Uncensored Money Season Three: Cost Less Christmas

Melissa Browne: Ex-Accountant, Ex-Financial Advisor, Ex-Working Till I Drop, Now Serial Entrepreneur & Author, Financial Wellness Advocate, Living a Life by Design | 22/11/2022

 

Show Notes

Christmas is fast approaching. And with rising interest rates and the increasing cost of living, Christmas can be a source of a lot of expense and stress for people, and cause waste that hurts our environment. So in this episode, Mel and Lawsie share some of their favourite strategies to help Christmas cost you less financially, emotionally and environmentally.  

Resources mentioned in this episode: 

• Cost Less Christmas

If you know you need more help with your finances make sure you join the waitlist for the next round of the My Financial Adulting Plan. 

If you're not already, come play over at insta at MelBrowne.Money and make sure you are signed up to Mel's Money Musings and Monday Money Moments (yep, we love us some alliteration) for more tips, tricks and ideas on how to best work with your money.

Finally, if you love this episode please make sure you subscribe and leave us a review.

 

Transcript

Mel: This year has been a lot with rising interest rates, the rising cost of living, uncertainty in share markets, uncertainty in property markets, and the world opening up again. And that last one, the world opening up again, is recognition that sometimes even good things can be a lot. I know I found crowd situations a lot in the last year and you have to figure out how comfortable you feel.

We know that again, but for many people, the silly season can also be, well, a lot. A lot of expense, stress, and unnecessarily adding to waste that hurts our environment. Personally, I do not have the postcard family Christmas because I don't have the Hallmark family, and I suspect a lot of people are in the same boat.

In the past, I've been super stressed emotionally and even financially in the lead-up to the big day because of the cost and also the toll it takes, which might mean you indulge in a little more spending in the lead-up to treat yourself because you're so stressed. And even if you do have that picture-perfect family, the whole day because you want to lavish on them, could also be a lot financially.

Now last year with lockdown only, just ending in so many places around the world, the silly season was still somewhat subdued. This year I think it's going to be very different. Even I'm excited about that. But that means there's the additional cost of get togethers and Christmas parties and figuring out what to wear when nothing bloody fits because you haven't gone to a Christmas party for three years.

There's also the added cost of coming out of a bloody tough year and wanting to celebrate like the roaring twenties and that search for a dopamine hit. That's why I'm running for the third year, my Costless Christmas tips. It's 24 tips to help Christmas cost you less financially, environmentally, and emotionally, delivered to your inbox every morning. Kind of like an advent calendar for your finances. Which Lawsie coined a couple of weeks ago, which I loved.

Lawsie: It was a big day. It was a big day when you loved my idea.

Mel: There's a link in the show notes if you'd like to sign up for free, but it's our gift to you. But today, in this episode, Lawsie and I thought we'd talk through some of our top tips as well as some things we've seen people do right and wrong in the silly season madness.

And give you some of our favourite strategies to help Christmas cost you less financially, emotionally, and environmentally. And then if you want more, sign up for the Cost Less Christmas in the link below. So Cost Less Christmas LawDog. Three years ago, I think we came up with this idea. And I didn't want it to be just a budgeting thing. I didn't want it to be

Lawsie: Like a Scrooge

Mel: Exactly.

Lawsie: We can be scrooge enough with our attitude to Christmas sometimes, let alone enforcing that on everybody else.

Mel: Exactly. But that's why we included there emotionally and environmentally, because let's be honest, if you are feeling a little bit stressed emotionally, that can affect your finances, plus so many decisions we make over the silly season absolutely adds to waste, adds to the environment being stressed, and we behave in a way that we absolutely wouldn't for 11 months of the year because of this one strange moment in the year. So that's the reason why we came up with the concept of the Cost Less Christmas. We knew we'd had harsh lockdowns. A lot of people were still locked down that very first Christmas. We knew there was a lot of uncertainty about what's gonna look like, and we've got stimulus payments, but how long will they go on for?

So let's actually be intentional about Christmas this year. And because it was so loved, we've continued to tweak it and push it out, and this is our third year, which is really cool. And what I see is that it's more needed now than ever.

Lawsie: Yes, absolutely.

Mel: We now have skyrocketing inflation, we have interest rates going up. So yes, we're allowed out…

Lawsie: But there are other things draining on our finances and needing our attention as.

