Christmas on a you-haven’t-had-a-paycheck-in-11-months budget

(I should keep an update on my job search on this blog, to keep it legit. My last job application of 2018 was a cover letter and resume for a development position at a well-known theater company in Pasadena on the 23rd, and then I shut my laptop for the week of Christmas and New Year.)

Mid November E and I looked at our accounts and decided we could splurge on one big gift for D, something she really wanted, a Nintendo Switch. The week before Thanksgiving I looked for the best deals, and landed with a good deal on Cyber Monday. I missed the big one-day sale that sold out in less than an hour for $50 less. If you want to save, wake up earlier. Lesson learned.

Even though we are exceptionally low on money, E and I thought it would be weird for only D to open gifts on Christmas morning. We decided to buy things we either needed, or something we wanted that cost less than $20. The plan helped us fill our three stockings, and it’s how I ended up with my favorite tea cup of all time ($15 on eBay), and E with eight new pairs of boxer shorts.

I also made gifts for my friends and extended family. Homemade granola and toffee for everyone. No one complained. Total cost: approximately $50, including jars and gift bags.

I’m an amateur knitter, so I was able to I fill out the stockings with knitted gifts for D and E. For D, I knitted up a scarf with a beautiful skein of merino red wool I bought a few years ago. And for E, who wears knit caps to work in the winter, I found a skein of black yarn in my collection and knitted him up a skullcap.

We almost couldn’t find a Christmas tree this year. There was a shortage of trees in LA, and after hitting three empty tree lots, we finally found one at Franklin and Highland, where the trees were knock-my-breath-away expensive. We opted for something more affordable in the 4-foot range. Not a bargain exactly, but it is petite and lovely, and it fits our living room perfectly. I usually jam a seven-footer in here. We shuffle around it for a month, and you can’t see half of the TV from one corner of the couch. Even though this year’s tree was too small to hang all my ornaments, I have to admit the smaller tree is an upgrade when it comes to Mrs. Maisel and Dr. Who binges.

I’d say my Christmas spending this season was down by about 65% compared to holidays past. Not too shabby for someone who loves gift giving. We even shopped for the best local deals on food, something I don’t normally do, but am slowly getting better at. Trader Joes meats and cheeses, Gelson’s fresh bread, sharing the cost of cracked crab with another family, and 365 produce came in for the win.

This year neighborhood friends joined us for a dinner of garlic crab on Christmas Eve. Christmas dinner was just us three and a delicious roast chicken with roasted potatoes cooked in the chicken drippings and greens from the garden. (I’m drooling just thinking about it.) We didn’t feel like we were missing anything, or falling short of expectations. In fact, I think it was one of our loveliest Christmases yet. Small, quiet, beautiful. Together.