When money is tight or times get hard, celebrations are usually the first thing to go, but that’s when they matter most. Keeping traditions alive, even in a smaller form, helps a family’s morale and sense of normalcy. This covers 21 practical ways to keep birthdays, holidays, and special occasions meaningful without spending much, including building a “celebration stash,” giving experiences instead of things, and the one prep most people never think to make: a plan for keeping celebrations going when the usual options aren’t available.
This post has been completely updated and rewritten, October 2026.
When the budget gets squeezed, and whose isn’t these days, family celebrations are usually the first thing we cut. The birthday party shrinks to cake at the kitchen table, and the Christmas list gets shorter. Some years, the whole holiday feels like one more bill with one expense after another, piling up.
I’ve had those years. One Christmas, I was living in Germany, making almost no money at all and could only afford to send my family one box of lebkuchen, wrapped in a German newspaper. Later, tight times hit us as a family when our business was struggling, and most of my holiday shopping was done at the Dollar Store.
What I learned is that kids rarely remember what something cost. They remember the Valentine’s Day candlelit dinner and the stack of books that only came out in December. Those things cost very little, and most of them can be planned months ahead.
And, you know what? Looking back after many years, even I have a hard time remembering if a particular Christmas was lean or not. I remember the Christmas mornings with jelly “donuts” made from a can of Pillsbury Grands biscuits and riding our bikes around the neighborhood at night, looking at Christmas lights.
This article covers how to celebrate special times when money is tight, from stocking a small “celebration stash” to finding gifts that don’t strain the budget. If you’re shopping for gifts right now, my gift guides are a good place to start.
Some of the links in this post may contain affiliate links for your convenience. As an Amazon Associate, I may earn a small commission from qualifying purchases without any increase in price to you.
Table of contents
- Why I Plan for Celebrations, Even in a Crisis
- Why Celebrating Helps in Hard Times
- 21 Ways to Celebrate Good Times in Tight Times
- Let Me Help You Shop For Gifts
- Don’t Forget The Grown-Ups
- Didn’t Plan Ahead? Start With What’s in the House
- Remember Your Attitude Sets The Stage
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Related Content
- The Final Word
- Want More Useful Ideas From Survival Mom?
Why I Plan for Celebrations, Even in a Crisis
Longtime Survival Mom contributor Amy VR learned this lesson in April 2011, when a tornado outbreak tore through northern Alabama, where her family lived.
“We saw one of the tornadoes from our front window. Even those of us who were spared direct damage went days, and some weeks, without power. The day after the storms was my daughter’s 9th birthday, and we were stuck at home. Thankfully, I had already bought her presents and had a dessert mix on hand, so we put together a last-minute family celebration at home.”
Amy is quick to point out that a missed party doesn’t compare to what so many of her neighbors lost. Her daughter understood and wasn’t upset by the change in plans. Still, it got Amy thinking about longer hard times, like a job loss or a long-term disaster, and she added birthdays and holidays to her family preparedness plan.
That’s the heart of this article. A little planning lets you keep celebrating even when life goes sideways or money gets tight.
Rotate the Celebration Stash
Amy kept a small stash of birthday and holiday supplies on hand. When an occasion comes around, use what you have and buy a replacement for next year. Nothing goes stale, and you’re never starting from zero.
A basic celebration stash in a bin might hold candles, a cake mix and frosting, a few rolls of wrapping paper, and one or two small gifts bought on sale.
For example, I buy a bag of Halloween Candy on November 1st on sale and add it to the stash. After Valentine’s Day, I purchase a box of Valentine’s Cards with the candy included. Not only will kids enjoy these, but they will have them to share with others in the neighborhood who might not have planned to celebrate.
Why Celebrating Helps in Hard Times
A birthday cake during a job loss or serving a simple meal by candlelight doesn’t solve a difficult situation, but it does give everyone a few hours where the hard stuff isn’t the center of attention, and kids notice that. Adults, too.
Celebrations also give a family something to look forward to. When the week ahead looks grim, “Friday is pizza and movie night” is a small thing to hang onto. I’ve written before about emotional resilience, and keeping some joy in the house is part of carrying that load.
My husband’s birthday fell right in the middle of the main Covid lockdown in 2020. Most restaurants were closed, but we were able to get slices of cheesecake from The Cheesecake Factory, and ate them in our parked car! Sure, a bigger celebration with family would have been fun, but this birthday was more than memorable. Good times during difficult times.
