An old friend of mine recently shared her Christmas tradition with her husband. They postpone Christmas!
Focusing on the Holiday by Postponing Christmas
My friend said that each year, she and her husband set a budget based on their income, goals, and financial goal status for that year. Then, they do no shopping at all until December 26!
They actually spend all of November and December enjoying the holidays. They avoid the stores. They ignore the ads. They don’t buy anything.
Then, on December 26, they each head out to the after Christmas sales and buy presents sticking strictly to budget. They wrap and open presents on December 27 in their own delayed Christmas event.
Postponing Christmas as a Game
She and her husband have been married nearly ten years now and they said it has turned into quite a game for them. They see how much they can stretch that budget after the holidays to make the other person feel special, but they only have one day in which to do it! The rest of us spend the entire year trying to do the same!
The two main downsides from my perspective:
- Having to navigate the stores on Boxing Day – I avoid the stores all of the holidays. As much as possible, I get my Christmas shopping done by Halloween! Jumping straight into shopping on the day after Christmas isn’t much better than during the holiday rush!
- Kids – My kids wouldn’t go for this! How would Santa explain his delay?
Mr. SSC
Nope. Hahahaha There’s something magical, even now as a 40 yr old, about Christmas morning, and especially with the kids. Seeing their faces and excitement that morning.
I get the idea of it, and it could be a fun game, especially if it was just us 2, but still… There’s nothing like Christmas morning. Like you said, I don’t think you’d avoid shopping madness, because isn’t the 26th the biggest day for returns in stores? You wouldn’t be in that line, but you’dd still be out there with all the other crazies, lol.
Mr. Groovy
Damn. I was all for delaying Christmas for a day until I read Mr. SSC’s comment. There is something special about Christmas morning, especially when kids are around. I guess I’m reminded of the old admonition, “Never take down a fence until you know what’s on the other side.” So upon further review, I’m not for delaying Christmas. Memories are sometimes more important than frugality. Great post, Maggie. And Merry December-25th Christmas!
Revanche @ A Gai Shan Life
I actually love the idea but not the shopping on one day part. For us that’s totally unrealistic (hello toddler) and would totally wipe me out. I’d be happy with doing a private us-only gift exchange after Christmas with the spoils of whatever sales we found online though 🙂 I think that stretches out the fun of the holiday season and cuts out a bit of that post-Christmas letdown.
I also like moderate amounts of fun stretched across several days because the big blowout morning feels like it encourages the piles of presents mentality.
Jacq
We sort of did postpone Christmas. Not the shopping, just the getting together and presents. Dad called that morning with a cold, my sister couldn’t afford to miss more work because she’d just gotten better from the flu. We decided it was best for Dad and our step mom to rest up (she wasn’t sure if she was starting to get it too). We got together on Dec 31st instead. We had already planned for build your own tacos for Christmas eve dinner, and it was lunch instead. We weren’t rushing to do presents to get to mom’s on Christmas day, or trying to get my brother to wake up either! While it felt weird to change the tradition, it lead to a more relaxed time both Christmas day, and on the 31st.
Wishing you a great 2018!
MaggieBanks
Love adapting to health and family! Happy belated holidays!