've shown me that I am waaaaaay over doing it. My husbands gonna LOVE you (Hes been telling me this for YEARS!) Great video!!

[@alexhendricks3462]

My sister bought my daughter that ice cream cart and she absolutely loves it! We've had it for 2 years. She got it on her 1st birthday and she's 3 now. Still plays with it everyday!

[@beccaharrison5110]

We noticed last year that it's hard to keep the magic of Christmas once your children are older (mine are 18 and 14). Because we have what we need and most of the wants we decided to change it up--we gave the kids and ourselves $100 dollars from the house fund for Christmas gifts PERIOD. The stipulations were that you could not go over the $100 and no lists were to be given, you had to watch and listen for gift idea's. I now had only $33.33 per person, as did they, to spend (NOT gonna lie this was hard!!). However, you haven't lived until you see your children pacing with excitement over you opening the gifts From them. This is our second year and the intrigue (trying to combine with someone else to get Daddy the ... he wants etc...) and the joy of seeing that we've been blessed with young adults who love to give probably more that receive has been The Best Christmas Gift since the birth or our Savior Jesus.

[@EjEmSi]

The best gift shopping idea is to LISTEN to your loved ones. I always pay attention to what they like and want but won't buy for themselves and I write it down to my phone notes. And when the right time comes I know exactly what to look for and by doing so I am setting my budget as well because I know how much I wanna spend on that person and how much is the actual gift - if it's under budget, great I can use that money on someone else and if it's over, no big deal I have plenty of time to look for the best deal, black friday etc. It seems like a lot of work but it's just listening to the people I love and making a note here and there but trust me it makes birthdays and Christmas a lot less stressfull.

[@TheJurgys]

This video is so insightful! Just one kid on the way and already feel so much more prepared for Christmas gifts lol

[@karoosten232]

I don't even have kids and I love that 'take a picture of it' and choose one approach. Really eliminates the instant gratification and helps them find value in their favorite thing. So many great tips, thanks for sharing!

[@sandiramirez2835]

You remind me of my daughter She has six kids and raises them on her own They are ages from 15 to 5 Their father passed unexpectedly She works full time Went to college and has a house Every thing is planned She is on the move all day just like you I am very proud of her She cooks full meals every day She amazes me Keep up the great work!!

[@DarkEmerald1990]

My husband and I continued a family tradition that my parents did. We bought things throughout the year and hid them for Christmas. It saved us so much time and money around Christmas to buy for our families. I had so much money saved that my husband and I were able to afford presents for each other this year. Best thing ever.

[@bay32b]

LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the transparency in this video!!! 💵💕👍🏼 wish you did more like this! 😘

[@BudgetGirl]

I absolutely LOVE transparency at Christmas! In my family we exchange envelopes with our christmas budgets for the person and then all go shopping together (then give the items bought back to the person to wrap!) Everyone gets EXACTLY what they want and it's drama and stress free! This is also teaching your kids such amazing money skills for the future! Huge kudos!

[@luluinpictures]

Love this! We spent just $50 on each kid this year (we have four) and we've done this every year! If you shop and look for deals and plan ahead it is so so doable! Thanks for your video! :-)

[@melissazabower339]

I love what you said about value. It's not about spending money but giving the people we love something they will enjoy.

[@Elizabeth-ux5kd]

When my siblings and I were little my mom would send us into dollar tree with maybe ten dollars to buy our parents and other three siblings Christmas presents. It was probably one of my favorite parts of it.

[@HelloThere604]

My parents always did a similar thing with stockings, especially the older I got. Stockings was filled with inexpensive things, but things that are so helpful. Chapstick, gum, toothpaste, socks, undies. I have always appreciated that so much.

[@elsaabraham3065]

For the last couple of years, since my brother and I are kind of older (I'm 19, he's 16), my parents have let us pick between an item and an experience. So if for my birthday, I want us to go to the water park, then I get an item for Christmas, or vice versa.

[@mamapickle8876]

My family has always had a "present box". Sometimes at birthdays we will get a toy that we already have, or at the shops there will be small toys on crazy sale - we add those to the present box and they are great for birthdays or Christmas. Other times, if we see a set of toys that are on sale, we will open them up and put each individual toy in the box - these are great for stocking-stuffers and small birthday trinkets!

