I'm dreaming of a lean Christmas

I knew weeks ago that Carl and I had to cut back on spending this Christmas. We had a fun, busy and expensive year. We bought a sailboat. We went to Maui. We had to fix our car. Now that the end of year is approaching, we're out of disposable income. And, thanks to the economy, our usual source of extra funds has dwindled to the point that it isn't even worth dipping in to. I'm not complaining -- I know we are all in the same boat. It just means we have to make concessions.

So, we set a strict budget for Christmas. $50 for each of our parents. $25 each for our two nieces. $50 for Carl's sister and her husband. $25 for my grandparents. $100 for everything else, like hostess gifts, small gifts for friends, etc. etc. Total budget this year: $400 (gifts for each other don't fall into this budget -- that's separate).

Two weeks ago, that sounded completely reasonable and doable. However, I am now looking at slashing the budget even more. Why? Because I totally misunderstand the pay rate on a very time-consuming project that I recently completed. I thought this check would cover my Christmas budget and the 10 personal training sessions I just signed up for (with some $$ left over). Wrong. Now I'm not sure yet where my Christmas money -- or the money to pay the trainer -- will come from (since I freelance, I never really know when my checks will arrive).

PS: On another note, I want to say thanks to Sarah Jio who blogs about health and fitness for Glamour.com. She mentioned my blog on her blog, Vitamin G, last week and I can see that quite a few of her readers clicked over. Thanks to all of you for stopping by. Oh, and if you aren't familiar with Vitamin G -- it is an absolute must-read blog. Perfect for when you need a break from work or kids or whatever. Definitely check it out!

One guy's take on the economy, the election and holiday shopping

This afternoon I was running around town gathering up the last of the items I needed for the holiday gift guide I mentioned earlier this week. One retailer asked me why I was looking for not-so-expensive gifts this year (his store carries items under $50, but he also stocks products that cost upwards of $2K). I explained that I was trying to be conscious of the fact that people want to keep their budgets in check right now, and that because of the economic situation readers will probably be on the lookout for creative gift ideas that won't break the bank.

Now, I am sure that his reply to me had something to do with the fact that he wanted to showcase a high-priced gift. I'm sure it also had something to do with a hopeful heart (in terms of his bottom line this holiday season). But he told me he thinks concerns over holiday retail spending are overblown. After the election, he said, things will stabilize and shoppers will go nuts (just like they always do).

Does he have a point, or is this just wishful thinking? I really hope he's right, but my gut tells me that all the retail forecasters are right -- shoppers will be very fiscally conservative this year.