Reading shopping blog Consumerist, I found my head nodding in agreement as I scanned their list of "10 Shopping Tricks That Stores Hate". Number 9 is a strategy near and dear to the hearts of all OrganizedChristmas.com members:

Buying Seasonal Items at Clearance Prices (For Next Year): Seasonal items are a big deal for retailers and once the holiday is gone they need to make room for the next one. Their haste makes waste and you can take advantage of it. Buy now for next year. Another good idea is to buy "seasonal" candy after the season is over. So what if your M&Ms are brown and orange or red and green. Still tastes like awesome.

Why They Hate It: Stores want you to buy their seasonal crap at full price, when its most profitable, not during clearance when they sell it at cost or below."

Now, all they need is a Christmas notebook to remind them of the seasonal stash next fall, and the Consumerist kids'll be honorary OH Elves! (Catch the full article here.)

Planning a gift list and tracking the holiday budget just got simpler with this online holiday gift planner from Zion's Bank.

Customer or not, if you're willing to register an e-mail address, you can use this free online gift list and budgeting tool:

Free Holiday Gift Planner

The holiday season can be hard on the budget. Find ways to save money shopping for gifts, decorating, travel and entertaining with these ideas from RealSimple.com:

20 Ways To Save During The Holidays

From CNN Money, five insider tips to save money on Christmas gifts. Try these suggestions to beat the crowds and lower seasonal sticker shock this year:

Five Insider Tips for Smarter Holiday Shopping

When it comes to kids and Christmas, cheap is good! Simple, inexpensive family activities can be as meaningful as pricey Nutcracker tickets--and no need for scratchy dresses or dress-up suits.

Try these no-cost, low-cost ways to celebrate the holiday season with kids:

• Christmas camp-out! One evening, roll out sleeping bags in the living room, and hold a family camp-out underneath the Christmas tree. Don’t forget the hot chocolate and carols around the fireplace!
• Lights Night! Put younger children to bed as usual, but wake them an hour later. Tumble the family into the car pajamas and all, and drive out to see the Christmas lights. Pack hot drinks and popcorn for a surprise treat.
• Shopping Date! To encourage children to give, make a one-on-one shopping date with each child. Together with a parent, help the child shop for gifts for other family members. Be sure to stop for a sweet treat. Make memories!
• Pet Patrol! Visit the local humane society or animal shelter, and volunteer to walk homeless pets during the season. Fresh air and family time are a bonus!
• Candle-Lit Dinner! Make an everyday dinner special by dining by candlelight. Share stories around the table as you enjoy the glow.
• Glowing Toes! Share a mother-daughter moment: a girls-only pedicure party, complete with Rudolph-red nail polish!
• Library Lane! Visit the local library and check out books about Christmas.
• Cracker Crafts! Save enough toilet-tissue tubes to supply the family. Create Christmas crackers by stuffing tubes with tiny candies, toys and treats. Wrap crackers, and use them as place cards for holiday dinners.

If your shopping pulse races at the thought of post-Thanksgiving sales, heads up! Try these tips to get the most bang from your Black Friday buck, from Consumerist.com:

Black Friday Shopping Checklist

To make your list and plan your shopping strategy as information comes to light, try our free printable Black Friday sales planner:

Holiday Sales Planner

Summer's here ... time to think Christmas?

Sure--if you want to stay debt-free. The summer season is the right time to think ahead to the financial demands of the holiday season. Starting a savings plan during the summer months makes sense--and cents.

Get the summer savings how-to with this article from MotleyFool.com. Best tip? Pay Santa first!

Christmas is Coming! Hurry Up And Save!

Here at OC, we try--we really do--to support our members with festive AND frugal ideas for celebrating the holiday season. But for many families, holiday debt is a way of life.

Get a grip on holiday credit card debt with these tips from Getting Finances Done. You'll find ways to wrap up the past season--and prepare for a debt-free Christmas, 2007:

Dealing With Holiday Credit Card Debt

Flying home for Thankgsiving? It's bad enough that you gotta do the TSA Security Theatre Disco with only two arms to juggle toiletries-in-the-zipper-bag, computer, shoes, jacket and carryons. Worse is the airfare sticker shock from higher fuel prices and lower capacity.

Time to get the benefit of savvy shopping for airline tickets. Check out these seven tips to save on holiday travel, from USAToday.com:

Seven Tips To Save on Holiday Airfare

Looking for ideas for Halloween treats that are both healthy and frugal? Bankrate.com has some creative ideas for inexpensive alternatives the trick-or-treaters at the door:

10 Healthy, Frugal Halloween Treats