21 Ways to Celebrate Good Times in Tight Times
Food that feels like a party
1. Bake from scratch
A homemade cake mix costs a fraction of a bakery cake, and it’s easy and cheap to make. Kids love helping, which turns the baking into part of the celebration. Out of eggs and oil? Try a soda pop cake: stir a box cake mix together with one can of soda and bake it as the box directs.
2. Pick a signature dish
Many families have one food that shows up every year, like cinnamon rolls on Christmas morning or my Pillsbury Grands jelly donuts. Choose something cheap enough to make in any year, good or bad.
3. Let the birthday kid choose the menu.
4. Find a cheaper version of a favorite treat.
If a favorite holiday recipe has gotten expensive, test a simpler one now, before the holiday. One year, I fell in love with an extravagantly expensive chocolate-mint bar — until I added up how much the ingredients cost! A box of brownie mix with a few York peppermint patties was just as good.
A Dutch Baby pancake is fun and special and doesn’t require any “fancy” ingredients. If your family likes this one, especially if you have two or three toppings on hand, make sure everyone knows this recipe will now be served every year on this special day. It’s that easy to start a new family tradition.
Gifts that don’t strain the budget
5. Keep a running gift list all year.
When someone mentions something they’d like, write it down in your phone. By December you’ll have a list of ideas you know they want, and time to watch for sales.
When my son was 7, he decided he was manly enough to use Axe shower gel and shampoo! So, on Christmas morning he woke up to find sample bottles of Axe products in his stocking (we bought them at CVS with a coupon), along with a well-wrapped piece of the Limburger cheese he had always wanted to try!
6. Buy in bulk when a deal is good.
When wrapping paper or favorite candy goes deep on sale, buy enough for several occasions and add them to your celebration stash.
One year I was able to buy a massive amount of pink tulle at an unbelievable price. When it was time for my daughter’s 5th birthday, we strung swathes of tulle from the center chandelier in the dining room to each corner of the room and let them drape to the ground. It was an amazing setting for her little-girl tea party. Lots of glamour for a few dollars.
7. Check the discount bins
Clearance shelves and end caps are a good place to find small gifts, so make a habit of looking every time you shop. Thrift stores work too. A used copy of a favorite book with a note written inside the cover becomes a keepsake.
For example, buy a few holiday decorations when they show up in the discount bin at the store., including paper plates and napkins. Sometimes all it takes to make a meal or holiday special is eating it on Christmas Barbie paper plates! After the particular holiday is a great time to purchase for next year at a steep discount. You can find discount bins in the meat and bakery departments at grocery stores, too.
8. Give an experience
A picnic at a favorite spot or a homemade coupon for one-on-one time often means more than another toy. You can also set up a scavenger hunt around the house that ends with a “redeem later” card for a treat. It stretches out the fun and moves the cost to next payday.
A friend of mine, Debra, started the tradition of taking her son to McDonald’s, not only on his birthday (April 9th), but each month on the 9th. It was their dedicated time together, and even when things got busy, they both had that “date” to look forward to.
9. Sign up for birthday freebies early.
Many restaurant loyalty programs send a free birthday meal or dessert, but some need you signed up weeks ahead before the offer shows up. Set them up at least a month before the birthday. Here are a few to try, but double-check they’re still valid before heading out to get your free treat. (Valid as of October, 2026.)
- IHOP Rewards: a free stack of buttermilk pancakes. You have to be a member before the 1st of your birthday month, so someone born on the 28th needs to join weeks ahead.
- Dairy Queen: a birthday offer, which isn’t always a free Blizzard. You need a $1+ order in the app within the 45 days before your birthday, and you can’t change your birthday once it’s entered.
- Starbucks Rewards: one free drink or food item. You have to join at least 7 days before your birthday and make a purchase that earns Stars first. Basic members can only use it on the birthday itself.
- Firehouse Subs: a free sub. You need a $1+ purchase in the past 6 months, made at least 7 days before your birthday, and you have only a 3-day window to use it.
- Chili’s Rewards: a free dessert. You have to buy at least $5 in food or drinks, and it expires 10 days after it arrives. Chili’s doesn’t state an official sign-up deadline.
- Panera: a free bakery treat, or a free You Pick Two for paid members. It isn’t applied automatically, so you have to pick it when you order.