[@tristamaye85]

I love how honest and transparent you are with all of these tips and showing us how you really do it. My husband and I only have one child and so it is always a challenge for us to rein in our compulsion to buy her a ton of stuff, and as she has gotten older it has become easier since toys are no longer on her list for the most part. She loves books and drawing so those gifts are rarely ever expensive. We stick to the the four gifts rule: Something you need, something to read, something to wear, and something you want. We do this for her and my nephews ( I have 5) and it works. This year our daughter's need was a new laptop for school, other one had an accident a few years with some lemonade and has been on its last leg for some time, but she never complained and worked through it, so we figured we would budget for it and thanks to Costco and them honoring Black Friday Deals for a week we got a great laptop that should see her all the way to college. My mother goes pretty extreme for the kids since she can afford to so things that we may not have the budget for or just something that we think Grandma would love to get the kids we leave for her to pick from. Love the videos!!! Looking forward to the next one. And go Bubba with all that wrapping!!

[@kimberlymasick1752]

Trista Maye your doing right by not over indulging your child, even if you can afford it. You want a child that appreciates even the little things.

[@womaninthewave]

I loooove how you did this! Your kids will have much more gratitude. I was spoiled being young and wanting all of these gifts, even getting upset if I didn’t get them. I’m glad that around 10 my mom started doing this as well. I only got one gift for Christmas, and still do. But it is the most amazing thing. My one present from last year meant more than a million gifts. It also allowed me to focus on giving to others, and began to find that giving was by far the best part of Christmas

[@marymn11]

our stockings, growing up, were filled with: orange in the toe, apple, peanuts in the shell, and a chocolate Santa. It was a "leftover" from the depression when my mother had that. Sooooo, we did it for our kids and they do it for theirs. The stocking is almost the most fun and we all sit around and eat peanuts in the shell during presents!

[@TheButterflykoi]

Yes!! We grew up with "Sacks" ....brown paper bag or flour sack filled with tangerine, apple, nuts & candies. We loved trading candies or nuts between us. We were so grateful for all that was given to us.

[@dianaleroux8066]

The tip about taking pictures of wish list items on vacation and then choosing one at the end of the week...genius! Thank you!

[@jordanpagecompany]

Glad it was helpful!

[@carolg5714]

Hi Jordan, please, please make a video on how to pay the house sooner. Thank you!

[@Treelord_vr]

Carolina Gonzalez make extra payments anytime you can and tell the bank the payments go to principal.

[@wendyslaby3373]

I advise checking to make sure that there is not a penalty for extra payments, some accounts have them. Also ask your bank about bi weekly payment. In the end this method pays off your house 7 years sooner on a 30yr mortgage.

[@doctorwholover1012]

My favourite Christmas tradition in my family is the stocking/ornament one; we each (3 kids) have a custom stocking with our names on it, and every year from birth to 21, the year is embroidered on the back in different font styles, shapes, textures like beads or felt etc (one year we were all sheep in a Panto together, so that year is leftover fluffy felt from our costumes), and we get a different ornament - frequently matching ones in different colours - so that when we leave home at 21, we have some sentimental decorations for our own tree (our family tree is covered in sentimental ornaments, unboxing and hanging them often takes multiple hours to reminisce over all of them) Our stockings also always contained something arty, some sweets, something small and techy like headphones or cases etc, bathbombs or bubblebath, some jewelry (we had a family jewellers until last year so small silver jewelry items like earrings) and funky socks. If I was planning on having kids, I'd pass the stocking/ornament tradition down myself, but so far I'm just planning on being the extremely cool aunt to a couple of friends kids in the future 😅

[@lindsayashton1385]

We do Christmas very similar. This year we decided our 6 young kids Will each get four presents. One from mom, one from dad, one from Santa, and one from a sibling. Our budget for our older kids is about $200, and $100-150 for the younger ones. We got almost everything off Amazon. We have had whole Christmases from Ross when our kids were littler. They do carry some great stuff!

