Filed under: Grandparent Hints and Tips, Holidays on the Road, Holidays on the Road

Last Minute Christmas Shoppers Must-Read!

December 18, 2012 by Cynthia Baum · Leave a Comment

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Are you feeling stressed out by the mad holiday rush and last minute Christmas gifts you still need to get? It is usually around this time of year, with less than a week to go before Christmas, that I really start to feel the pressure. I feel it all month long, really, but it’s especially bad in the last home stretch, with less than seven days to go, that I really feel the stress. Really, I should just bite the bullet and go shopping for all of those last minute gifts, but this year money has been especially tight and I have way more last minute gifts to buy than normal. So with that said, my goal now is to do my best with what I have and then pray that everyone gets taken care of, just in the nick of time.

Read-on for Practical Tips that will Save You Time and Money! My Goal is to do what I can to finish as early in the week as possible, so that by the weekend, all I have left to do is the wrapping (my favorite part!)

Here is my Plan of Attack (that you are welcome to follow if you are in the same or similar boat):

Take Inventory of what you have thus far
Make a List of the people you still need to shop for, including ideas of what to buy them
Make any last minute Online Orders (ensuring delivery date is what you need it to be). Also keep in mind, the companies that offer free gift wrapping/shipping on your orders.
Tackle the List as soon as possible, making sure to cross items off as you purchase/wrap them
Hit the Stores During Off-Hours to avoid long lines and hairy parking lots
If you have little ones, it would be best if you could leave them with a Sitter for a More Efficient and Relaxed shopping experience
Don’t forget to bring your Coupons and make sure to get Gift Receipts, just in case!
Last year’s gift for the Grandparents (Santa Hand Print)

If on a Limited Budget, consider the following Gift Ideas:

Homemade gifts (art/crafts your kids make with your help, sew/crochet/knit something, etc) Pinterest has many great crafty ideas that you can peruse at Pinterest.com
Frame favorite up-to-date Pictures of your family/kids for those who would appreciate them
Make Coupons for loved ones: whether it is for a movie date, babysitting hours, or for a special talent you have (massage, car wash, etc)
Calendars- whether you just buy a cheap one with the interests of the person you are buying for already on it or make one on one of those photo-sharing websites, such as shutterfly.com, where you can customize it with all of your own pictures and backgrounds.
Hit the Thrift Stores, where you can often find brand new stuff that still has the tags on it, for cheap!
Peruse Garage Sales and Craigslist.com for really expensive and nice, hardly used items that you can score for cheap! This was my plan for my hubby’s expensive scuba equipment (many times people are practically giving away their almost brand new stuff because they no longer use it).