Mel: Exactly, so that's the concept. Think of it as an advent calendar for your finances. 24 tips to help Christmas cost you less financially, emotionally, and environmentally. It is completely free. All you have to do is sign up and it hits your inbox every single day.

Lawsie: It does. I know just like magic, a little bit of Christmas magic.

Mel: But Lawsie, what about your Christmas experience and the silly season? Because you are different. Like I am that socially awkward introvert. You are an extrovert.

Lawsie: Selectively

Mel: You are certainly more extroverted than me and you are definitely situationally extroverted.

Lawsie: Yeah. Oh, definitely. I think Christmas is a blessing and a curse, I think. And I think part of that comes from, especially when we're working in your accounting firm, like you are slammed. And I think a lot of businesses are like, this is suddenly about everyone's cruising along and the new financial year and they're happy getting their tax done, and then suddenly there's a line in the sand of oh my God, Christmas is that halfway point and I've gotta get all these things done. I haven't done this. Or it also marks obviously the end of the year. So I think there's this lot of Christmas is one thing, but I think it's what it signifies for time.

And there's that marker in time. So there's just this huge rush of people wanting things done. And, tax season, obviously as accountants, when you're doing that, from July through to Christmas is just nuts. So I think historically when we get there, we're just smashed anyway. So then it's oh God, and now you've got these family events, the work things and the networking events and everyone wants a Christmas party. And so there's this whole thing about…

Mel: But we've gotta catch up before Christmas. Why?

Lawsie: All of that stuff. So I think from that perspective, I go, oh God, I hate Christmas. It just seems like there's so much pressure and it's not actually about the day. I think for me it's that bigger thing of all the things that seem like you have to get done work-wise and everything else as well.

So from that I'm always glad when Christmas is done cause I go, oh God, now I can just breathe. And I don't have that buildup of things. And we've always been closed over that Christmas, New Year break and a bit beyond. So it is a really nice time then to switch off. But anything, if you're gonna have time off, you know that you've got that deadline. And then, throw in Christmas itself, and there's I was gonna say obligations. Sounds terrible, but I think in a lot of cases, it's the family day and then my situation is very like, So not stressful in terms of, it's gonna be Christmas with one family and then it's Boxing Day with the other family, and we just take it in turns about it's not even a thing that is stressful, but I know for a lot of people it's, oh God, I've gotta see that one family. I feel like even if Christmas was any other time of the year, I don't know that I'd enjoy it anymore. But I just think that it was something about, it just is that trigger. So I think automatically I just feel stressed out just talking about it.

Mel: I wonder if other countries like the US or the UK where it's cold and it's not that, it's not oh, we've gotta stop because it's summer vacation. Like for them, yeah, they have a few days off, but then they just keep going. Or maybe they have a week off, but they just kept going. I wonder if it's that same sense of urgency of everything we have to get done and their financial situation. I imagine there's still some pressure with Thanksgiving

Lawsie: yeah.

Mel: Christmas time, but whether it's that same feeling that we have here around, I feel like it's all shoved into one period.

Lawsie: And we're all working towards it because, let's be honest, most businesses and everything are shut between that Christmas and New Year. So it's just that gotta get everything done so you can breathe.

Mel: Yeah. What about your family with gifts and stuff like that?

Lawsie: Yeah. So I think we do it differently. So with Adam's family, we do. The kids always get presents. I feel like Christmas is for the kids. So kids always get presents, but for the adults on Adam's side of the family, we do Kris Kringle, so that's easier. Before we bought that in, it was spending a smaller amount on all of these people. There's a limit to what you can buy really. And when we're talking about this and not wanting Christmas to cost as much financially and environmentally, it's what are you gonna buy? Like it's hard. I do really like the fact that we spend a bit more on but one person, but overall it is less than what we would if we were buying small presents for everyone. But you're still spending more on that one present. And the way that we do it is, it's a secret and a wish list. It's very helpful. Three things that you person would like.

Mel: I love that.

Lawsie: So at least it's something that they want. So I really like that and I think, there's a great tip for anyone following along, something that's gonna cost you less financially, environmentally and emotionally, to be honest, cause we'll just pick something off the list. It actually ticks all of our little Christmas boxes there, so that's really good. And yeah, all the presents on my side. It's a bit smaller family but that's my immediate family. Outside of that, no. And I think for us as well, we learned a long time ago that we're not doing two Christmases in one day. We used to do the whole travelling to one for lunch and then travelling to the other for dinner and it just, no. And I know some people prefer that cause they just wanted it all crammed in on one day.