[@marig1972]

Our kids are all grown now ( Two boys/One girl ! ~ The baby ) One day when they were little I asked them...To make a list of what they wanted for Christmas...I sat on the sofa and listened in as they made their list...My middle son...Wrote down a whole bunch of stuff...Then my oldest said..You don't really need all that stuff and they spoke to each other and when they were done...Came to me with the list and when I looked to my surprise...They each only asked for one item...One! See I raised them to know that things are not as important as they are and that we are celebrating God's Birthday on Xmas and that we should be thankful that we have each other and are alive...Have a roof over our heads and food to eat. Kudos to you. I love that this video isn't about stuff and more about substance..love and caring. Thanks for sharing it. I sure miss my kids at this age and in general ( I live on the East Coast now and they live on the West. :)) #MoreBlessings

[@kathyburd3746]

We always had a gift for our three girls to share that had all their names on it. Now that they are older, we make it a family gift. This year we bought tickets to see Wicked for our family gift as we are all musical fans, and we got some surround sound speakers since we love to watch movies together.

[@RR-cv6jl]

Kathy Burd my family does this! Except it’s usually s board game

[@racheltheshadesoforange8700]

Please do a video like this again this year... I find it so inspiring to see tangible gift ideas on a budget!

[@heatherbauer5265]

It totally helps that your kiddos don't see commercials. :)

[@Delilah949]

Heather Bauer around the holidays, I resorted to NETFLIX ONLY lol no commercials. My daughter was driving me nuts

[@susanneh.1594]

We don't watch tv at all... it works :)

[@DarcyBearden]

The taking photos of kids with toys they want is brilliant! We use Amazon wish lists to share with family, they love it and said it's made present buying a lot easier

[@jenniferdaniels3076]

I shop Clarence all year long and I put stuff away in the plastic tubs for family and kids whoever it's going to be for. I pay next to nothing for the item but I give the best gifts every year. And my family is always saying that I do too much but really my budget on all the stuff was really cheap. I do the same thing for birthday parties and every holiday holiday i buy stuff for the next year and keep it brand new in the box till it's that time. Just by stopping in and checking the clearance after every season I bought stuff for 90% off.

[@vjl8689]

Same! I buy clearance items throughout the year. I have designated gift bag in the back of a spare closet that I dig through when its time to give a bday gift or xmas gifts. Buying throughout the year really helps my budget!

[@emilygarrett7461]

Awesome!! I also took my kids to Wal-Mart and let them pick. Went back and put all the big things on layaway to budget each paycheck and all my shopping was done by Thanksgiving! Great video!!

[@barbarabehappy2925]

I set up a savings account that is not easy to get to. All year I send money from each paycheck (automatically) and at the end of the year I have money for gifts. Because I save each time we get paid, I really do not feel it at all. I did not set up this account where my other finances are because I did not want to be tempted to dip into it. This has really worked for our family and every year we have money for Christmas. By the way, I love your videos. You are so alike, you even finish each other's sentences, which is cute.

[@Purple_clouds_1]

Barbara K. I’ve been wanting to set up a savings account I️ don’t have easy access to, can u tell me what you did or used? Thanks!

[@barbarabehappy2925]

Hi Nikki, I used Sallie Mae to open my savings account on-line. Once the account was set up, I set up ACH withdrawals from my checking account to go directly to them two times per month. Be sure the money is there so if you get paid on the 1st and the 15th, then ask Sallie Mae to take the money on the 2nd and 16th. . Then in December you can have money moved back to your checking for Christmas purchases. Good Luck! Here is the link to open the account with them www.salliemae.com/banking/smarty-pig/

[@Purple_clouds_1]

Barbara K. Awesome, I'm going to try it!! Thank you for your response & providing the link, I really appreciate it!!

[@sandraaa8496]

Barbara K. Do you mind me asking how much about you end up accumulating? I’m super curious and wanna try this

[@barbarabehappy2925]

I was able to send $100 every paycheck which accumulated $2400 for the year. We do not spend that much, but it is nice to have just in case. It can work with any amount your family can budget. It just needs to be consistent and around your paycheck so you do not feel it as much. The hardest part is to never touch it once you send the money so it is ready for Christmas. Good Luck!

[@SevenSproutsFarmstead]

I do the EXACT same thing w my kids and taking the pictures on my phone thing, lol. It really does satisfy them and they never ask about it again. Magic!

