Welcome to a Very Outspoken Christmas. It's that time of year to crank Mariah Carey in the car and begin your Christmas shopping. Our names are Amy Kate and Sophie Torber. We're identical triplets and during the festive season, we have an identical opinion. Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year. In this special series, we're discussing all things Christmas with help from some influential Australians.
Far for you, Glen Colco, You go, Glen Cuco. And when Santa squeezes his fat white ass down that Jimney Day, He's gonna find the jolliest bunch of assholes this side of the nuthouse.
Hello and welcome to episode two of A Very Outspoken Christmas. Today, we're so excited to be joined by Victoria Devine from the Sheese on the Money podcast. But before we get into that chat, can you guys believe it's thirty six sleeps till Christmas? Normally this would fill me with a lot of excitement, but to be honest, I'm feeling pretty down today. We have just found out we will be
going into a six day life in Adelaide. Now this lockdown is the strictest I think anyone has experienced in the world.
Yeah.
Well, the any reason we can leave the house is really if we need to go to the supermarket. That being said, I think that it's really good that we're knuckling down and getting on top of this before Christmas. The other thing that you forgot to mention, of course, is that masks are going to be mandatory here in South Australia. I must admit I did go on Amazon and have a quick look for some Christmas themed masks and whats it? A mask? Did you find? Because I
was imagining there would be like a Santa's beard mask. Well, they did have some gingerbread man themed masks, and they also had Santa on some masks, but the coolest one I saw was a light up mask. Gosh, can you imagine this time last year knowing that we would be talking about Christmas masks. It is just bizarre, and I think it is important to mention that we have actually
just found out about their new restrictions right now. We were all at home working together, so we thought we'd run up into the podcast room and record this intro while we still have the chance. Yeah, the rules don't go into effect until midnight tonight, so Tuesday's weekly episode is going to sound a little bit different. We're still working out how we're going to do it, but we will definitely be bringing it to you. And we all have been taking these rules very seriously because it is
such a scary time here in South Australia. We all got COVID tests and thankfully we've got the all clear. Look, let's look at it positively. At least we've got about a week to catch up on all the Christmas movies on Netflix. And I actually started my Christmas marathon on Sunday night when I watched a Christmas Made to Order. What I could not believe is the main actor in the movie is Aaron Samuels from Mean Girls. And I was like, sort of about fifteen minutes in and I
was trying to think who is he. Yeah, I've watched the first five minutes of the movie and I said to Brennan, who is that guy? I can't figure it out? And he said, whoever it is looks constantly surprised. Yeah, I thought the same thing. I quickly realized why he had such a small part in Mean Girls, because not
to be rude, but he's not the best actor. One other thing I loved in the movie was the fact that the female actor her business was decorating people's houses for Christmas, and this could be a great side hustle for us. I mean, if we weren't in COVID Lockdown. Wasn't her name also Gretchen, which is of course like Gretchen wien is in meng Yeah. I was halfway through the movie when I realized this, and it cracked me up. Anyway, I really recommend watching it. Don't go in with huge expectations,
but it's a really cute Christmas movie. Also on the Christmas theme, did anybody see Roxy Jusenko's amazing Christmas lights? Yeah? I saw this on an Instagram story and I was in awe of the fact that she actually had enough money to employ people to put her Christmas lights up out the front. Did that really surprise you? She is very well for you. It didn't surprise me, but I suppose it's quite aspirational to have enough money to employ
someone to do it. Gosh, the lights looked incredible, though. I was just thinking about her children and how they think that that's the norm to have that many Christmas lights. Like, I kind of really love that that they think it's normal. The only thing is it's a little bit sad that they think it's normal to have like servants hanging the Christmas lights. I mean, I have fond memories of Dad hanging the Christmas lights with his bum crack hanging out.
On the topic of Christmas lights, we have to have a special mention to our uncle Paul. Now, he was quite upset that we didn't mention him in our first episode, and we you know, it was a faux pa because his Christmas lights are amazing and we really hope that he sets up a display this year. Well yeah, because he always competed against our dad, so it was always great to go see Uncle Paul's display and then check
out Dad's. And it was also great because it meant Dad would buy more Christmas lights to compete against him. So I think I'm voting that Uncle Paul needs to put them up this year. Look, we can't have this Christmas Weekly wrap up without mentioning Kylie Jenner. Now she has released a collaboration with The Grinch. Did anyone see this on Instagram? Yeah?
I did.
I can't say I love the look of the products, but I love the fact that it is Christmas related, and I loved seeing Kylie dressed up as her own kind of version of the Grinch. I really love the attention to detail and commitment to this theme. Yeah, she looked amazing. She was a very bougie Grinch. I mean, I'm not sure how I feel about three different shades of green eyeshadow in a palette, but I'm sure it will sell out pretty quickly. I have a Christmas pullet.