Mel: Gets it all done.

Lawsie: But for us, I'm like, we just weren't enjoying then, any of them, cause you're so stressed. Cause you know me, I love everything to be on time. And when you’re at the first one going, what if the turkey takes a little longer to cook and then you're held up and you're late. Or if you get stuck in traffic trying to get to the next one, and then you're backing up for another meal, like it just too much.

Mel: And do you find that they used to get insulted if you don't eat for dinner when you turn up?

Lawsie: It’s just too much. So I love the fact that we just do it year about. One person gets Boxing Day, the other gets Christmas Day and then flip it year round. And it makes it so much easier. And it's like a system. We just know each year where it is and you know how much I love a system.

Mel: Yeah.

Lawsie: Let's really put that Christmas magic in about a system, but that it works for us.

Mel: But it removes the emotion by having a system. Cause it's not, why aren't you coming to me?

Lawsie: Yeah. Which it a whole lot easier. But what about you?

Mel: Yeah I know I'd call myself the Grinch because I do not love a party. I just don't. And so I love a get-together of a small group of friends, but I do not love a big party. So the idea of that's just horrible. And I know we've got one that we are going to this year and even already, I've been looking in my diary going, I wonder if we can get out. Actually, I've got two. And for both of them I will spend hours, like way too much emotional energy, figuring out if I can get out of there because I just hate those. But other than that, I love the friends get together. It's like they're fun, but it's just again trying to find time for it. And I find good friends.

Lawsie: Yeah. It's like we can do it in the new year. Doesn't have to be for Christmas.

Mel: No, but for me, I find the day stressful. So when my sister was in Australia, we would do one-for-one as we did the same as you. Boxing Day, Christmas worked beautifully, but then she's been overseas and it's been a little bit more obligation. But last year we had all of our family was out of the country, probably had one of the best Christmases, and that sounds really unkind, but we had what we called the Loser Christmas, where it was people that couldn't see their family cause they had Covid. And so, therefore, you weren't allowed to see them or people whose family were overseas and couldn't get here. It was the most relaxed, lovely, amazing Christmas. And I just said to Tone, we are so doing that in future. So we're gonna say to the family that are around this year, tell us what works for you. Like my family is very religious. They're gonna wanna go to church Sunday, so I'm gonna suggest to them they come Christmas Eve. Tony's family is coming Boxing Day, cause that just works for them. There's a chance we'll have Christmas just with ourselves if there are no other losers around. I'm not gonna be sad about it. But also that framily Christmas, like for me I'm in that different situation where that framily is really important. And if I could wave a magic wand and have that would be lovely. But boundaries around that really important. I beg my parents every year not to buy us presents cause it's wasteful. They'll buy things cause they don't know us, so they'll buy things that we'll invariably have to re-gift. And I try really hard to re-gift. But every year I beg them not to buy something. Every year they buy something that I invariably regift. And again, this sounds really harsh, but I go please, can we not? With my sister overseas, I was always the clothes and books aunt. That's what I bought them. This year I'm probably just gonna send them a voucher, it's gonna be a whole lot cheaper. They're getting to be older, so it's just harder to know what they're into and that's just safer.

But Tone also, one of his favourite things is to cook. So we will always host Christmas and he loves cooking. But what we've worked out with that is he used to spend the entire time in the kitchen because he loved it cause he escaped. And I did not love it because I wanted him out with the family. So we now do things that he can make with his eyes closed. He makes it in the mornings, so he usually does a salmon. We buy a ham and then we do a bunch of really nice salads, that he's done a hundred times before. And that way everyone loves it, but he's out of the kitchen and it takes an hour to prep. And we know how much they cost. There's no waste. We'll keep eating them. We know the quantities they make, and we know how much people will eat. Cause for me throwing out food the next day, I can't bear it.

I think for us both, I think it's that being smashed at the end of the year and having plans around your Kris Kringle with the three things just sounds so good. No one in my family will go for it. The thing Tony and I do is we don't buy Christmas presents for each other in we buy something for the house. Because there's always something you need and we don't need anything, but then we have to buy something less than a hundred bucks for the other person. So he always buys me books and Christmas puzzles and I'll buy him books and something else. So that way he's still unwrapping something.

Lawsie: Still some Christmas Joy

Mel: Exactly. The big thing I get into the Christmas season for is I collect Hallmark ornaments. I buy a few every year and I have the massive tree with the really kitchy ornaments.