[@racheldehaan1331]

My son told me it’s not about the presents but being together aww

[@kayla3618]

My son says the same thing, he's 7. Sweet boys♥️🎄

[@candice6558]

Your kids have the best smiles i have ever seen. Literally all of them. With my kids, its my son that does and my daughter needs some work. Lol. But all of yours have great smiles. So cute. Love your videos. You're awesome

[@amesholmes5592]

Watching this about 2 years later! Definitely going to go by your method

[@SunnyShire]

Yes! Yes! Yes! I totally agree with taking the picture of the item your child wants! I have been doing that since my son was about 4 and he is 7 now and we have a 3 year old now too. We do this all the time for bdays and Christmas.

[@natashasanders8785]

Wow! Those are amazing tips! I don't have kids of my own but I do shop for my 4 goddaughters and 4 nieces/nephews. I typically spend about 15-20 bucks on an outfit or pjs for each kid. Then I'll buy something small to add to it.

[@justinmegannoel9097]

Every year we put a special Christmas tree ornament in our kids stocking, been doing this since they were born. They have there own bag of ornaments to put up on the tree every year and when they move out the will have a bag full of special ornaments for there tree to remember home.

[@dreamabundantblessings2129]

I get gifts from homegoods, tjmaxx, and marshalls they have a good selection during Christmas.

[@nicoleschendel2766]

Love how you teach your kids about money and budgeting. Also love the idea of stopping a tantrum by offering to take a picture to add to a want list year round. I think my kids will also respond really well to that. Great advice, Thank you!

[@audrahcoleman0224]

You should do an updated video of this especially now that since you have more kids

[@loriharding9248]

Another cool thing, with finding out what they want and remembering, THEY KNOW YOU LISTEN TO THEM and that means a lot 💜😁

[@WhatKelsLoves]

My parents never got me Christmas presents. They only ever came from santa. My parents budgeted all year to save for Christmas. Some kids would get a small toy for good grades or good behavior, but not me. I was good because it was expected. And Santa heard that goodness and showered me with gifts at Christmas. Like 10-15 items! Christmas day was always so amazing! I'm sure the dollar amount was close to $200 a kid, but the quantity was overwhelming

[@kristenfortune5026]

Sounds very similar to my family and how we did it. Santa bought them all until we were old enough to understand more. And we had to get a 3.0gpa or we would be grounded the entire grading period. And if we didn't behave we wouldn't get gifts. Santa was supposed to spend approximately$300 a piece. So grateful

[@MidwestMeeple]

I did my christmas shopping 3 months ago and wrapped them. I spent less than $200 on my two kids and got soooo much. I hit deals and got everything on my list and saved tons. Nailed it!

[@taliahalm3328]

This made me feel better when I watched it! I’m not a big believer in over spending on Christmas so thank you!

[@lorijohnson2053]

I LOVE the tips about taking pictures of the things that the kids want! Year round, too and how it keeps the panic attacks from happening 😂!! Thanks guys!!

[@delaneyalden4118]

Jordan, u need to do a collaboration with Do It On A Dime

[@samiya6710]

yes! and also whats up moms and the moms view

[@0411nugget]

@doitonadime

[@aprilmurrell7637]

I love that idea!!!! ♡♡♡

[@ryahlarsen00]

Delaney Alden YAAAAASSS!!!

[@alixisruby4011]

PLEASE I NEED THIS COLLAB! @Doitonadime

[@louisacoote2337]

I got a free quilt/throw from a clothing shop that I ended up giving to the girl I nanny for her birthday. She loved it, along with the other things I got her!

[@LauraGardnerYoga]

I love regifting free stuff. I’d rather it went to someone that would appreciate it more and that person gets a better gift than if you had bought something cheaper yourself.

[@shirleyharms2066]

Plant Powered Yogi in xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

[@ltess]

Taking pictures of the kids is the greatest tip! I never would've thought of that!

[@BudgetSquad]

I thoroughly enjoy your video's. My wife and I just recently got married, we have a beautiful 7mo daughter and we are currently in the home buying process so watching your vids have made tons of an impact on our budget & strategic moves. Keep em coming.

[@kimberlyvelazquillo3544]

Love the way you budgeted! Our family is similar. Every year gifts include a book, lego set (under $20), and under clothes. This year everyone got some type of exercise item like a balance ball or yoga mat. The price you got for the Diary of a Wimpy kid book was FANTASTIC! I saw it the other day for twice as much. Enjoyed watching and will return again.

