Why I'm doing a home made Christmas this year

Hello, thanks for coming by.  As I just got a major boost in my holiday gift shopping, I wanted to share why I'm doing a handmade Christmas this year.    I found out that my mother - in - law used to have a homemade Christmas in her youth and loves homemade ornaments.  My parents and I once had a homemade Christmas when I was younger and I really enjoyed learning a new skill and contributing.  As a child, we spend money given by our parents and we don't really feel like we've contributed.

Some reasons why I want to have a home made Christmas are :

1. Appreciation of my loved ones
 I love giving things that feed into my loved ones' hobbies or joys or fill a void that they have. Now my parents tend to buy whatever they need, so I search out 'wants'- like things to help them quilt or garden.

2. Finances
As a new stay at home mom, the transition from a 40 hour work week to homemaker has been quite the adjustment. One adjustment is that our Christmas budget has become a topic to talk about.  We follow Dave Ramsay's financial advice and want to have a solid 6 months of expenses saved in our account and money set aside every month for both of our retirements. While we're set to reach our goal just after Christmas if we keep up our saving, spending even $50 on each family member will set us back for months.

3. I hate materialism

I specifically don't like searching for a gift that my family will enjoy. I remember one time that I bought a wine aerator simply because I couldn't think of a good, useful gift.  It wasn't my best gift giving moment!

My feelings were affirmed when I read about another mother who seems just as thrifty as I am. I found this at her blog, which I encourage you to check out
Sixfiguresunder

Homemade doesn't mean 'cheap'.  I am buying high quality fabrics and materials to create gifts that will last, be useful and appreciated. I also enjoy learning new skills, like learning how to sew a zipper for a makeup pouch and learning how to continental stitch to make an eyeglass case.  These are some ideas that I'm floating for Christmas.  Christmas is nearing and my crafting time is narrowing!