Oh maybe a little bit of pud? Then, what a bloody surprise. May you got a room for pud? You love your pudding. There's always a little bit of room for pud. Victoria, Welcome to a very outspoken Christmas. We're so excited to have you as our first guest of this series. So just how big of a Christmas tragic are you?
Oh my gosh, thank you for having me. Friends. It feels very strange to be on someone else's podcast instead of running the show. But I'm probably the biggest Christmas fan that there is. It's a bit tragic in a way. Actually, I love.
That because we're also huge Christmas fans. Now, what's one thing that you like to do at Christmas that people might think is a little bit crazy.
Oh I am what. I'm twenty nine now and still every Christmas Eve, my parents and I go driving around our area looking at Christmas lights. Like that's what we do. We get in the car after dinner on Christmas Eve. And there's been a number of times where friends have wanted to do like Christmas Eve drinks and stuff, and I can't go because I've got to go look at Christmas LI took my parents, So maybe that we don't decorate the outside of the house, but we definitely go
pretty ham on the inside. I don't know if this is embarrassing or not. Do we want to share this time?
That's not embarrassing at all. Our Christmas Eve tradition is watching carols by candlelight with our parents. So we've also turned Christmas Eve drinks down.
Yeah, it's after carols. It's after Carol's finished. So after Carol's finished, you've got to have like dinner and watch the carols as all of that happens. And when the carols wrap up, it's quite late and we go for a drive after all the little kids are in bed to look at the lights. It's actually lame, and I love it.
I feel like you revert back to a child at Christmas time. You get to explore all those things you did during childhood. So I don't think it's lame at all. I love it. We'll talking about Christmas carols. Do you have some favorite ones you'd love to share with us?
Or probably anything Boublet or Mariah Carey. I'm not gonna lie. I'm not some kind of Christmas classics kind of person. I'm tacky Christmas. My family don't like that about me, but it's just you know what you deal with if you're going to have me in your house at Christmas time.
We're all big fans of Maya here, so I'm totally on board with that. Now, getting back into Christmas decorations, when do you think it's an appropriate time to put them up?
I think I put mine up at the start of December, But this year I'm not going to have that opportunity because I'm moving house, which is exciting and also terrifying, but I'm not going to get to put it up until like the twentieth of December, which, if I'm honest, is probably the most heartbreaking thing about moving house, like, not worried about leaving the house, just worried about the fact that my house isn't going to be Christmas y at Christmas time and I feel like I'm going to
waste a year of having the tree up. That's a bit strange, but that's okay.
I'm in the same boat as you. I'm moving into my new house on December fourteenth.
Oh my gosh, that's my day.
Oh my goal. Well and crazy. The first thing I said is when am I going to put my Christmas tree up? However, Reese's like, oh, yeah, we don't have to put a Christmas tree up at all.
My partner actually talked to me and told me that we're not putting the tree up before we leave. And he literally had to make a point of it because we were talking about just things that we had to move, right and our Christmas tree is kept outside in the shed and the new house that we're moving to doesn't have as big as shed. So I was kind of like, you know, what will happen with the Christmas tree? Well,
like where will we store it? Kind of thing? And He's like, don't you even think about putting that up before we leave? And I was like, oh, you know me too well, so he warned me, I can't guarantee that I won't.
Though every year we seemed to move out to a new rental in December, and a few years ago it was December night that we had to move out, and we were so annoyed because we felt like we were missing that lead up to Christmas too, So we put our fate Christmas tree up. When we actually had to pack it in the removalless van with all the decorations on our Dad was so angry because he got stuck trying to pull this thing out, like the decorations went everywhere. So I probably would have not doing that.
That's genius, Like that's actually so smart. Here I am thinking I'd have to decorate the tree and then undecorate it and pack it up when I could just get a really big roll of blad, wrap that stuff up and then it's good to go at the next house. Like, I think you guys might have just saved Christmas.
I've heard people actually do that each year, and I'm like, part of the fun. I feel like it's decorating. How weird is that?
It's kind of strange. I'm not gonna lie, but you know what, each their own. If you want to gladier at your tree, you glad you're at your tree.
Friends, Yeah, as long as you're putting one up, then that's all right. Now, can we get into the specific details of what sort of decorations you have on your tree? Because I feel like you're a very stylish person. I feel like you'd have a bit of a color theme going.
Okay, that's I feel a little bit attached by that because I think that you guys know what's coming here. But yeah, I have a very I'm an over the top Christmas person and you best believe everything on that tree matches. So this year it'll be a silver and white theme again. But we have those really big flowers. I don't know if you know what I'm talking about when I say that we've got quite a tall tree. So it's like a seven foot fake tree with like a basket that I ordered online a couple of years
ago during Boxing Day sales. Obviously that's a great budget tip and probably makes this episode really relevant that all of the Christmas stuff goes on sale on Boxing Day and you can get half priced, good quality Christmas trees. But that's beside the point. We've got these big, beautiful silver flowers and white flowers and a lot of glass decorations.
