Disguise something needed as a gift!

To stretch the budget, try turning something you would otherwise NEED to buy your children into a special gift.  If you can do it for the same cost you would otherwise spend it's best, but it can even be worth spending a few extra dollars more than you normally would if it means you don't have to buy 2 separate items.

For example, if your growing child is in desperate need new t-shirts ... well, a plain t-shirt does not make an exciting gift for a small child.  But if they absolutely love everything to do with Spiderman and you just happen to find a shirt with Spiderman on it ... suddenly it's a great gift. And even if you spend $2 or $3 more on the t-shirt than you would for one with the Spiderman picture, you still come ahead of having bought them a toy and then still having to buy them a shirt after Christmas.

Other suggestions for needed items that you can turn into a gift by looking for something a little special:

- bubble bath
- shampoo/conditioner with a favourite tv character on the bottle
- socks
- pencils/pencil crayons/markers for school
- new backpack or lunch bag
- hat or mitts in a special design or with a special character

The hat my 1 year old gave to my older daughter as a Christmas gift last year.
The 4 year old LOVED the hat, and I loved that it only cost about $5 on sale ... and she needed a hat anyway.