- Baskin-Robbins: a free scoop or a coupon. You can add up to 5 family members, but not every shop accepts it.
- Cold Stone: a birthday reward that appears 7 days before your birthday and expires 7 days after.
- Smoothie King: a free 20 oz smoothie, but only for members who have reached the top spending level.
10. Shop with a list of practical ideas.
If you need ideas, my gift guides are full of useful gifts at a range of prices:
- Gifts for preppers: practical, creative and buy-it-for-life ideas
- Skill-based gifts for kids and teens
- Practical gifts for the women in your life
- Gifts for the prepper-minded men in your life
- Clever gifts for the non-preppers in your life
11. String up the lights.
Twinkle lights make any room feel special, and they aren’t just for Christmas. Dollar stores and after-holiday sales are the cheapest places to buy them. Perhaps they could become part of a new family tradition, say, every Friday night it’s “Twinkle lights and homemade pizza.” It doesn’t take much to make a simple meal special.
12. Have a candlelight dinner.
Stock up on candles at thrift stores and light them for birthdays or an ordinary Tuesday. Kids think it’s a big deal. We started doing this on Valentine’s Day when our kids were little. They’d seen candlelight dinners in Lady and the Tramp but never dreamed they would have one of their own. For just a couple of dollars we started a tradition they still talk about today.
13. Turn on the music.
A holiday playlist costs nothing and changes the mood of a whole house. If you have Spotify (the free version is fine), here’s my Christmas playlist, and a fun playlist with a summertime theme.
Let Me Help You Shop For Gifts
Traditions That Cost Almost Nothing
14. Keep a holiday book basket.
Pull out a basket of Christmas books only in December, and the same books feel new every year. This works for birthdays and other holidays too. Our Christmas book basket includes a few books we still talk and laugh about today, like The Christmas Crocodile. Libraries, thrift stores, and used book stores are good places to find these for pennies on the dollar.
15. Celebrate your family’s own special, unique days.
An adoption day or the anniversary of moving into your home makes a good excuse for a small celebration.
For example, families with adopted kids often celebrate “Gotcha! Day”, the day their child officially joined the family. Or make it a family “rule” that, “We don’t listen to Christmas music until December 1,” or “Our family always has a family bike ride to the park on Mother’s Day.”
16. Record a birthday interview.
Ask your child, spouse, or parent the same few questions every birthday, like their favorite food and what they want to be when they grow up, and record the answers on your phone. After a few years, the clips show them growing up in their own words. At the birthday dinner, you can also go around the table and have everyone name one thing they love about the birthday person while you pass around a few baby photos. Those recordings are going to become precious heirlooms as your family grows older and copies get passed on to the next generation.
17. Recreate your first date.
On your anniversary, go back to where you had your first date, order the same thing, and take a photo in the same pose. Over the years the photos become a flip-book of your marriage. Playing your wedding playlist every anniversary is another tradition that costs nothing.
18. Volunteer on a birthday.
Spending part of the day at a food pantry or animal shelter costs nothing, and some families find it turns into the tradition they look forward to most. The birthday person can choose a cause near and dear to their heart. When my son was young, that was a local kitten and cat shelter where he got to play with the felines, clean up after them, and give them lots of TLC.
Saving Ahead
19. Save a little, all year.
Set aside a few dollars a week for holidays and birthdays. The 52-week savings plan is one easy way to do it, and it means December doesn’t arrive as a surprise bill.
I’ll never forget the story of Margaret Reed, one of the mothers in the Donner Party. She and her children were snowbound in a tiny cabin at Donner Lake in the winter of 1846, and whenever she could, she quietly set aside and hid a few scraps of food, like a piece of tripe, a tiny bit of white beans, half a cup each of rice and dried apples, and a small cube of pork. On Christmas Day she cooked it all into a stew and told her children, “Eat slowly, for this one day you can have all you wish.” Her daughter Virginia later wrote that she never sat down to a Christmas dinner again without thinking of Donner Lake.
Most of us will never face anything close to that. But her idea works for any tight year. Put a little aside ahead of time, so there’s something special when the day comes.
Don’t Forget The Grown-Ups
20. Give yourself a “permission” birthday.
Adults on a tight budget tend to skip their own birthdays. Pick one treat you normally go without, and take a few hours off from chores with no guilt attached.