Actually it's very fancy, but everything that is on the tree, I think I got it, like bed bath and table for like sixty or seventy percent off, so it looks fancy, but it wasn't too expensive.
I love bed bath and table. They have the best decorations.
They really do. Like it's actually really upsetting when you go in the year after you've decorated your tree fully and I'm like, oh, is it naughty to get more decorations? I don't know, Like that's probably the biggest thing that I spend money on at Christmas, to be honest. Growing up, I had heaps of sentimental decorations and they're still on
my parents' tree. So my parents tree, they don't have like a styled Christmas tree because they still have like the toilet roll and paper plate kind of angel that I made in pre school. I kid you not, they still have that, and then mine because I don't have kids and don't really have tradition, and I'd get in a lot of trouble if I tried to take their
Christmas decorations. I've been able to style it, so I reckon as time goes on and I do have kids, and all of that starts to happen, my tree will go from being very beautiful to maybe being a little bit more eclectic, a bit crap.
Let's just be honest.
Yeah, let's call it eclectic, to get a little bit classy about it.
I feel like we'll need to share a photo of your Christmas tree in our group so people know what everything looks like like the flowers.
All right, I'll post it, I promise, like I've got a lot of I've got a lot of photos, and I will post it. I also have a picture of my cat as Santa Claus, which I'll you know, post as well, because obviously that's the best part of Christmas, when you get to dress your pets up.
Oh my god, I literally have that question down to ask you about the beautiful cats Bailey and Henry. I was gonna say, I I thought that you might be someone who would dress them up. I know with my cats they hate it, but how do yours go?
Mine just put up with it. Honestly, I think that they are just so over living with me and so used to it that they're just like here she goes again, which I don't know makes me sound a little crazy, and I am and I'm all right with that. I am against innocent trees being cut down in their prime and their corpses grotesquely dressed in like tensil and twinkly lates.
Now, just back to your tree, are we allowed to ask how much you spent on it? Because the three of us have been having a debate about how much is socially acceptable to spend on a Christmas tree. So if you wanted to spend one thousand dollars, okay.
I wouldn't spend one thousand dollars. That feels like a lot. But I do remember buying mine from David Jones on sale, and I think I paid Like this might not be correct, and obviously, like we can't prove this anyway, so who knows, But I think I paid about three hundred dollars, which at the time I felt like with a lot of money for a tree, but it was like sixty percent off because I got it after Christmas, and so then I had to wait an entire twLF months before I
could even use it. But I do think that that was kind of a good money win, and I've had it for at least five years now and it still looks epic. We just bought like a really basic version of one that had the most realistic looking like what are they called like branches, and every year we kind of just add a few more decorations or update the color or something. I would love to do a gold tree, but given how many silver decorations I have, I just don't think that I can justify that at this point.
And I want to look them straight in the eye. I don't want to tell them what a cheap, lying, no good rotten for a blushing, low life snake locking, dirt eating and bread over stuff, ignorant, blood sucking, dog kissing, brainless, dickless, hopeless, heartless, fat ass, bug eyed stuffle like it's body lip. We're headed, sack of monkey shit. He is hell, he loya, Holy.
Shit, they're going back to you. Childhood. We touched on a little bit earlier as a kid growing up. Did you have an advent calendar at all? Because I feel like that's the first thing that really signifies that Christmas is on its way.
Absolutely, we did, and I was really upset when I stopped getting them, and if anyone in my team is actually listening, my entire office gets an event calendar every single year now too, So like we haven't lost the advent calendar. It's going nowhere.
We need to start working at your workplace because.
Wow, you're all welcome now.
Just touching on Christmas traditions, what was it like for you growing up with the concept of Father Christmas? Did you believe in him for a long time? Did you go and visit him at the shops? What sort of things did you do in the lead up to Christmas?