[@getabiggerboat]

I thought I'd share how I do gifts with my daughter, who is now 20. Her birthday is Dec. 1, and so we ended up with basically a month of gift giving, as we celebrate both Hannukah and Christmas in our house. I started noticing that after Christmas, she'd end up with unopened gifts in her room. She really got so overloaded with it all that she didn't even care, and we were spending so much money. I felt that the time and money I was putting into it wasn't appreciated. As she got older, I created a rule that I was not going to get her anything that would be a new project - no cameras, no sets that she had to put together - because she was just too busy to sit down with things like that. Her school became so much work around the end of a semester that I felt what she really wanted at the holiday season was my time. I started when she was about 13 giving her a spa day for her birthday. And she LOVES this. When she was younger, I found a place that specialized in teen massage and only gave her a 30 minute massage (always with a woman) - because 30 minutes is a long time for a young girl to sit still, and being not clothed and touched by a stranger is not a usual experience. She would wear a sports bra for the massage. I'd also get her the facial when she was younger. Now that she is older we will usually do an hour massage. We will go to a tea shop and get the fancy full tea experience, too, around mid day. Then hit the nail shop and get her usually a design on her nails, too.

[@hannahturpin8381]

@H K And less stuff to make messes!

[@sabatham]

My oldest would love this. She is 11 and doesn't want much stuff, but we have 6 kids so she craves mommy and her time. It is easier to do separate time for each of the kids with their daddy, but near impossible to do with me, sadly.

[@leannejaynesnails1460]

I'm not a mum, but an auntie to two, and the idea of taking pics of gifts is just genius... I'm so doing this next year

[@ujnhui]

The picture-taking is such a good tip! Thank you for sharing

[@janinedaly8919]

When our kids were little we did $200 per child for Christmas Now they are older 12,14,16,18,20,22,25 They now get small gifts of basket toiletry items and clothes

[@LindsayDroke]

We do the 4 gifts. Something to wear, something to read, something they want, something they need. Our stockings are the same as yours. Right now I haven’t set a specific budget for each child cause they are still young and don’t know exactly how much things cost. So they aren’t comparing prices of gifts. So last year we spent more on one child and this year it was a different child but they got the same amount of gifts

[@queen-yz5ux]

It’s awesome that you don’t go overboard on Christmas presents. I think it teaches some really awesome life lessons. But don’t be afraid to spoil them!

[@kathyabel5338]

OMG Best vlog ever. Where were you guys when I was shopping for my kids when they were little? Oh yeah, probably toddling around like they were. I'm old. Great ideas, thanks!!!

[@ashleyhart2348]

Kathy Abel this was refreshing to read!

[@angelalebaron1597]

I’m literally tearing up at the picture tip idea. You’ve changed my life! Thank you!!

[@lvlc5]

My gosh... I love that system!!!! This video was a-we-some!

[@bloominginthelight]

I’m going to do this this year! We already do the “take kids pre-shopping” but I love the prioritizing and keeping it in Evernote.

[@ambermarie1860]

I think it's a great idea to set a budget. My husband usually gets a $600 christmas bonus and we have 3 kids aged 15, 10 and 3. We split the money and spend $200 per kid. It works great!!!! Thanks for your tips!!!

[@hotmama2410]

I have always taken pictures of my kids and toys. And it works great to send to family or grandparents to show them what the gift is that they want. if they have never heard of it or know what to look for.

[@madimccown383]

Are kids are very little ( 5 under 6!) so this year we said mommy and daddy will get you each a gift, then Santa is bring 1 big gift for the family and your stockings. We got everyone, even my nieces, done for under $300. I know that wont last as they get older but right now when we're working to get were we want to be financially and working our way out of debt it's pretty cool :)

[@Fernanda052809]

Madi Lee nice! 👏🏼

[@madimccown383]

Fernanda Medina052809 thank you!

[@nasa442]

This was SO helpful! I don’t have kids, but I have nieces and nephews and it was nice to have someone walk me through this crazy time of the year!

[@elainehume]

i love your systems! thank you for sharing!!