Lawsie: I know. I'm like, you try to say that you are Grinchy, but I'm like no, you still have a tree. Whereas I'm so anti-tree.

Mel: Oh, I want to be anti-tree.

Lawsie: Like I have my tree. I just put the lights on. Literally, that's it. But we decorate the house with lights, so that's our christmasy thing. Cause I just think, as a kid I always used to love going around and seeing all the christmas lights. So yeah, do heaps of Christmas lights and all that kind of stuff. But I just reuse the same inside decorations that we've had for, I was going to say a hundred years, but I'm not quite that old. It's just because certain things are, like, there's that expectation of having a tree and all that kind of stuff. Still just do what works for you. There have been several years I didn't put up any tree, and then even this year we're having Boxing Day at our place, and Adam was like, we're gonna have to set up a tree, and I'm like, we have our little tree. We got it last year. It's gonna have some lights on it. That's the tree. I'm not gonna go and buy this whole big tree plus then all this stuff to go on. I'm like, no, there'll be a tree and it's not even gonna be where we eat. So it's literally gonna have some presents, few things where you undo them and then that's it. No one else is gonna see it cause it's in a totally different room of the house.

Mel: But I love that that you said, just because everyone else is doing it doesn't mean you have to. And I like that. Pick your thing. For me, it's the tree, so we don't have lights or we had a wreath for a while. It's just so dumb. Like you throw it out. So yeah, pick your thing.

Lawsie: Yeah. Or if Christmas is your thing and that's where you throw it all go nuts.

Mel: Tina Tower. Go nuts.

Lawsie: Yes. That is Christmas. Next level.

Mel: But then embrace it, but try to think of a way you can do it sustainably. Like I know Tina has things she pulls them out each year. Doesn't have to be that, oh, what am I buying this year?

Lawsie: Yeah. Oh, absolutely.

Mel: How can you do it? So that's how we both do it. And even you and I do it very differently, so I want people to listen and go, oh, I don't have to do the same thing, but also I can system systemise it. Because that's how you remove the stress is having a system around something.

Lawsie: Yeah, but I think too, like for some people, cause I know like you're saying Kris Kringle wouldn't work for your family, but I think for some people, given the increased cost of living the actual real, financial thing that we're facing at the moment, that could actually be the perfect time to have those conversations and do it now before people are (unless you're super organised) buying presents and things and to go how about we just do this differently? Or, if it's been a thing where you always provide all the food, then it's, can you spread that cost? If you are uncomfortable having those conversations, but you're wanting to put change in, this is the perfect year or the perfect time to have those conversations because it's not you. It's not like you've necessarily, lost your job or something. It's something that is invariably going to be affecting everyone. So that now could be the perfect time to reassess and go how about we try something different?

Mel: No, and you are right. Rising interest rates. Rising cost of living is that perfect cue to say things have changed. How can we look after each other financially? Cause you might go, oh no, but I love it. But you don't know how your sibling or your parents or grandparents or someone in your life how they are financially. And if you are not having the conversation, you could be pushing this burden onto them, without them even being aware. Without you being aware that it's a problem for them. So even if you rock up every year to someone's place for dinner and you've always done it, maybe contact them and say, look, this year cost of living's increased. And maybe don't even ask, just say, we're gonna bring something. So why don't you tell us what you'd like us to bring? Couch it differently. Cause if someone said to us, we wanna bring something, what can we bring? I'll always say no, just turn up. But if someone said to me, we're gonna bring wine, some wine this year, do you want us to bring red or white? I go, oh, okay. Red would be great. So if there's a different way of suggesting it.

Lawsie: Yeah. Instead of going, oh, what can we bring? It's no, this is what I’m doing.

Mel: I'm gonna do this, will this work? Or would you like this or this?

So Lawsie your best environmental, financial, and emotional tips for this Christmas. We're not gonna give all 24 away, but we thought we might give you a little teaser.

Lawsie: My environmental one would absolutely just think before you buy. Like truly. I think one of the things I did love, I saw this a few weeks ago, was that Woolworth and the Woolworths group and Big W were like, we're not selling any tinsel product. Part of me went great cause I don't love tinsel anyway, but because I don't buy it, I hadn't even thought about what it was made. And of course it's made of plastic, let alone all the glitter and all the other stuff that's on it. So I actually went from an environmental perspective, I was like, oh, that's amazing that they're not doing that. But I think it's also that thing around, we'll think do you need to buy everything? And I am no saint, like I said, I love Christmas lights.

