Planning ahead.

Kiki has a birthday coming up. I’ve been planning for it since Christmas. With money as tight as it is, I’m constantly watching for things which would make good gifts for my kids. I’ve already stashed away a fair amount of things for Christmas 2006. (I want to provide a really good Christmas for $200 or less.) Link’s birthday is in the fall and I’ve got most of what I need for that as well. One of the keys to making do on very little money is to plan WAY ahead. And because this might be useful for someone else out there, let me outline Kiki’s birthday. She is getting:

One stuffed dragon made by me from materials and a pattern I already had. Cost $0
One fantasy themed jigsaw puzzle which I acquired for free from someone who didn’t want it. Cost $0
Small bag of Polly Pocket dolls and accessories bought used from a neighbor child $5
Polly Pocket folding castle bought from a thrift store $1
Three pairs of earrings from a thrift store $1
A cake made from a box and decorated by me and herself $2
Balloons left over from some other celebration $0

Then in June we’ll have a birthday celebration with her cousins with all the screaming and laughing that usually attends children’s parties.

Total monetary cost is going to be less than $10. The cost in time is much higher, especially when you count that stuffed dragon, but the time sewing and combing thrift stores is well spent. I say that because I am confident that Kiki is going to absolutely love her birthday and her presents. Every thing on that list is something that she has been wanting for awhile. Naturally there are other much more expensive things that she would also love to have. I can’t provide those right now, but I’ve managed to provide enough. And as Mary Poppins says “Enough is as good as a feast.”