Christmas is always an expensive time of year, especially if you’ve got a growing family. The lists for Father Christmas get bigger every year, as those TV ads work their magic on the kids and they suddenly want things they’d never even heard of before – which always makes the toy look far more exciting than it will real life.

by  Ron Cogswell 

So, as your bank account is being drained on a daily basis, it’s a good idea to hold back on too many nights out. You’ll always end up spending more than you think, especially if you also have to factor in babysitter fees and taxi fares.

But sitting in, watching the TV, isn’t a very exciting prospect for the next three weeks, so how about trying out some of these suggestions for ways to pass those long, winter evenings.

Play Some Games

When you’ve got the kids tucked up in bed, if there’s nothing you want to watch, you could always do some gaming online. The choice of games is huge, particularly if you include all the apps you can play on your phone. If you’re home alone and feel like some company, you could play a game like online bingo where you chat to other players at the same time. Bingo won’t break the bank; on most sites such as Costa, bet365 and Buzz Bingo, the games start at 1p, 2p or 5p a ticket. And if you don’t want to spend anything, try out one of the many free online bingo games from Costa Bingo; there’s a Friday night game where the guaranteed prize fund is £10,000.

You could even get a few of the girls that you might go out for the night with and all play online bingo together. All people need to do is bring their mobiles; then you can all log in to the same site and play the same games together. A couple of bottles of wine and some snacks and you’ll have a great evening planned at a fraction of the cost of going out.

Get Crafting

Christmas is a great reason to get a little bit crafty. There are all kinds of things you can make, such as table placemats and coasters or Christmas crackers. You’ll find step-by-step guides on youtube and on the internet in general. It won’t always be cheaper than buying from the shops, but it’ll give your celebrations that homespun touch. Then there are any number of tree decorations you can make and have them to use year after year in the future. If you have older children, making Christmas tree decorations is a great family project to spend the evening doing – as long as you don’t mind putting up with a few wonky stitches here and there. And if you’re not at all crafty, don’t worry; you can always use fabric glue and leave the needles in the sewing box!

Cook Ahead Of The Big Day

If you’ve got plenty of freezer space, there are lots of dishes that you can prepare ahead of Christmas. A great example is homemade stuffing which is always better than the pre-prepared version you’ll find in the shops. And making and decorating your own Christmas cake will take an evening or two of your time.

Winter evenings at home don’t have to be dull, especially when you can play games and spend time getting ready for Christmas.

Author: Adam Davies

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