We did, So this is actually an interesting story. I mean, I think it's interesting because it's my story. But growing up, we always had Santa, and I loved Santa. And I have a little sister who's about three and a half years younger than me, so she obviously believed in Santa for a little longer than I did. And my mom is a very big believer in not quote lying to your children right, So whenever I would say to my mom,
Mom like is Santa real? Or come home from school and just say, oh, someone's so said x ll and said, and Mom would say, oh, well, do you believe this? Santa is real, and I'd be like, well yeah, and she'd just say, well, you know, if that's what you believe, that's what you believe. So she never ever directly said Santa is real to us. And one day I came home, and I don't know the context of this, but I came home and I was apparently a very furious eight year old. So I said, you lied to me. Santa
isn't real. You told me he was real. And my mom was just like, no, Victoria, Like, I've never told you that Santa is real. Remember I always ask you what do you believe? And I always tell you, well, that must be enough. And so I was obviously upsets and kind of went on about the Tooth Fairy and the East Bunny and it all just came crashing down for me that day. But my mom told me that day, Victoria, if you tell your sister that Santa isn't real, that's
the day that Santa stops bringing Santa sax. And a very big tradition in my family, is Santa Sax true this day? Because I've upheld that promise, I still have not told my parents that Santa isn't real, and we don't believe in it, And I remember a couple of years later when my little sister came to me and said, oh, Vi Trua, did you know that Santa isn't really I don't think it's real. I was like, Oh, you're going to have to stop there, mate, like we need to
pretend it is. And up until very recently recently, as in I've had a couple of Christmases overseas and not been with my family to have it, we've always done Santa sax And even as a twenty eight year old, have had, you know, Christmases where I get into my parents' room with my Santa Sack and open presence on their bed in the morning, Like it's something that, oh, I
hope I do with my kids. But we still really like we kind of get tea and toast and open our Santa Sax and they're always just like small presents. It's not like a massive thing for us, but it's just like such a tradition that I adore it.
So do your parents go to the extent of writing on the tag that it's from Santa? Still?
Yeah, And we have Santa Sacks that are actually hidden and we only see them on Christmas. Day and like, yeah, Santa leaves a specific type of lolly, and Santa actually uses different wrapping paper than the wrapping paper that my parents used to try and like really throw us off the sand.
I love that that is so magical.
It is, it's so special, and like I think it's actually it's so nice to talk to you guys about this as well, because I think that we forget these things that our parents did for us, and you know, it takes time and energy and effort to create magic like that, and the fact that it kind of stuck is also really special. So it's nice to kind of like reflect on that. Did you guys do Santa Sax? Do you still do Santa Sex?
We've got our san We don't call them Santa Sax. We've just got our big stockings that mum and our mum and dad got us. That was for all of our Santa presents and they still do. Right from Santra on it. We go to the extent when we lived at home of you're leaving our carrots and don't worry. Well, I don't know is this a thing in Melbourne? Because we we had a chimney, but our chimney wasn't connected
properly to the fireplace. So when we queried our parents on that, they said, oh, don't worry, Santa's got an ice key that he carries around in an ski to get inside houses. How did your Santa get inside? Have you heard of an ice key before?
I haven't heard enough key. That's actually quite impressive my parents, I don't. I don't think we actually ever discussed it. We've never had chimneys though, either, so I'm not sure how I thought Fanta got into our house. Maybe he just came through the front door.
But like a normal person, Yeah.
Just like a normal person just waltz is on in as if we're totally okay with like some strange man coming into our house at midnight, eating our food and leaving weird presents. But no, like my parents have always gone to a lot of effort to make those things seem real though, Like when it came to Easter, we'd get like the footprints across the back deck to make sure that we thought that, you know, Easter Bunny had come. And till this day, I still don't know how my
mom does that. Like I always look at it and I'm like the outline of the footprints are always so perfect in Flower that I'm like, how does she do it? She must have a stencil or something and I've asked and she's like, oh, it's just the magic of it. And I'm like, how do I what? Like, I'm an adult, tell me.
I feel like when you have kids, she'll have to tell you so you can do it too.
Honestly, Or she will make me go to her house and she'll be like, oh, well, east funny. Actually when we comes to mind house, I have to head on over here.
Gretchen switch sides with Katie. But I'm always on your left. Well that was when there were three of us, and now the tallest go in the middle. The whole dance will be backwards.
I'm always on your left.
And right now you're getting on my last nerve.
Switch.
Now, moving on to Christmas Day, I know we're all living with a bit of uncertainty with COVID around, but how do you normally spend your Christmas Day?
So my family is a bit more spread out. So my extended families, the cousins, aunts, uncles are all in Tasmania and my parents are here. They're down the Mornington Pininsula, so they're sadly outside of my twenty five kilometer bubble, so I won't be able to visit them at the moment, but hopefully all of that lifts by Christmas. But usually
on Christmas Day we head down there. My partners family celebrate Christmas, but we often do it either Christmas Eve, like the day of Christmas Eve, or Boxing Day or a few days after with his family. But my family's pretty set in having, you know, a lunch for Christmas. But Christmas lunch for us actually looks a little bit different. We don't do the big turkey, we don't do like a big roast or anything because people in my family just don't like it. Like my little sister and I
both don't eat meat. My mum loves seafood and my dad just loves steak. And you know, we often have a few other people joining on Christmas here and there. It could be an aunt and uncle coming over from he to has Christmas with us, or you know, some years we've gone to Tasmania to have a big family Christmas. But as everyone's gotten a bit older and we don't have that many young kids in the family anymore, that's
more few and far between. But we actually do kind of like a favorite Christmas where Mum asks everybody what their favorite meal is and we make that. So my dad always gets like chocolate ripple cake, which is his absolute favorite. My Mum loves fresh pawns and like dipping sauces and kind of like a fancy er ish, which you say, it's like a kind of like Consisimon's basket, would you say that? Like, I don't know if that's
that's it, But she just likes fresh seafood. My sister and I love cherries and watermelon and like all of the more expensive fresh fruits man goes through in season, so we adore that. And we kind of just have this like spread of kind of like eclectic food, but like all our favorite things in one place. So that's, I don't know, something that's always been special to us and to whatever joins us for Christmas. For example, a couple of years ago, we had I had an o
pair growing up who was from Japan. She and her partner came and so Mum just made their favorite things as well and added it. So everybody kind of just felt really special and thought about on the day. It wasn't just like, oh, we're having a roast. It was like, we're going to have your favorite thing as well. So that's really cool and I guess a little bit different than most.
