budget-friendly gifts without going to the dollar store

There are some things that are great to buy at the dollar store. Bubbles, sidewalk chalk, stickers, coloring books... I'm sure there are more that I can't think of. One thing I don't think should come from the dollar store is gifts because you always get what you pay for. Money is tight this season for a lot of us and the temptation may be strong. Here are my ideas for meaningful gifts that don't cost much.

• A book from the used bookstore. Possibilities include: your favorite classic novel, her favorite, a biography of someone she admires. The key is to put thought into it and choose something meaningful.
• Put together a small photo album of an event or period of time that was special to the two of you and include a letter detailing your memories and why it was special to you.
• Watch her kids. Not later, but now when she's busy with all her holiday preparations. Take it up a notch by helping the kids put together a dinner to freeze and bring home for another night. Take pictures of the kids working in the kitchen (proof that they can wash dishes?) and put in a small album to give mom. You can wrap the photos to put under the tree if you want her to have something to unwrap.
• Give her a collection of recipes for all the dishes you make that she raves about and include a non-perishable specialty ingredient for one of the recipes. You could also wrap it with a small kitchen tool if the recipient doesn't have a fully-stocked kitchen.
• Do you make any crafts that would make good gifts? This isn't always a budget gift, depending on your craft.

I believe the key to giving a great gift is thoughtfulness. Think about who the gift is for. What is she passionate about? How does she spend her spare time? Almost anything you'll come up with will have giftable options in many price ranges. It is a good idea to do your thinking far from a store, you don't want to limit your creativity by only considering what you see in front of you. Start now! It is very hard to use this approach for last-minute gifts. You can either spend time or money to come up with a great gift, but if you don't spend either you're stuck with the dollar store!

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keeping it all in perspective

my mom once told me, while i was complaining about the various little difficulties in my life, that if my problems could be solved with money, then i should consider myself very lucky. i've always been fortunate to be comfortable, financially, and i certainly don't want to minimize the challenges faced by those who struggle to meet their basic needs. but what my mom said really made me re-think how i spend money and why i try to save money.

because i am an economist by training, let me explain in economic terms: the opportunity cost of buying/doing something is what i give up in order to buy/do that thing. everything has an opportunity cost and, in most cases, it is not just a monetary cost. for example, you might think of the opportunity cost of getting take-out for dinner as just the $25 that could be spent on something else. but, in fact, the full opportunity cost would be less, because i "save" the time i would've spent cooking and cleaning and the marital strife caused by arguing with hubby about who makes dinner more and who should've made dinner today.

so, now, if something is really bothering me, and i can use money to resolve the issue, instead of assuming that i can't afford it, i think about what purchases i would have to forgo and whether i want those things more than i want this particular problem to go away. next time you have to make a decision about what to buy or what to do with your precious time, try taking a moment to reflect on what you are really giving up and what you are really gaining, and see if that gives you a little different perspective.

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sales of the week

dr. bronner's liquid castile soap at the vitamin shoppe on amazon: $8.34 for 32 oz., regularly $14.59 ($6.99 for 16 oz., $4.28 for 8 oz.), in lavender and peppermint.  tea tree, aloe vera mild baby, almond and eucalyptus scents are also discounted, as are the bar soaps.

jack and lily shoes at cupcake.com: $14.00/pair ($28.00 regularly), styles and sizes are pretty limited.

20% off your entire order at ecostylebaby.com when you use the coupon code "oct08": earth-friendly products including two of my faves - moby wraps and fuzzi bunz.

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The Cost of Being Busy

Ask anyone how they are these days and there’s a good chance the answer is "busy." Family, household responsibilities, job, kids’ activities, hobbies, volunteer work, social events, the list of things a person can be busy with is endless. I think there may even be some people out there who are involved in a contest to see who can be the busiest, although I have no proof of it. What could the prize possibly be?

What is the cost of all this busy-ness? It is mentally and physically exhausting to be on the go from morning to night, for sure. How many of us consider the financial cost of our jam-packed calendars? Almost everything we do has a price tag on it. Do you drive a car to all of your activities? Are you involved in anything that requires some form of special clothing or equipment? Is it often easier to pick up food while you’re out rather than take time to cook at home? The costs involved in a busy schedule will, of course, be different for everyone. The biggest non-budgeted cost in my day used to be food for myself and the kids when we were out running errands. I tended to either be in too big a hurry getting out the door to spend time packing lunches or be totally wrong about how long my errands would take and find us still out at dinner time. I have made a real effort to plan our errand days very strategically around meal (and nap) times and it has made a difference in the bottom line.

Here are a few questions to get you thinking about where your busy schedule may be draining your budget:

• How close are your activities to your home?
• Are you missing out on any car-pool opportunities?
• Have you bought equipment that you could have borrowed?
• How many activities do your kids need to be involved in to be happy?
• Do you regularly meet at a coffee shop or restaurant with someone you could just as easily see at your home, the office, a park?
• Do you pay someone to do something you could easily do yourself if you had the time?
• Are there activities that you create extra costs for? For example, I find it nearly impossible to leave my house without stopping at my favorite local coffee drive-through.
  

It may be worthwhile to take a look at your calendar. Maybe you can free up some time and money to do more things that are truly important to you.

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