I'm very well aware that they're full of plastic and as much as they might be solar-powered, there's all the other things that go into that. So, for us it's about, well, we've bought hopefully good quality lights. We pull 'em out every year. They're up for five weeks, and then we're pulling them back down, packing them all away, looking after them and putting them away. And we just don't buy anything else. I've got other Christmas ornament things we've collected over the years and like we were saying before, they get boxed up, they're shoved in the little storage room until the end of the year. So I just think environmentally, just think before you buy, do you need it? Is there a more sustainable way that you can buy it? And look after it basically, so you can keep using it year on year. That would be my environmental one. What about you?

Mel: I like that. So, I'm gonna say that I'm ahead of my time rather than I'm a tight ass, so I've never seen the value in cards and wrapping paper. Never. So, especially, I remember when I was 20, I'd bought my first house. But we had no money, so there was no way I could afford to buy you a present and wrap it. So I would collect newspaper, the free newspaper that they would put on your lawn for the month before Christmas, and I'd wrap all the presents up in that. If I could, I'd also keep the Christmas catalogue so at least it looked be Christmasy, but they were harder to write on. So it would be newspaper, I'd write on texta, my little Christmas message, and that was it. So I've done that forever. So I now say I'm ahead of my time in that. I've wrapped gifts in newspaper cause I cannot see the point. You're gonna just throw it out. It's just such a waste. My husband loves a card, so his thing is he doesn't want presents, but he wants a card.

Lawsie: As you roll your eyes.

Mel: Ooh. So I get him a card and I write a nice message in it. But that's because that's his thing. So, you gotta play to your audience. But if he said to me, I want a card and I want it wrapped, I'd wrap it in newspaper. So that's my environmental tip.

Yeah. What about your financial tip?

Lawsie: My financial one is, cause this just works for me and I know it's really old school, but I love having my little Christmas account. So each week as part of all of my automation with my finances, it's just the smallest amount goes into it. But it just means that come the end of the year, there's money in there so I'm not suddenly going, oh, I'm trying to buy a Christmas ham. And so I don’t have to worry about there not enough in my groceries account to try and buy my normal food and a Christmas ham. I really wanna buy some more lights cause you know, our house needs them. As well as then just like for the Christmas presents and stuff it just is there and I don't have to think about it.

Like I said, it's just a small amount that goes into it each and every week. And even if we've exhausted that account and then it's only costing us a hundred or 200 bucks to top it up from our groceries, like then it’s done. So yeah, it's so old school having a Christmas account. But I love it.

Mel: It's sometimes it's those old things that work and they still exist because they still work.

Lawsie: So that's my financial tip. What about you?

Mel: Mine is that I do two things. One is I buy presents throughout the year when they're on sale. So I've got an Any List app in my phone and I have people's names down cause I've got a few people to buy for, but not stacks, but especially when I had everyone to buy for at ATA. So I used to put a little pack together where everyone got some of the same stuff, but also you got some individual stuff. And we still do that for Tone's mum and, spoiler alert for you and Jen but if you sent me out to shop for something, I find that so stressful. But if I buy it during the year as I go, I really enjoy it. And then I can buy it when it's on sale. So for me, it's doing that. I've actually got a cupboard that I store all the Christmas presents in.

So I get it, I put it in the cupboard, and then at Christmas time I go to that and pull everything out and go, ah, that's right. I got this and this. And I'm often surprised that I have very little to buy in the lead-up to Christmas, which is awesome. But the other thing I do is I re-gift. And I know that is not very PC and I don't care cause some of it is stuff I'm given, it's brand new, it's perfectly good. And I don't mean given as in, I don't do sponsored posts or anything like that, but occasionally, we'll be at an event and there'll be a show bag and there'll be some really cool products in it, but they're not products that are going to use. Or I've been given a present by someone for a speaking gig or something. I'm not going to use it, but I'm like, Ooh, this would be a good present. So I re-gift and so I which sounds really bad, but if I know someone's gonna love it.

Lawsie: But I think the whole thing around a gift? It shouldn't be how much has been spent. It's something you are meant to be giving to that person, cause you think that they're going to really like and enjoy it.