21. Celebrate paying off a debt.
When you make the last payment on a credit card or loan, spend what would have been that month’s payment on one treat. Then frame the payoff letter.
Didn’t Plan Ahead? Start With What’s in the House
If the birthday is tomorrow and there’s no stash, you still have options. Look around before you head to the store.
- Wrapping: a paper grocery bag colored by the kids, or a dish towel tied with string, or if you have rubber stamps from your Stampin’ Up days, use those to stamp and decorate any plain paper, including tissue paper.
- Decorations: paper chains from printer paper, or the twinkle lights from last Christmas
- Dessert: pancakes stacked into a “cake” with candles, or brownies from the pantry
- A gift: a handwritten letter or a homemade coupon book
Nobody needs a perfect party. They need to know you remembered, and that’s what makes any celebration memorable.
Remember Your Attitude Sets The Stage
If you’re feeling depressed because the money isn’t there for expensive family traditions, the whole family will feel the loss instead of looking forward to a fun, new tradition.
Moms are wired to give and to want to give the best they possibly can to their kids, but consider this. Is it possible that we’ve put too much emphasis on things and other material distractions? Have we forgotten that we are what our loved ones want more than anything? I’ve seen parents sitting with their kids at expensive birthday parties, immersed in their iPhones or trying to impress the other adults by showing off their own new “toys”.
Frequently Asked Questions
Focus on the parts of the day your kids look forward to most, which are usually food and traditions rather than the pile of presents. That early morning wake-up filled with anticipation is one of the most special parts of the day. Have a special Christmas Morning breakfast, and for gifts, one or two gifts they really want will carry more weight than a stack of cheap ones.
A December book basket or a drive to look at Christmas lights costs little or nothing. Look for community events that are free, like a Halloween Trunk-or-Treat at a church or a July 4th community picnic. Pick one and repeat it every year. Repetition is what turns an activity into a tradition.
Add up what you spent last year on gifts, food and decorations, then divide by 12. That’s your monthly target. Starting in January makes it far easier than starting in November. Keep in mind, this can quickly change from year to year based on your financial circumstances. That’s why it’s so important to begin looking for gifts months early and buy seasonal foods and decorations after each holiday.
A small box of birthday and holiday supplies you keep on hand, like birthday candles and wrapping paper. My Mom buys cute little trinkets from dollar stores, packages them in gift bags, and has them ready any time someone in her Sunday School class has a birthday or needs a pick-me-up after an illness. Use your stash when an occasion comes up, and replace what you used.
Related Content
- Gifts for Preppers: Practical, Creative and Buy-It-for-Life Ideas
- Why You Need Comfort Foods in Your Food Storage Pantry
- Frugal Fun: How to Enjoy Entertainment and Holidays Without Spending a Fortune
- Stock Your Food Pantry with These Holiday Bargains
- Why Old Cookbooks Are Worth Collecting and Where to Find Them Cheap
The Final Word
A difficult future is going to be made easier if family bonds are tight and the love is strong. There’s nothing quite like traditions and holidays to establish and reinforce those bonds, and tight times shouldn’t mean the end of these celebrations.
What are some of your favorite ways to celebrate good times in tight times?
Originally published May 19, 2015.
Wonderful list!! Lots of great things to keep in mind even when we're not in dire straits. Events and things aren't special inherently, but we can MAKE anything special! 🙂
It is great fun to decorate your Xmas tree with popcorn and holly berries. All you need is a needle and thread to make the strings. No need for lights and it turns out beautifully
My lil bird in the city just said she has absolutely no money to spend on Christmas presents this year, so I shouldn't buy her anything. This is an area where MOM'S pep talk comes in handy. It will be still Christmas with or without presents. It's not about buying things that make us happy or content, it's the giving from the heart that fulfills and creates the sweetest smiles.
I didn't understand this part of point #3: " Look for them in the after-Christmas sales and be sure to stock up before the LEDs take over completely."
Why would I go out of my way to try to buy non-LED, inefficient, short-life, fragile lites when I could be stocking up on a great cheap prepper asset ?!? Maybe its just a typo or maybe I'm misreading this.
LEDs don't twinkle. LOL
It's my own personal preference. Incandescants say, "It's a party!". LEDs say, "The government made me buy these. They're better than nothing. Whee."
