Do you have money set aside for Christmas? If not try these tips.

I wrote about my Christmas budget on my other blog a few weeks ago but after talking to several of my friends and family members I realize that most people do not have any cash sitting aside right now for Christmas. And with Christmas just about 12 weeks away, now is the time to get a plan. Please make your plan to be a cash Christmas! Do not put gifts on credit cards, it will haunt you for a long time. I'm sure your gift recipients would not want to know that you charged their gift. So please use cash, even if it means you limit your gift giving or cut back on the dollar amount of gifts significantly!

Here are a few ways to generate some much needed cash for Christmas:
1. Check your withholding taxes and see if you can adjust them for the remainder of this year. Just grab your recent pay stubs and go to this IRS Website. It will project your taxes due for the year and tell you if you can stop paying or reduce your withholding taxes for the rest of the year. I help my sister-in-law do this and she will get about $900 more cash out of her paychecks between now and December 24th that she can use for Christmas. She will still get a refund when she files her taxes, it will just be reduced a bit. She chose to do this so that gathering money for Christmas won't be a burden. She, like many Americans, did not realize that she has already paid in enough to cover her taxes and more. See your human resources contact to get yours changed!

2. Have a yard sale. You can earn some quick cash and get rid of clutter. If you have a nearby flea market find out how much the rental fee for a booth is for a weekend. You will have a lot of guaranteed customers browsing through the flea market.

3. Gather up your old gold and sell it. I sold some of my old, broken chains, rings that I didn't like, and my high school class ring this past summer. I received $225 for all of it and it was just sitting in my jewelry box unloved. I loved that $225 much more.

4. Put a stop to eating out or at least reduce your trips through the drive thru. I've found that my kids are just as happy and healthy when we have sandwiches and macaroni and cheese for dinner when I just can't find the time or energy to cook a meal. Remember, it doesn't have to be fancy to be a homemade meal.

5. Try an energy challenge. Every year I challenge myself and the family to not use the Air Conditioner after October 15th and to not turn on the heater until after December 15th. This gives us two good months of energy bill reductions. Of course last year when we hosted Thanksgiving I caved and turned on the AC because it was literally 92 degrees outside and more like 100 inside after all the cooking. Sometimes Florida weather doesn't make me happy.

6. If you work, try an honor system bake sale or pot-luck meal. I've seen this recently at my school. Some wonderful baker has been making cookies and treats, bagging them up, and putting a money jar on the table. I helped myself to some wonderful "wedding cookies" and left a tip. You could do this with a crock pot meal too. Send out an email that you are bringing a meal and dessert. Leave it in a common area with a tip jar. Make a suggested donation sigh of $2 per bowl of desert and $3 for the main meal. People will literally eat this up! I'm going to do this next Friday. I'm bringing Ooey Gooey Mexican Chicken and Kentucky Derby Pie. I can't wait to see how it goes.

Do you have some tips for coming up with some cash for Christmas? Do you have a testimony that cash is best for Christmas please leave a comment and share with others! I love my readers' tips!