[@Crafter18NAB]

You just blew my mind. I have been helping to take of my nieces since their dad passed away so I started Christmas shopping in August. I'm definitely going incorporate some of your ideas into my Christmas routine. Thank you so much for sharing.

[@Sanecrist]

I really appreciate the honesty. My baby is 6 months, so we've decided to not do gifts this year. But I'm thinking about what we'll do next year. Thanks for the picture tip. That's a great idea. I'll have to use that.

[@camillemae4499]

Megan Loop after Christmas go stocking stuffer shopping and lots of toys will go on sale.

[@neoandlykkecat]

Hello Jordan! Please do a Christmas video soon. As you know so many people have lost their job and know that Christmas will be really hard for them this year. I was able to get all gifts before summer. But other people are not that lucky.

[@Lashlove16]

Just a tip .. Walmart and Target price match to Amazon . You just need to show it on your phone and pay at customer service . Target and Walmart are open typically 11pm everyday ... go at 10pm and parking issues or lines .

[@granitemoss1451]

I think it depends on the Walmart individually. When I was there the other day (I'm not a frequent shopper there), there were signs at check out that announced as of Sept or Oct, they were no longer price matching there :(. Your Walmart may vary!

[@camillemae4499]

K H-C same with mine

[@janegerow9977]

You did great! We have 5 older kids and 2 grands. We budget $300 each. $300 for husband /wife combos. We don't double the budget when they couple up. Each year 1 of the 5 get a trip. So every 5 years each kid/family get a fun and fabulous vacation. We use cash only. We can afford it. We also donate a lot at the holiday time. Our kids volunteer so it's not all about the gifts! Our budget was $100ish when they were little!

[@pevitzachast6892]

I’d like to see how this goes when they kids are teens.

[@melanierose9015]

Budget may increase just like big kids are budgeted more than the little kids

[@deech2797]

Love taking my kids Christmas shopping as well and taking notes on the toys that they like. Been doing it for years and it saves us money and guaranteed they will like what they will get.

[@christinejewell923]

My parents did 3 gifts from them. Jesus got 3 you get 3. Everything else came from family.

[@nicholegoff5228]

Christine Jewell what an amazing idea! Do you do stockings also?

[@christinejewell923]

Yeah

[@AgainsttheGrainHomestead]

Christine Jewell oh my! That's EXACTLY what we've been doing for years! We do stocking stuffers too. Merry Christmas!

[@donnastratton8397]

We did that when our kids were little also. I would take them to Toys R Us and let them make a list of several things. Then we would choose 3 from the list what we thought they were most excited about picking stuff out. Of course they got gifts from grandparents too but that helped us keep cost down. They are grown now and don't expect over indulgence at Christmas.

[@andreabowersox6318]

That’s what we do with our kids.

[@cassiejob6709]

My husband and I use excel to put in our ideas and how much they cost. Then, totals can be automatically calculated and we can also organize where we found the gifts/items if we’re looking at various places online.

[@kellyerickson5345]

We shop at Ross and Biglots for Christmas. I also shop year around for gifts.

[@susanneh.1594]

We don't watch TV at all, so the shopping tour with the kids is an amaaaaaazing idea... they also tend to have crazy wishes without the input. Thx a lot!

[@stephmomof9kids]

Ive got 11 kids,Christmas shopping for my kids alone is a huge chore!😂 Love your videos!You are inspiring me!!

[@Ronniethegoblin]

stephmomof9kids oh goodness I can feel the money falling out of your pocket. That still sounds fun.

[@stephmomof9kids]

mint idk,A couple times I guess..?

[@FoxDenAcademy]

Wow... just wow!

[@TheFreezeDryQueen]

11?! Congratulations!

[@stephmomof9kids]

The Freeze Dry Queen Thank you so much,I appreciate that!😍

[@michelleaukett4366]

Great idea for Christmas gifts for the children ! I gave my two grandchildren a Santa Writing paper with envelopes and each year they write a letter to Santa and so we know what to get them! Because of recession in Greece no one gives gifts anymore like the old days and Christmas eve has become very special to me as my son, daughter in law and my granddaughter we get together and we exchange gifts just between us! And Christmas day is the family day...no gifts anymore ! Thank you for sharing your ideas on Christmas gifts, its brilliant !