Mel: Exactly. And what I don't do is say I'm gonna spend a hundred dollars per person, whatever. And so if I've bought it during the year on sale and only spent 50, I don’t think I’ve got to spend another 50 to spend. I'm like, if that's the equivalent of a hundred bucks or those re-gifted things the equivalent of a hundred bucks, they're done. cause I think that's one of the things people don't do is they think, oh no, I've gotta take it up.

Lawsie: Yeah, I've only spent 50, but it's meant to be a hundred, even though that thing was worth a hundred. So I'll go and find something else.

Mel: Yeah, so I'm a re-gifter and buy the year on sale, which, you might be going, oh, drats, I should have done that. I know Black Friday sales are coming up. Cyber Monday sales are coming up. For example, Net-a-porter sales are coming super early this year. There are sales still coming, so it's using those and going, cool. I'm gonna be organised. I'm gonna have a list and I'm gonna shop them strategically so I can save me some cash.

What about emotional? This is our favourite one.

Lawsie: Please don't make me joke. Being as emotionally immature as you and I both are no. My emotional one is just watch a Christmas movie. I just think particularly as we were talking about before.

Mel: I am doing this

Lawsie: There's so much hype and stress and everything else from all of the things that, that word Christmas implies and means be it, time off, holidays whatever. So I think just putting some time in and watching a Christmas movie. We all know that they're gonna be, maybe not quite the picture-perfect depiction of reality, but it's actually really nice to lose yourself for that 90 minutes or two hours. I know you and I do that. You know, one year we watched The Holiday. Last year, we watched, what's the one that we watched? Diehard couldn't remember what it was, but I know that the argument is whether or not it is a Christmas movie.

Mel: Die Hard One and Two

Lawsie: That didn't quite give me the same Christmas buzz as Love Actually, or The Holiday.

But yeah, that's my one. I might just take some time for yourself and actually watch that thing that's got, the sparkling lights and generally the snow and all that kind of stuff that we strangely don't get here in the land of Oz.

Mel: Yeah, I want that one. I had scheduled downtime. So whether it's a Christmas movie or whether it's going, I'm gonna book a massage in cause I've got so much that I need to look after myself. Scheduled downtime might be so in my diary, I'm making sure I work out almost every day. Or if not work out, at least move cause it's just making sure that you are looking after yourself. So the worst thing, the thing I don't want that has happened so often in the past, is you get to Christmas and then you just fall into a heap and you get sick. And then it's just a waste of that time. So yeah, schedule some down. Add in watching a Christmas movie.

Lawsie: Yeah.

Mel: And I just guess just to wrap up is maybe just some dangers we see this silly season and what to do about them. And I don't think there's anything new, but it is simply being aware. For me, the big one is don't put it on credit. Don't put it on buy now, pay later. All of those things will snowball to a point where you'll get that financial hangover in January when that credit card appears and you'll go, Ugh, yes, I had a great day, but at what cost? The danger I see is that you especially when a year is hard or when especially when you're excited to be out, is don't put it all on credit and everything from the outfits to the food, to the presents. Like you could put a lot on credit. If you want a new outfit, maybe say to some girlfriends, let's do a swap. Where you meet, have some drinks and do a clothes swap. Maybe you go to the markets, maybe you go to second-hand stores. There are so many ways to not have to spend everywhere or maybe shop your closet. Or maybe what I do is I just listed some things again on the weekend on Depop, and that's a couple of hundred bucks that I can then use for something else. So just be smart and we've got time to be smart.

Lawsie: I think, yeah, the credit is definitely the biggest issue and I know we said it before as well, but just taking that time and reassessing how you've done Christmas in the past and not just following that same routine because like we said, with everything else, that is more expensive and particularly for families where, if you've still got that mortgage and that's been going up because of the interest rate rises, plus just your grocery bills, challenge the way that you've done it and just to see if there is a way that you can spread the load or reduce the cost and things like that.

Cause I think this year more than ever, people are gonna feel it and it's just about, like you said, it might not be you that feels it, but you know there's gonna be someone else in your family who does so why not actually lean into that and try and make some change that everyone can enjoy it a little more without, some people ending up with a huge financial hangover like you.

Mel: No, absolutely. So hopefully this has made you think about what you are gonna be doing this Christmas, and as with everything, we just want you to do it with intention rather than just defaulting to what you always do or defaulting to not thinking about it. So be intentional and if you need more tips, make sure you head to the show notes and sign up to our Cost Less Christmas

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