• LAUNCH YOUR DREAM
  • BE A MOTIVATIONAL SPEAKER
  • STARTING OVER MIDLIFE
  • HAPPINESS THROUGH ACTIVISM
  • TRAVEL THE WORLD
  • GET HEALTHY & FIT
  • BUILD SELF-CONFIDENCE
  • BRAVE LIVING
  • WRITE WITH US

8WomenDream

Dream Big Stories

  • HOME
  • ABOUT
  • CONNECT
You Are Here Home » STARTING OVER MIDLIFE » How Do You Celebrate a No Money Christmas?

in STARTING OVER MIDLIFE

How Do You Celebrate a No Money Christmas?

Last updated on July 13th, 2022 at 05:40 pm

About ten years ago, I started training my children to expect a frugal living (no-money) Christmas. It worked so well that Christmas is now pretty much a non-event in our home, which is a darn shame.

I was sick of spending money on stuff that the boys would rip open, spend ten minutes on, and then completely forget. I noticed that they were not really having much fun, anyway. The let-down after the ten minutes was over didn’t do much for them.

I remember when my son “Sir Empath” was just a sprout, and I hid his Christmas presents in the back of our station wagon. He noticed them one day and whined and wailed until finally I realized there was nothing for it but to give him something. So I gave him the Nerf football. He tore it open, threw the football back into the car, and promptly fell totally in love with the box it came in.

I know, it’s an old familiar story, but that doesn’t make it any less true.

Another year, I gave my other son. “O Psychic One” a cardboard tube from the wrapping paper, which he re-imagined into a light saber a la Star Wars. We got a flashlight and taped it to the end of the cardboard tube, and voila: Light Saber. I grabbed a scrap of red and green tartan plaid fabric I had lying around and made a cape for him so he could be Darth Vader. He wore the cape and took the light saber everywhere for months on end. People would ask him if he was Mel Gibson in Braveheart. He thought they must be nuts not to realize that clearly, he was Darth Vader incarnate.

Noticing that my boys were ultimately a lot happier with less stuff, I seized the opportunity to institute a Christmas policy: one present each, and a stocking. The stocking would just be for the fun stuff – sweets and whistles and colored pencils and stuff.

Sidebar – When I was a girl, my best friend’s family had the absolute coolest stocking stuffers — little bottles of shampoo, hotel soaps, and perfume samples. Looking back, I realize that was because the dad in that family had a job that required travel. He collected those tiny cakes of soap and travel sizes of toothpaste and hand lotion, and that’s what filled the stockings.

But back then, I thought that was just the most exotic stuff. In my family, we got candy canes and tangerines and homemade fudge in our stockings, which now seems charming, but then seemed fuddy-duddy. I wanted the tiny bottle of Breck shampoo, never mind that I had a large bottle of Breck shampoo in the shower.

Go figure.

Anyway, my children now do not expect presents for Christmas. This year, O Psychic One told me he distinctly wished me NOT to get him a Christmas present, because he wants the new Wii when it comes out sometime in the future. Sir Empath says he does not need or want anything at all.

Perhaps you think I am the luckiest mother in the world. There is much to be said from that point of view. But here’s the thing.

Christmas doesn’t seem like a very big deal in our household. And I find that really sad.

I have achieved the panacea of training my children not to see Christmas as an opportunity to accumulate stuff. But I have failed to substitute anything else. To me, Christmas is not a religious holiday (because I’m not religious), but it is a spiritual one (because I’m spiritual). December ushers in the darkest time of the year. The days are short and the nights are long, but spring is just . . . around . . . the corner.

This is the time to look inward, to prepare for the coming of a new year and the planting of new seeds. On the darkest night, Christmas represents a reminder of the light to come. In fact, Jesus to me is a metaphor for the coming of the light — the Light of the World.

It’s a worthy holiday to celebrate.