I feel like that's really good because a lot of the food that we serve on Christmas Day, a lot of people don't actually like, Like you think of all of the fruitcakes, and it's very rich food.
Thet trifle, like do you guys eat trifle?
Oh see, our grandma used to make the best trifle, so we'll make it now just because we love it.
Never is good, though, but it's like Grandma's trifle is probably a ten out of ten. But when you make it, you're like, oh, I could give it a pass.
That's the thing. I'll make it, but I don't really like the taste of it, you know, when you just do it out of tradition.
Yeah. Yes, And fruitcake to me is so gross. I'm not gonna lie. It's like the one thing and I'm like, I do not want Christmas fever. Pavlova amazing incredible, Like my mum is probably the Queen of Pavlova. I don't know how her wizard tricks turn like four eggs into enough Pavlova to feed the entire country, but she manages to do it.
It's because it's a suitable summer dessert, like eating rich kind of fruit stuff is not a summer dessert.
For the next two months, your entire life, all your music listen to is Christmas music. All the TV you watch is Christmas TV. Your home dock, who is Christmas home dacam your lifestyle changes.
Now, we wanted to pick your brains about some Christmas budgeting advice. Do you have any hacks of people who are trying to save money over the festive season.
I think it starts with just setting expectations at the start.
Right.
This year has been an absolutely undeniable ship storm, let's be honest, and I think it's really unreasonable to have the fame expectations on finances this year. And I think it's really important that we remember that a lot of
people go through these things often quietly as well. So if you feel like a family might not have suffered as much as you know others because they haven't been vocal about it, I think it's really important to just reflect on that and going, you know what, let's see what we can do here, and just be really budget conscious this year, because I think it's a really respectful
thing to do across the board. But I think when it comes to gifts, renegotiating what that looks like and even just doing stuff like Chris Kringles Last year for Christmas, it wasn't a budget thing. It was more just like out of it made sense because the kids in our family have more than enough presence and more than enough toys. We actually did a second hand homemade gifting, so all of our presence had to fit that criteria and if
it didn't, you couldn't give it. And then we set a really strecch budget of fifty dollars per person and did a Chris Kringle. But that's because in our family, the gifts aren't what it's about. If that makes sense, and I know that for a lot of families use but then if that's the case, I'd be really working backwards.
Well, there is something nice about getting a gift that someone has made for themselves. I've got a lot of time and effort into instead of just running out and buying something random for fifty dollars. What have you made in the past, Victoria or is this just something new that you're doing.
So last Christmas, I actually found online I think it was like on gum Tree. We found a kid's kitchen. So I have a niece and a nephew, Oscar and Georgia, who are very very delightful children, and they had recently got a cubby house or I think they were getting a cubby house for Christmas, and my partner and I like, how cool would it be to get them a kid's
kitchen to go in their cubby house. But these kids' kitchens are honestly, they can be a couple of hundred dollars upwards to like five hundred dollars, so we're like, that's a lot. But we ended up finding one on
gum tree for like forty dollars or something. Secondhand. Had been really well loved, really well looked after, but it came with all the utensils in it as well, so they got the pots, they got the pans, they got the cups and the sauces and the kettle and like literally everything to deck out their mini like cubbyhouse kitchen.
It was actually quite a funny story because we turned up to pick up this little forty dollar kitchen thinking bonus we'll chuck it in the back of the car and then we'll go out to a dinner that we
had planned on the same side of the city. Then it didn't fit in my car and I had to drive home and swap my path on my partner's car while he stood on the side of the road in Fitzroy with a tiny kid's kitchen looking like kid found some hard rubbish that he was trying to like pull dims on at seven pm, which is probably not the greatest time to be standing on the side of the road. It was getting dark, But that was really great and
was something that they actually love. I still get photos from my sister in law being like, hey, the kids are in the covey. They've been in there for hours with all their little friends from the street. They love this kitchen and they've kind of created a little cafe out of it, which is really sweet. But another thing that I've made historically is your biscuits and now they're requested, which I quite like. And caramel sauce, Like caramel sauce.
