It’s December!! Time to prep your new month’s budget (if you haven’t already). We need to be sure and account for some extra things in December that we don’t typically have to worry about…
Don’t be caught off guard by any of these items. If you have already written out/planned your December budget and you did forget to add in any of these, go back today (or if not today, put IN YOUR CALENDAR exactly when you will…) and add them in/rework your budget.
Anytime you recognize a mistake in your budget, the sooner you tweak/fix that plan, the better off you will be. DO NOT PUT IT OFF. It will NOT be easier to deal with later.
These won’t all apply to you, and it’s not an exhaustive list, but I think this should be a pretty good start for most of us!
December Budget Considerations:
- Any gifting you haven’t already taken care of (including wrapping paper, stamps, etc.)!
- Christmas meal contributions. If you don’t already know what foods you will be responsible for bringing to your Christmas Day/Christmas Eve meals, reach out to whoever is hosting this year, and ask them what you can bring. If they let you decide, then make that decision now. If they let you bring whatever you want, offer to bring something you already have on-hand! Got a ton of canned green beans? Offer to bring a veggie side or a green bean casserole!
- Host/Hostess gifts if you plan to give those at your holiday gatherings.
- Any charitable giving you plan to partake in this holiday season that is outside of your regular monthly plan.
- Clothing Items/shoes that you might need for Christmas Eve services or Christmas festivities, family photos, or any other holiday related shindigs you’ve got coming up this month.
- Personal Grooming purchases necessary for those same things (this includes haircuts/colors, nails, eyebrows/lashes, or anything else that would fall into this category.
- Additional travel costs that might occur with traveling to Christmas gatherings (gas, flights, hotels, Ubers, road trip/travel snacks/meals, parking meters/garages, tips, etc.).
- Family Photos and/or Holiday Cards – account for postage and envelopes as well! Be sure to check out my post about how you can order your holiday cards for under $10 if you haven’t ordered yours yet!
- Teacher Gifts – If you have multiple children (especially if they are at multiple schools) this can add up VERY quickly…
- Holiday Parties that are upcoming. Consider if you might need a new dress/shoes/makeup/jewelry/hostess gifts, etc.
- Pet/House-Sitting – will you be traveling and need to board your pets while you’re gone or ask a friend to stay at your home to care for your home and animals? Account for the cost!
- Utilities – for us, our bill usually decreases as the weather gets colder, but for some the cost can go up dramatically. Account for the change in weather, but also consider if you will have more people using electricity, water, a gas fireplace, etc. in your home over the holidays!
- Decorations – are you going to want to redesign your Christmas Tree or front door wreath this year? Will you want to purchase new stockings or be sure and grab a few of your favorite pine-scented candles so that your home can still smell like the holiday even with a fake tree? 😉 Plan for the costs.
- Handmade Christmas Gifts – If you are planning to make your own Christmas gifts, odds are you’re going to have to start sooner rather than later unless you plan to be making and wrapping last minute in a smoking fog of panic and stress (not recommended. I speak from experience…ha). Go ahead and use our (free) Ultimate Holiday Gift + Budget Planner template to brainstorm all of the people you’ll need to provide gifts for this year, and decide now if any of those gifts will be handmade. If they will be, decide how long the gifts will take for you to make them, when you will make them, and put it on your calendar so that you don’t forget until the last minute.
- The Nutcracker or any other Holiday Shows – Will you and your family will be attending a show this holiday season? Be sure you plan for those costs – and not just the cost of admission. Plan for any eating out/snacks/wardrobe/travel costs, etc. that you all will be responsible for as a part of the day, as well.
- Christmas School or Work Parties – Consider any items teachers or coworkers will be requesting for you to bring to any holiday parties that might be coming up! White Elephant gifts, potluck supplies, etc.
What did I forget? Can you think of any other December/Holiday costs that we should all consider when planning our monthly budgets? Drop them in the comments below.
Can you think of any I left off of this list?? Help us all out by commenting with any I might not have mentioned already!
Now… Go get your budget planned out if you haven’t already. I know it can seem daunting sometimes, but I promise you it’s better to KNOW where you stand than to be surprised (but not really surprised) at the end of the month when you’re over-drafting or going further into credit card debt.
You’ve got this. I’ve got you. Let me know how I can help you! <3
