‘OK, that’s it. This year, we’re drawing names. We’re not spending several thousand bucks on Christmas!”

My mother had laid down the law. Mom was going a little Grinch this year. And, well, I admit it — I was relieved. For me, scaling back meant saving some much-needed money. But it also meant re-evaluating what I was teaching my children about life’s priorities and what the holidays really mean.

And I’m not alone.

With the economy sucking the bulk out of many people’s savings and leaving about 10 percent without jobs, it’s no surprise that folks are increasingly deciding to “go frugal” for the holidays.

According to a recent survey of anticipated holiday spending by the National Retail Federation, 65 percent of shoppers are planning to spend about 3.3 percent less this year than last on the holidays, including gifts.

Seems singing a new tune, a hymn of “anti-consumerism,” is taking hold and in some ways giving people the permission to cut back.

Jodie Buller is singing that tune loudly.

Buller, the outreach coordinator for the Skagit Valley Co-op, had been reluctant to dump her traditional gift-giving ways, fearing a backlash from the family.

That is, until her grandmother — who she refers to as “the bastion of tradition” — sent a letter to the family this year insisting that they participate in a program to help a needy family abroad instead of buying gifts for each other.

“That just rang so close to home for me,” Buller said, while bustling around the Co-op’s mezzanine, decorated in a cheery fashion for the holidays. “Coming from my grandma, it’s just sort of a break in tradition for our family, and it had a big impact.”

This year, Buller’s gift-giving plans include making some soap with a friend and giving it away. She’s also planning to spend time helping a friend organize her closet.

And for family, she’s looking to give a donation to a nonprofit agency in her family members’ names.

Jill Dodge of Mount Vernon also plans to scale back this year — mostly for economic reasons.

“I really financially can’t afford it,” she said. “I’ve had some medical issues this year — health care is atrocious — and you have to scale back because you have to pay your medical bills.”

In the past, Dodge said she and her family always had a Christmas tradition of making a few gifts for each other. That seemed a better alternative than the stress and worry that came with trying to find the perfect gift. And she didn’t want her daughter to pick up that unnecessary holiday habit.

She said she’s spent time this year making her gifts from scratch, taking mason jars and filling them with cheap ingredients to make cookie dough and then decorating the jars with a family photo. She also cooked up some homemade cheese for a nice gift.

Piper Waite of Clear Lake said she’s been scaling back for years, mostly for financial reasons. She’s become an expert at creating relatively inexpensive — sometimes more or less free — gifts for people.

“I like to keep it interesting for people; not just getting them something on sale,” she said. “People like the fact that you took the time to think of them and make something for them.”

When it comes to scaling back for the holidays, there are plenty of options, according to those who plan to do just that:

• Draw names to come up with one gift for one other family member. This works well especially if you’re faced with a big extended family. Then make sure you stick to the list.

• Give what you already have. For instance, compile a CD of your favorite music or music you think your friend or family member would like. Put together a homemade calendar with family photos using a computer and photos, or get creative with photos combined with drawings by the kids and some colorful construction and scrap paper.

• Compile a box of recipes for that foodie on your list; you can download many from the Internet or even share some of your favorites.
• Offer to make a donation to a charity in someone’s name.

• Give “gift certificates” that can be exchanged for your help on a project or task.

My family drew names, leaving me with just one gift for another adult. As a family, we decided we’d cut back on the number of gifts for our kids, too.
Knowing I’m not killing my bank account for a holiday high is definitely putting more “merry” into my Christmas.

Read more local news in the Skagit Valley Herald and the Anacortes American, or read it online in the E-edition