Who doesn't love like a really good fudgy caramel, especially as a gift put on like ice cream or treats or like, let's be honesty that like peanut butter with a spoon. I just feel like getting a gift like that makes you feel like you've been really thought of, especially if it's a line to something that you really enjoy consuming.
I think that's a great idea. I want to do this with Kay and Sof and our partners because it's sometimes awkward when you feel like you've got to get everybody a present and then your budget can go out the window. Do you have advice for I suppose when I mean even for just your partner. Do you guys set a budget that you can't go over.
I think this is actually such an interesting topic for you guys to have brought me in on. Actually not because I'm super good at budgeting, but I'm really left field when it comes to present So my partner and I actually do birthday and Christmas baskets. So we've decided that we are quite lucky people. You know, we're quite privileged when it comes to gifts, and if we need anything, we will often find ourselves just purchasing it for ourselves.
So it's not as though there's anything at Christmas time that we super need and we kind of feel like it's a little bit wasteful to be like, oh well, I guess we'll get bikes this Christmas. If it's not something that we you know, really wanted and we're just doing it for a token, Oh well, what are we going to spend on each other for Christmas? So at Christmas and Birthday is so lame. And I'm so glad
that you know this isn't on my podcast. So hopefully you guys don't judge me to try and talk about this again, try and talk about this publicly, I will deny it. So we do these Christmas and Birthday baskets, but we just feel it full of all of the other person's favorite things. So my partner loves light and tiny chips, so I put those in, and I put a small bottle of his favorite alcohol, and I put a book that I think he might enjoy. And we don't spend that much. I would say that basket maybe
cost me like seventy five or one hundred dollars. It's all of snacks and just small things. Last year I put some pajamas in it. Like but on Christmas morning, before we do the family thing, we kind of open our baskets together and like, oh, I mine like fully and he'll open his fully, and that's our gift to each other. And both of us really enjoy that because I think it also takes the pressure off gift giving,
like it's not about one upping. It's actually about how many cute things can I put in this basket that I know he'll love, Like, Hey, I bought my partner light and tanging chips in Christment. But when it's all wrapped up together, I think it's really fun. And like last year, he's like, oh, I found these cute little like vegan lip gloss for you, and I was just like,
how sweet is that? Like it was probably like five bucks, But at the end of the day, it's the thought, and like getting a whole basket of stuff that someone's really thought about for you is really special.
I love that. I feel like so many more people should do it, because you just end up wasting so much money, as you said, on stuff that you really don't need, like bikes, and as you touch on there is that awkwardness of one upping someone because I don't know, I've always feel so terrible if someone buys me something
that I know is more expensive. Victoria what would be your advice for people who are perhaps in early stages of a relationship and they don't know whether to buy presents for the other person.
Yes, I've been there. I've gone to the point I get so socially awkward in things like this where I've like, I've been known like and this is not a good budgeting tip, but I've been known to have a backup present, like where I have like a candle or like a box of chocolates or something all wrapped up and ready to go in case they give me something and I'm like, oh, I just bomb upstairs and grab yours to get out of that situation, because I genuinely it gives me anxiety
thinking about it. But for those of you who aren't as crazy as I am, I think it's actually just about saying, hey, Christmas is coming. Like, if you're spending time with them on Christmas Day, I think it would be very appropriate to say, hey, like, am I expected to bring presents? They're probably gonna say no, But I think it's more, is there something small that I can
bring along just to show my appreciation? Parent presents are always so strange, But when it comes to your partner, I think it's just about, hey, Christmas is coming up, are we doing gifts? Are we not doing gifts? And
I think it's about taking away the guilt. If you've had that conversation and you've set a budget and your partner goes over it, I think we need to forget the financial side of things and just go how great, Like I've put my time and energy into an like into a gift that this person hopefully will love, and
that should be more than enough. And if they go and you know, blow the budget, like that's really sweet, but it's completely unnecessary and you can just be really grateful for it, be like, wow, I'm so lucky, Like, look, how spoiled I am. I didn't do that for you. Obviously not expected. But I think when we start actually one upping each other, it becomes really tormental, Like I did that in my relationship at the start, and that's
essentially where our birthday baskets came from. It got to a point where I was just like, look, this is ridiculous, Like you don't need to impress me with really big presence. I don't need, you know, an iPad, or I don't need something massive from you. In fact, just hanging out with you on Christmas is enough. The fact that you let me play Mariah Carey. All I want for Christmas is you, like multiple times a day in the lead
up to Christmas should be enough as well. But I think it's just more about setting expectations and remembering that it's not on you if the other person doesn't adhere to that expectation. And I know that a lot of guilt usually comes from that.
Yeah, this happened to me because the first year my boyfriend and I were together. Hey, it sounds like we're not together anymore. We are still together, but he brought me mine. He brought me an eight hundred dollar necklace.
