FREE OR CHEAP WAYS TO GET INTO THE HOLIDAY SPIRIT

There’s no way around it, the holidays are an expensive time of year! The expense of gifts for your friends and family is almost enough to send you into overdraft, then there’s the office Kris Kringle, and all the extra holiday get togethers. It may not be a blue Christmas but it is certainly is a blue January when you get your first credit card statement in. So if you’re feeling especially skint this time of year we’ve got a few suggestions on how you have still get into the spirit of the season!

Check out the Lights

Grab your family or a friend and take a drive over to Science North to check out the annual Festival of Lights! Tour the dazzling display of nearly 55,000 lights and make a donation to Sudbury Charities Foundation on your way out. If that wasn’t quite enough cheer for you take a tour around a neighbourhood you don’t normally visit and take in the decorations. Pop in your favourite Christmas CD and you’ll be feeling jolly in no time!

Revisit a classic

Pick a favourite holiday movie, get cozy in your pjs and settle in with some hot chocolate (with or without Bailey’s) and snacks! Nothing sets the tone quite like an old classic and if you’ve still got the original VHS from the good old days that’s even better. Get yourself set up with a huge bowl of pop corn and a blanket and get comfy. Bonus points if you have a sibling around to revel in the nostalgia with you.

Bake up some cheer

Have a favourite holiday recipe? Or maybe a new one you’ve never tried before? Nothing says nostalgia quite like whipping up a batch of Grandma’s famous butter tarts. This is the time of year when its always nice to have some extra treats on hand for visitors or if you get a last minute invitation. Home baking is a thoughtful and inexpensive gift then you’re in a pinch and will make you the most popular employee when you bring a tray of goodies to the break room! This leads us into our next recommendation…

Cookie exchange

Once you’ve gotten into the spirit with your own home baking get a group together and swap treats! Everyone comes with  a batch or two of their favourite holiday sweet and everyone leaves with a sampling of all sorts of different goodies! The best part of the exchange is seeing the variety of recipes people come with and hearing the stories that go along with them. Everyone gets to learn a little bit about each other’s unique holiday traditions!

Everyone loves mail

The holidays are supposed to be all about spreading joy so why not take the time to show the people close to you how much you care! Grab some Christmas cards – or if you’re feeling especially crafty make some yourself – and let everyone know you’re thinking of them this year! This is a great way to keep in touch with folks you don’t get to see as much as you’d like and who doesn’t love getting something other than bills in their mailbox?!