Christmas for $100?

Have you been feeling a little holiday stress? Whether you don't have enough time, enough money, or enough good ideas for presents, it seems like we're always busy and running short on something this time of year. Right about now, I try to figure out what I can cut out of my busy schedule, so I can get back to the basics. If you're feeling the same way, keep reading.

A few years ago, my daughters and I did a $100 dollar Christmas challenge, inspired by this book:

If you haven't had the chance to read it, maybe you can take a break from the hustle and bustle, grab a cup of hot cocoa, a blanket, and spend a few hours relaxing and reading. 

If you're hungry for more, we also wrote about our 100 dollar Christmas experiences in our own book:

But we are not the only ones to try this. Check out this post: I am sure there are many others. 

I like to buy gift cards, or just send money, rather than buy individual gifts. My children are old enough and live far away, so they can just buy what they want.  

One of my daughter's favorite things is letting the kids decorate the tree. Paper chains, snowflakes, school projects, stuffed animals, jewelry, blankets, it's quite a sight. It is far from magazine quality, but she doesn't spend money on ornaments and ribbons or spend time decorating and re-decorating the tree, and the kids are happy. 

What do you do to simplify Christmas?