Oh god, I bought lucky Lady.
I know. But now it's set the bar. So I've had to have the discussion with him and say, look, because we live together now, I'm like, look, we needed to set it at one hundred dollars. I think that's enough. We're spending so much money on everyone in the baskets. Maybe have to do the baskets. I do like that.
I do.
The baskets are honestly so fun, and I mean, if it's in your budget, you can only sneak something else in there. It's not uncommon of us to kind of sneak like, you know, one hundred dollar pair of like Chino's or something in there that I know we needed. But like the idea that you have a birthday basket is really fun and like it's kind of the anticipation as well. It kind of takes it away from being
a gift more too. I wonder what's going to be in my basket this year, and like sometimes we try and find silly things, like silly things that we can add, like silly lollies or American like treats that I've found at like the American Lolly Shop that I'm like, oh, he will love this, and i know it sounds really lame, but at the end of the day, like it just becomes a thing and we really like it.
Victoria, what do you think is some common Christmas budgeting pitfalls that people get tripped up by along the.
Way forgetting that your Christmas budget is food, food and drink and entertainment during the period. I think that something that is really common is you know, you sit down and you know, all right, well, I'm going to be really good this Christmas and you budget for the gifts, but you forget that during the Christmas period, it's really common to go out for an additional drink with someone or go to another Christmas party, and these things add up.
Like you might go to a party and have an eighteen dollar cocktail here and there, but that stuff really does eat into your larger budget. It's also like the trimmings at Christmas time, right, Like it's the additional boxes of chocolates that you're buying when you go to someone's house for a drink or just to have a little bit of a celebration. It's you know, the garnishes that
go in the drinks on Christmas Day. These things all need to be accounted for, and that's why it's so important to have a comprehensive Christmas budget that takes all of these things, not just gifts, into consideration.
Do you think it's also important to have a strategic plan ahead of you when you are going Christmas shopping for not only presents, but also food, because I feel like that's where people do slip up, Like, so, would you recommend people looking for some of those sales dates, like whether it's Black Friday or whether you are going to purchase stuff in the boxing day sales.
Oh absolutely, And we've got Black Friday coming up, so that's at the end of November, and I think if you're prepared, and like spoiler guys, tomorrow's podcast is literally on Christmas sales and making the most of them. But I think in the lead up to Christmas, it's just really important to plan, like if you're going to sit down and for example, I want to get my sister a gift for Christmas, and I know what that gift is. I think finding the best way to purchase it and
not finding yourself going Christmas Eve shopping. Christmas Eve shopping is a nightmare. You end up anxious and stressed. You end up feeling a whole heap of pressure to get a good present when maybe you've left it too late, and we always always always end up overspending. So I think it's important to plan these things out. And if you know that Black Friday sales are going to come up next week or next months, like plan for it. Write your list. Like something that's been really helpful is
just like wish lists for me. I've been using Pinterest and kind of like my eBay cart, like you know, how you can add things to your watch list on eBay. I've been doing that to keep track of gifts, and I just feel like if you go into these sales with a plan, you end up not overspending, you end up actually just getting that dopamine hit that we all get from shopping from things that we were planning to purchase.
Anyway, that's such good advice. Would you recommend people also, you know, a year ahead, start planning, maybe have a bank account, especially for Christmas, where you put in extra money along the way.
I think it's really important when we're talking about budgeting for Christmas that it is actually a year round event, Like you can't expect to save five hundred dollars that you need for gifts in the month lead up to Christmas. Like this is something that we actually need to have as a part of our more holistic budget and cash
flow plans. So like always having a budget and making sure it's super comprehensive, and even if it's like your car insurance and you know your car registration and your ambulance cover and then your Christmas presence, and then having your Christmas presence broken down into who you buy for and on average what you pay for those gifts is incredibly important because if you can plan it into your cash flow and have that money going into a separate
account each and every single month, when Christmas comes, you just go, Okay, fantastic, I've got the money sitting in my account for my Christmas gifts. I'm going to pull out what's in budget and go and spend it on the thing that is intended for. It puts us in a position where we actually feel empowered by our choices, and it puts us in a position where we never feel stressed about money or budgeting or cash flow, which honestly is one of the most stressful things.
And Victoria, you have recently launched an amazing budgeting course and you've kindly let our community have a discount code, so we'll put in our show notes below. But can you tell us a little bit about it and I suppose what people can learn from it?
Yeah? Absolutely, So I hate plugging this stuff, So guys just know that this is coming from a place where I've created the master class because I genuinely think that if you can get the foundations of your money side of your life solidified, and that's your budget and your cash flow, everything else will just fall into place. So when I talk about the budgeting and cashlow master class, to me, budgeting and cashlow are two different things, right.
