Cost of Christmas

[MattMagnolia]

How much will you spend this Christmas? Including gifts, food and drink, decorations and tree, treats like a pantomime or ice skating. Not including holidays away.
We are 2 adults, 2 children and think we spent about £1000 last year.

About £75 per 'unit' - e.g. my parents are one unit, my sisters' families each another unit, my husband a unit by himself, then bundle the odd socks all into one unit by themselves.

Since we've got married this year, we've abandoned buying spearate presents from each of us for parents, so I only have to worry about my side.

5 x £75 units = £375
£60 for Christmas dinner abroad (on honeymoon).
£30 for share of doing second dinner with family on return.
£25 on decorations/extras.

Tends to come in at around £500, but do my shopping over 5 months.

Oh, and I don't count days out because I do those anyway, not just for Christmas. Not wildly expensive! Just I'd get together with friends anyway.

Probably about £1500 this year.

I do have 10 neices and nephews
11 mindees
Dd, DH, parents and a couple of friends
Hotel when visiting family
Meals out
Food and wine

DH is on sick leave and we're falling apart this year due to plumbing issues, car going and other stuff that has left us scrabbling. We've counted ourselves out of kris kindle, had to stay in for Christmas fair and other things too to save but have bought our Christmas food (big box of crisps fizzy drinks and two tins of biscuits and sweets) and have started off well with Black Friday things, so the presents will be sparse but is stuff they really want. Id say in all it'll be about five hundred(four kids two adults) but excited for it!

I hope things improve for you stay

Thanks AdoraBell started applying for jobs today just In case, hopefully will all come good in the end. In the meantime we had a big talk and figured the worse thing would be for us to be all stressed over it (I was having chest pains when this all started) so we're just going to take it all as it comes, keep talking to banks etc and ride it all out

800 on DS
100 on grandparents
100 on nephews
100 on parents
Bout 300on food
100 on tree/decks etc
50 alcohol

All paid for in cash so no debt
Very fortunate to be able to do this

I'm also hosting a Christmas lunch for local Uk less people and will spend around 80 on gifts for that

Good luck with the job search Stay

Re the chest pains, you really should get checked by the GP but in the short term you could try something like Quiet Nights, they sell it in Boots. If you have one of their points cards you can use points to pay for it. Also, essential oils in the bath, or self massage. Both sage and lavender are good for relaxation and Neroli calms the nervous system. They really help me when stress gets too much.

We have 3 adult dc and spend £100 on each about £70 on main gift and stocking £30ish. We have fc £50 on main gift and £50 stocking, 2 dgc and make them small stocking and give a main gift total of £70 each. Parents in law £60 and bil £25. 3 d niece and nephews £25 each. dh and me £100 each.

Food £400 hosting dd, sil and dgc for one day before Xmas and my sister and niece and 2 nephews over New Year for 3 days. Booze £150

Activities for fc ice skating, paint a Xmas bauble we do each year, fun Xmas pass for him and d niece when she comes over New Year swim, ice skate and climb + panto for us, my sister and 2 kids £180

Our Xmas activities Twelfth Night and Nutcracker and 3 or 4 Xmas meal/nights out. £300

Family meal out over Xmas for 5 £150

Xmas tree, wrapping paper, poinsettias to decorate home etc. £150

Charity shoe boxes £100

About £1800 we could spend more but instead choose to help out older d niece who is at uni and we pay cash into her bank account every month.

I could never go into debt or put anything on credit card. I would rather go without and have in the past when we had a lot less money than we do now.

I do loads of Xmas baking of cakes, biscuits, cookies and much cheaper than buying.

stayathomer you are right not to get stressed out over Xmas it as only 1 day and if overspend will pay cost for whole year. We go for walks and collect pine cones and spray in silver and gold paint and make decoration with holly, we make popcorn stars which are delicious and involve no cooking so kids can do and enjoy eating whilst watching Xmas movie on TV. I hope a job comes along for you for New Year. Temping agencies seem to want people now.

Adorabell thanks so much for the suggestions, they sound great! No pains in weeks thank goodness, was kind of a load of stuff, we have a rented out property and the tenants moved out just after we'd paid over a grand for plumbing, DH went on sick leave and the owner of the house we're renting came over to check it out and we thought it might be the end (have since renewed lease and found new tenant too:)) then every appliance and our car started going one after the other. Things are easier, not excellent but much much better. CaringCarer thanks so much, everything crossed, have sent off/been in everywhere possible. The pine cones etc sounds great-will get on that! And same here, our best times are playing board games, going out walking and looking at lit up houses, or watching Christmas movies!

Probably just under £800 but £240 of this is travel costs for seeing relatives ( and contributing whilst staying with relatives). This includes all gifts and food for family and friends.

Enough. Not too many to buy for but we're hosting twice so most on food and drink

I’ve spent £600 on presents, have a £150 shop ready to be delivered on the 23rd and just need the get things like neighbours choc/biscuits/wine for table and a few toys for the toy appeal, which I’ll do closer to the time.

I save from January to October and try and get everything sorted by the end of November

Cards and postage
Gifts
Concert, opera, black tie do
Two work do's
3 trees
Host for 5 days, about 50 main meals
Gifts for staff

About £3k. It's shocking.

About £2,500 all in. We have 5 DC. It makes me sick to think of it but at least it's our own money and not credit we're using. It will be at the expense of much needed house repairs though. I'm really tired and busy just now so I've done a shit job at budgeting and lost my way a bit.

About£300 in total,including real Christmas tree as that is my one real treat at Christmas,we are away for a few days so a smaller tree than usual.
I love Christmas but it's small presents in our family most of the time is about family,singing carols,all hands on deck cooking and wine!

No idea.

Well within our means though which is all that matters.

This ^

Nowhere near £1000 though

From January start to put actual cash away in an envelope marked Xmas. What's there by November is what you'll spend, not a penny more.

Momasita that sounds great. How many years have you done it for and dies it work ( I know I would not have the restraint if there was an emergency bill).

3 children presents- around £800 total
New tree and decorations (recently moved)- £100
Presents for 11 nieces and nephews - £130
4 sets siblings/partners- £40
2 sets of parents -£50
Alcohol - £30
Food shop - £100 - 150
Extras - £50

But this is saved and cost spread out through the year

We spent more than usual this year. The main food shop cost over £500, and then I went again for a few more bits to 'top up' and that was another £300. Way more than we usually spend. Presents - abut £350 each for 4 kids, I spent about the same on my husband, then other family members about £150 each. It was a lot altogether, which we could afford but it did seem excessive so I'll be tightening things in a little next year!

Just remembered a posh black tie do which was about £200 and binmen/postie/window cleaner cash gifts, another £100. It all adds up doesn't it, I think if I did actually write it all down I would be shocked.

Father Christmas visit, special other Christmas trip that we did, and cinema treat for the kids, there goes another £200, arrgh!!