Who here can consistently emerge from the holiday season without having exceeded their budget.

That’s easy to do – just don’t make a budget! :-)

Me, we never budget, whatever is spent…is spent.

I do. I don’t usually have a lot of gifts to buy so it’s not very difficult.

For a long time now I’ve made gifts for people, not expensive as far as money goes, but a certain amount of work is involved. I spent, but not too much, on my kids, I’ve not been a part of the mass spending that goes with the holidays. I was raised in a household that got crazy with obligation, and I hate it. My family of origin thinks I am a cheap bitch, my friends think I am very thoughtful, as I try to tailor my gifts to their needs or interests.

So I consistently emerge without exceeding my budget. :-)

I swore this year that I would be sensible, but yesterday was “cookie decoration day”. The champagne evaporated like dew in the desert, and all propriety went with it. It’s hopeless.

Me. My wife and I set a limit for each other and she only has to shop for her family. If there is a budget I don’t know about it. I don’t want to either.

We start shopping in January, usually buy with a dollar limit per item/person.

Take up a hobby like ceramics like I did and for a couple of bucks in materials you can whip up some beautiful pottery that all will love.

I did the major, shop til you drop, for 17 people, during the years of my marriage and raising my daughter. Now, for many years, the last 13 or so I have kept things to a minimum, only buying for my daughter, her boyfriend (s ) over the years, and one or two friends. I never budgeted and focused more on getting fun and customized gifts that I knew would be enjoyed. Now, since 2013 I am on an extremely tight budget and only gifting my daughter and her live in boyfriend.

I have made it clear to others that I want nothing, don’t need it, want it or have the space for erroneous stuff. I still have one friend that insists on buying me gifts and while I appreciate the sentiment, really, I find it rather annoying. When you explicitly ask not to be given a gift and someone does anyway, I find it disrespectful, personally. If I say I don’t want anything, I mean it! haha

She is very nice but her gifts are usually just stuff I do not want or need. The holidays are just not that important to me anymore and I really loved all the years of freedom from the obligation. I am with @canidmajor in that I loathe obligation. The holidays should be about communing with friends and family not buying and giving a bunch of stuff that just clutters up peoples spaces. haha

I will say though that my daughter gives me great things, one of my all time favorites is a cool, 3 foot tall, rectangular paper lamp with a multi-colored floodlight bulb with a remote control to customize the lighting features. I love that lamp and use it every-single-day. haha

I don’t make a budget. I just buy what I have to buy, try to keep it reasonable, and go with the flow.

I can say the wife and I do, we stopped buying for the adults a few years back, so all we do is the kids, and usually get that done pretty quick .
Hell the last couple of years Mrs Squeeky and I don’t even get each other anything, there is nothing we want and if there is we usually sometime during the year just go and get it.

I have no kids in the family to buy for, so I have no holiday spending.

Budget? What is this ‘budget’ thing you speak of? I try to have a ballpark figure I want to spend. However, I shop throughout the year as I see things I think people will like. So if I actually added up what I have spent, I’d probably faint!

I just don’t buy presents