A budget is like what you're spending and what's coming in and just working out what that is. But the cash flow side of things is the thing that I think most people forget. So, like, we all get really motivated, we write down our budget and we go rent you so on thousand dollars and you know, my grocery bills are one hundred and fifty dollars, and we write it down, But like, what do we do after that? So this
kind of takes it to the next level. And I've created a program inside the course that essentially tells you what bank accounts to open, how to open them, what to name them, and how much to each and every single one put in them based on the budget that you would provide me. So it's all automated and it essentially does it for you. So instead of money being overwhelming and uninspiring, it's something that you really feel empowered
by and you can always refer back to. So it's not like it sounds really promotiony, but it's not just that either. It's kind of your money story and how to set goals and how to you know, understand your values and create a strategy that actually puts you in a better position. So it's quite comprehensive in that it's like more than twenty videos that I've put together and like forty different downloadables and the tool, like it's a
pretty big program. But the end of the day, it's so that you can develop a super deep understanding of your cash flow and make your money work for you, which means when Christmas comes, everything is already planned for and you kind of go, all right, well, I guess in my cash hub, I have my Christmas money. I'll pull that out and I'll spend it in line with
my values and goals. Because so many times we see people sacrificing their savings, like you might be saving for a home and Christmas comes, so you take a thousand dollars out of that home goal because you forgot to budget for Christmas, and that's just not that sexy. At the end of the day, you just feel a little bit flat, you feel a little bit behind, and there's
like there's nothing good about it. So essentially budgeting toush flow is going to be the most important thing for you to wrap your head around when it comes to money.
It's so good because I've been nagging my boyfriend to start budgeting or setting up a budget, and it's going to be so good because I feel like I'm going to have all the tools to be able to like get a smart ass towards him. So I'm excited to start.
Yes, And I've actually it sounds so lame, but I've actually made two different tools inside of there. So if you're single, this is the cash flow that you use, and if you have a partner, this is the cash flow that you'd use purely because like, once you bring a partner into the conversation, like the conversation shifts and it's not just one person you're relying on. It's not just one person who has personal spending goals. It's true.
So I think it's a different conversation and to be across that properly, like I think it's just I think it's so empowering and creates a stronger relationship with your partner.
Okay, people, tomorrow morning, dam Santa's coming down.
Oh my god.
Santa here, I know him.
Now, let's wrap this up. With our quick fire Christmas quiz.
Oh I love this.
So I'm gonna give you two options, and you're gonna choose which one. So yeah, okay? Tinsel or no tinsel on a Christmas tree? No Tinseldy Jane's the one with the garish Christmas tree? So hers has tinsel? No? I actually didn't have tinsel last year? But anyway? What is your go to Christmas movie?
A Christmas Story or Home Alone?
I love Home Alone?
Or else? How many Christmas Lamies can I have?
We'll give you?
Okay? Sorry? Also love Actually, I've changed my love actually is the number one.
What about Lampoon's Christmas Vacation? You're a fan of that?
Ah, that's pretty good too. What about the holiday?
There's too many too.
I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm not very good at this quick fire Quizzin what's your next question? I'll try to.
Get real tree or fake tree?
Fake tree?
Santa Claus? Do you call him Santa Claus or Father Christmas? I call him Santa Cold custard or warm custard with Christmas pudding?
Oh? Botha gross Christmas pudding, disgusting cold.
I feel like I know this answer already pudding or pavlova.
Everyone knows closer every day of the week, my friend.
Well, this one's a little bit more detailed. What is the best Christmas gift you've ever received? And also the worst?
Oh gosh, the worst was from an ex partner's mum who got me a candle that I gave her the year before. And I think that best? What would the best be? I'm not good bye? Yeah, I think I think the baskets, like getting lots of little traits is
really special. I don't know. I feel like I've remembered a lot, Like I don't remember gifts, well, I remember experiences and I remember, you know, the way that I felt on that Christmas, And like, yeah, I think it would just be experiences with my family is probably the best kind of Christmas present for me? Lame? That true?
Oh that's sweet. The other one is do you call it a bonbon or a Christmas cracker?
Oh? I think I call it a bon bond. But I've never thought deeply about this topic.
And I feel like you touched on it. But what is your favorite Christmas song?
Oh, Mariah Carey, all I want for Christmas is you, And I'm gonna unashamedly or in that like it's a disgusting song, but I just feel like everybody knows it and it's just it's just fun. I'm sorry, Oh it's my favorite as well. I'm oh really yeah, good, Okay, I'm glad. I thought I was gonna be savaged over loving Mariah Carey.
I also love Hillary Duff's Christmas album Oh my gosh, yes, yeah.
All of her album, like it reminds me of being like twelve thirteen, like having Christmas and thinking I was much cooler and wearing glitter eyeshadow and hair gel.
Well, thank you so much for joining us on this special Christmas episode. We do hope you have an amazing Christmas.
Thank you guys for having me. It is actually so much fun to talk about Christmas stuff in a roundabout budgety way