Alicia Nelson-Bell, HCHC
​Empowering Financial Wellness Program Coordinator

The holidays can bring out a lot of different emotions in people, good and bad depending on the communication and preparation that goes into the holidays. The holiday season can be a time of happiness and joy, or they can be a time of stress and anxiety. If all of the holiday planning and preparation is left all on one person, it may lead to that person getting overwhelmed and stressed and in some cases some tension if not everyone in the family is happy with the holiday plans. It can be hard to get everyone in the family in on the planning, so here are 5 tips to help you get the family all in on the holiday joy and planning. 

1. Talk about expectations of what everyone is hoping for and wanting out of the holidays (activities, travel, gifts, decorations, etc.). Be sure to have a conversation and use this to help guide your holiday planning. If you don’t orchestrate the holidays and plan them out, odds are that they won’t come together as well as you hoped for. Being on the same page when it comes to planning the holidays as far as travel, gift giving, and attending events can help reduce tension among family members. 
2. Combine traditions. What traditions does each member of the family enjoy that you want to make sure happens this year? Are there any traditions that your family wants to do without this year or that may not fit in the budget this year?
3. Have a shared calendar, either a physical, wall calendar or syncing the calendars on your phones. As you talk about expectations and establish your plans, having a shared calendar can help make sure you are all on the same page of the different activities and get-togethers going on that different family members would like to participate in. This can also help you strategize as a family how you would like to best utilize your time and the funds you have set aside for the holidays. This may also be helpful to make sure you aren’t over booking yourselves so much that the holidays are more stressful than enjoyable. 
4. Try to get everyone’s input and make sure to plan at least one tradition or event that each person, especially the kids will like. Different kids each have different things they would like to contribute to the holidays. Also, plan out ways to give within your family and outside of your family. How can each family member be a part of giving whether it is time or monetarily. You may also brainstorm together ways every member of the family can contribute funds to help pay for the different extra expenses of gift giving and travel. Are there extra chores kids could do around your house or for family, friends or neighbors that they could receive a little money for?​
5. It’s important that as you plan out your holidays, you keep in mind the true meaning of the holiday, no matter which holiday you are celebrating, so you don’t get too caught up in the commercialization and hustle and bustle of the holiday. It’s about finding what works best for your family to be able to remember and observe the true meaning of the holiday, not what the media says you should be doing or what works best for your neighbors or other family members. As you involve the whole family in planning out your holiday season, help them remember not to compare themselves to what other people have or are doing. 

Have fun with your family and friends this holiday season without the stress and tension that can come from leaving all the holiday planning up to one person, or not carefully orchestrating your holiday plans!

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Alicia Nelson-Bell, Empowering Financial Wellness Program Coordinator

It’s Christmas in July! Yep. You heard me right! You may be thinking to yourself,  “How can I be thinking about the holidays right now when my budget is already being squeezed so tight"?  But really, it's a good reason to start thinking about a plan for holiday spending sooner than later this year. Creating a plan and being a bit more prepared financially will pay off big time.

Why the friendly reminder?
In the 3rd quarter of 2021, AKA when most people did their holiday shopping, Americans added over $74 billion to credit card balances. Over 80% of those who put holiday expenses on their credit card carry a balance for an average of 3 months after the holidays and are paying an average of 18% interest. This makes those “good deals” you scored not so great when you pay 18% or more interest on them for multiple months! 

When I was growing up it wasn’t unusual for me to hear my mom say, “Waste not, want not“. Growing up during the Great Depression these words had a practical significance for her as during those times of frugality it was considered a sin to waste anything.  Later on, while I was in college I came across the full quotation, “Waste not, want not. Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”  Basically, this phrase is to remind us that if we don’t waste it, we won’t be without it. How has our modern society of down-sizing and living minimally adapted to never getting rid of things we may need, for example that ugly sweater that Aunt Judy made for you several Christmas’ ago?  Well, they invented National Ugly Christmas Sweater Day! There truly is a National Ugly Christmas Sweater Day (NUCSD) and it is held the third Friday of December each year; a day when people across the country trade in their drab everyday clothes for something more festive and decidedly uglier. 

When I was in college, I attended a community presentation on simplifying the holidays. One of the main ideas that stood out to me was spreading joy throughout the entire season (and not only on Christmas morning) and creating a gift-giving structure for children. I immediately fell in love with the ideas as a way to distribute the excitement of the season, to save money by sticking with my holiday spending plan, and to create an easy gift-giving system and tradition.

“It’s the most wonderful time of the year” croons Andy Williams on the radio. When Christmas decorations started appearing while I was still debating on which Halloween candy to buy, instead of feeling frustrated that people were leapfrogging Halloween and Thanksgiving to get to Christmas, I felt my spirits lift. COVID could alter life in many ways, but it could not take away the positivity and joy that I feel during the Christmas season. However, one thing started to tug at my thoughts, threatening to dampen my spirits. With so much time to think about Christmas, would it be harder to stick to my holiday shopping budget? As I pondered my dilemma, I had a most bizarre thought: the words to a Christmas song started dancing in my head and I realized they had some great advice that would help me in my efforts to not overspend this season. I started looking at other Christmas songs and found that there were hidden budgeting messages in many of them.