Knitting is another way to make Christmas gifts. Bright new mittens look great on a Christmas tree. I don't knit a lot, but my kids have always taken great care of the mittens and scarves I made for them. (love in every stitch). For mittens, I use a technique called thrumming, which looks like little white hearts on the outside, and is all thick and fuzzy warm on the inside, great for our Canadian winters. The kids have told me they love it that their mitts and scarves are original, handmade just for them. My mom lived in Europe during terrible times in the 1940s. She said women would undo the yarn from old sweaters and things and knit brand new things from the old yarn.
Its a great idea to start inexpensive/ free traditions before time get rough. Then our families will feel the loss a lot less when money isn't there. Thanks for the great list!
Making presents for each other has always been a tradition in our family. One year my brother made my daughter a cradle, or my sister knitted a blanket for my parents, or my mother emborderied pillowcases for my kids. These are gifts that are appreaciated and meaniningful.
Family time, cheap, easy and fun. Playing together, those are inexpensive traditions as well.
Gift bags! They can be reused for years. 🙂
How about cloth gift bags? Made from holiday fabric, or heck just family stockings, nothing says it has to be wrapped under the tree, just stuff the stockings and lay them under there.
If you are not up to making cloth gift bags, you can use fabric from a stash for wrapping, skip the tape, tuck the rough edges under and tie with string, ribbon or even paracord. for larger presents, a pillowcase or even a bedsheet works well. One year I wrapped my daughter;s “better” present in a thrift store tee shirt–a two in one present! Also, if you give some kind of survival type item with every holiday, they will be prepared without much budget strain!
It’s been a rough year for us. When Mother’s Day rolled around my (grand)daughter was upset she couldn’t buy me what she wanted to. We had a long talk where I reinforced the fact that memories are the most important things to me. That morning she presented me with the most wonderful letter of her memories of the 2 of us together. From age 3 to 14, it was WONDERFUL!!! Then she informed me I would always have it to help me remember even if I started loosing my memory some day.
I laughed and cried at the same time. Those are the kinds of gifts we all need.
Some really helpful ideas. Preparing for emergencies with food storage and other survival skills is obviously important but building frugal financial habits is indespensible. It is more likely that you will go through a time of financial uncertainty than your house will be destroyed by a tornado. There are some really great ideas here and it will teach kids such valuable life lessons to see their parents setting these examples.
I have a party box I put together for ” hard times ahead”. I found rolls of party streamer for a 25 cents, I bought red white and blue mostly but other colors,too, balloons, Little hanging signs with Happy Birthday, and Happy New Year ect, this is my happy box. I even have napkins and pretty party plates, this box cost less than $10 to put together. I have a box I have for just Christmas too. Both boxes are carry sizes.
I had my kids choose which kind of cake with which kind of frosting we will have on their birthday. I also got a ‘birthday banner’ (a cheap mylar one) to hang for all birthdays. I got some eyerolls from teenagers, but as adults they’ve told me how special it was to them. I just got another birthday banner to use for my grandkids, who I do after school daycare for.
A few thoughts, in no particular order:
We have a pair of birthday hats that look like a cake, complete with candles. (we have twins, so we needed two) The birthday person is always photographed at the dinner table, candles lit on the cake, in the hat.
One year, in December, I needed to fly across the country to say goodbye to a dear friend. As mom, I generally do the Christmas stuff; decorating, shopping, wrapping. When I returned home, I was in a panic about wrapping. So I used gift bags. Paper, fabric, reused Amazon gift bags. Since then I have invested in cloth bags and a wrapping paper organizer to have all the bags, ribbon, wrapping paper, scissors, tape and tags all in one place. Bags, and ribbon and tissue paper gets reused.
Experiences! We get together to bake Christmas cookies and decorate them. Yes, it’s messy, and my little niece eats more frosting than ever lands on a cookie, but we have fun. Christmas music plays, all the decor is up and we have created memories.
Homemade gifts. I don’t know how to knit or crochet, but I can cook and bake lemon, shortbread cookies for my mother-in-law‘s favorite gift. A loaf of good, crusty, homemade bread, and a jar of homemade marmalade makes my father-in-law happy as a pig in mud, as does a pot of his favorite potato soup. None of us need more stuff. Books, however, are the exception. Search used bookstores and libraries who often sell donated books for gifts.
I love those suggestions. Thank you!