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From Inside Office Online Blog: If you are anything like me the Halloween pumpkins are still on the front porch, so the winter holidays seem a long way off. But somehow every year they creep up on me and I find myself in a frantic cyclone of cards, wrapping paper, and postage stamps. Each fall I vow that I’ll start preparing earlier so I’ll have the time to enjoy what’s really important, which is spending time with family and friends.

This year we have a holiday page dedicated to helping you get it all done, spend less money, and create meaningful cards and gifts at home. In this year’s economic conditions, holiday spending will be a priority for a lot of people. Be careful not to overspend by using our holiday budget planner.

You can also save money creating personalized handmade gifts, cards, and photo albums. Every year I like to make photo calendars for my family that include pictures of things we’ve done together over the course of the previous year. These calendars are inexpensive, easy to make, and a great way to capture family memories.

When all your gifts are ready to wrap, here are three ways to enhance your packages. Then use Outlook to ship your gifts with FedEx QuickShip. With FedEx QuickShip, you can create and track U.S. shipments, get rates, schedule pickups, and find the nearest staffed FedEx location all from your home!

Now kick back and enjoy the holiday season!

From MSN Money: Have a tightwad’s Christmas

Try these ideas for keeping holiday spending under control, finding alternative gifts and making your hard-earned dollars go farther this year.

Money’s tight, the credit cards are maxed and you’re not much of a hand at making crafts anyone would want to receive.

So how do you manage holiday gifts without raiding your 401(k)?

First, the obvious. Before you buy the first present, make a list of everyone you’d like to buy a gift for and set a limit of how much you want to spend on each. Total those figures, then add in what you expect to spend for decorating, holiday clothes, tips, entertaining and travel.

Trim down and try something new
If the grand total is overwhelming, start trimming your list. Some ideas:

Agree to exchange cards instead of gifts with friends.

Have a potluck instead of an elaborate feast that requires you do all the work (and grocery shopping).

Make do with last year’s decorations and clothes, or swap with friends.

Persuade your extended family to draw names rather than have everyone buy everyone else a gift.

Boot the adults and give gifts only to the kids.

Once you’ve got the list, consider the following ideas to help you get the most bang for your holiday bucks and skip the expensive, last-minute rush at the mall:

Cruise the deal sites. Web sites like Ben’s Bargains, Deals of America, My Bargain Buddy and SlickDeals.net can alert you to killer bargains around the Web, such an Amazon.com Baby Store sale where a leopard-print fleece infant jacket could be found for $3 and a Dr. Seuss sun hat for $2.60. Another deal: a well-made acoustic guitar for $40, half the usual price, plus free shipping from Musician.com.