So tell me, World of Dreamers, how do you celebrate a frugal living (no money) Christmas (or Hanukkah or Kwanza or any other winter holiday you celebrate)? One without spending much money. Even if you do indulge in the exchange of gifts, surely you have other traditions?

Leave a comment below and give me some ideas!

In return, I wish you a happy/merry, salutation I stole from an acquaintance this week. So much better than the bland and generic happy holidays.

Jayne Speich

Jayne Speich is co-founder of Business Growth Advocate dedicated to the survival and growth of small businesses in the new era.

Related Stories:

  • Be The Change: How to Turn a Sad Christmas Into a Happy Christmas
    Be The Change: How to Turn a Sad Christmas Into a…
  • Martha Beck quotes on dreaming big
    How to Celebrate When You Achieve a Dream
  • 8 Reasons to Celebrate in the Season of Miracles
    8 Reasons to Celebrate in the Season of Miracles
  • Celebrate Dream Accomplishments
    Celebrate Dream Accomplishments
Contributor Dream Stories

Enjoy this special 8WomenDream Guest Contributor story submitted by new and experienced big dreamers throughout the world, edited and published to capture a dream perspective from different points of view. Do you have a personal dream story to share with 8WomenDream readers? Click here to learn how to submit dream big articles for consideration.

Note: Articles by Guest Post Contributors may contain affiliate links and may be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on an affiliate link.

Filed Under: STARTING OVER MIDLIFE

Some of the posts on 8WD contain affiliate links or links to purchase products or programs from 8WD contributors. This means 8WD or the contributor may make a small commission if you make a purchase. The 8WD affiliate links help offset the cost of hosting this website and the contributor links help support the dreams of the contributor. Please check out the 8WD Legal Page for more details.

Thank you for your continued support!

« Your Dream Holiday Gift Guide
Holiday Traditions on a Farm in the Wine Country »

Check it out

  • LAUNCH YOUR DREAM
  • BE A MOTIVATIONAL SPEAKER
  • STARTING OVER MIDLIFE
  • HAPPINESS THROUGH ACTIVISM
  • TRAVEL THE WORLD
  • GET HEALTHY & FIT
  • BUILD SELF-CONFIDENCE
  • BRAVE LIVING
  • WRITE WITH US


The 8WomenDream Dream Tote Bag

About the 8WomenDream Tote Bag
US – 10oz Cotton
Dimensions (External Dimensions)
• Height – 18″ (45.72cm or 457.2mm)
• Width – 15″ (38.1cm or 381mm)
Handle Dimensions (Internal Dimensions)
• Length – 29″ (73.7cm or 736.6mm)

Recent Dream Stories

  • 8 Solstice Traditions for Focusing on Your Big Dream this Year
  • Winter Solstice: What Will You Do With 1 Minute More?
  • Why Halloween Costumes Can Help Discover Your Big Dream
  • How the Equinox Can be a Catalyst for Change
  • 5 Strategies to Live Your Wildest Dreams
  • Starting Over as a Single Mom Wasn’t My Big Dream
  • Warning: Big Dream to Be a Motivational Speaker Won’t Always Obey Your Plans
  • Dance to Relieve Stress to Focus on Your Big Dream

Inspiration

More About 8WD

WE BELIEVE EVERYONE HAS THE POWER TO ACHIEVE BIG DREAMS.
 
IT IS OUR SINCEREST WISH THROUGH THE SHARING OF PERSONAL STORIES ABOUT WHAT IT’S LIKE TO TRY TO ACHIEVE A BIG DREAM THAT WE WILL INSPIRE YOU GO AFTER A BIG DREAM TOO.
 
YOU CAN FIND OUT MORE ABOUT 8WOMENDREAM, HERE.

8 WOMEN DREAM | COPYRIGHT All RIGHTS RESERVED © 2025 · LEGAL

Welcome to 8WomenDream Where Big Dreams Are Shared
The 8WomenDream website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're OK with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. ACCEPT REJECT READ MORE
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
SAVE & ACCEPT