So it’s that time of year again, but deck the halls, you’ve got no money!

Face it, you’re a student, you’re pretty much living off of Kraft Dinner and leftovers from your parents. You can’t possibly afford to buy gifts for all your friends and family.

The solution to your holiday problems is simple; the people you care about are most likely going to understand your situation. I’m guessing their expectations are pretty low as to what they’re going get from you for Christmas.

The holidays aren’t just about getting some extravagant gift or who got the best what from where. Here’s a list of things that are not only the best thing to happen for your budget, but will hopefully get you some gratitude and extra helpings of leftovers when the season is over.

Re-gifting

It’s not as bad as it sounds!We all have some gift lying around that we never liked but kept anyway. Think of someone that could get some use of it, rewrap it, and write a nice little note to go with and voila! You have a gift for someone. Just make sure your not giving it back to the person who gave it to you, or else there could a bigger mess besides your drunk uncle.

Get Crafty!

Time to put all those years of watching Art Attack to use. If your 3-year-old cousin can throw together a drawing with some crayons, so can you. Put some thought behind making someone a greeting card; write something meaningful, and tellthem how much you love them.Stick some chocolate or candy cane with the card and you’ve got a cheap but caring alternative to buying a gift.

Do The Dirty…

…Work that is! Cleaning up around the house for your parents is a great idea and they’ll appreciate it more than a gift, guaranteed. Think about ways you can help your loved ones without spending money-shovel driveways, walk someone’s dog, get someone’s grocery.. It’s way more thoughtful, and you could save some of your older relatives some pain by cleaning out their basements or garages.

Gift Exchanges

Get a group of friends together and draw names out of a hat. That way everyone gets something and you only have to pay for one gift. The whole “secret Santa” thing dates back to your elementary days and it was probably the highlight of the holidays, so why not bring back some of that festivity with your friends? The best thing to do is set a price point and that way everyone has a fairly reasonable gift, unless you’re all a bunch of broke students and set the price point at five dollars. Might as well all pitch together and make a trip down to the LCBO.

The Gift of Time

Probably the most caring, thoughtful gift to give someone is your time. Time is precious as it is, and giving a little bit of yours to someone you care about is worth more than a box of chocolates. Your loved ones will prefer special moments and experiences with you over your gifts bought with rent money, so take that into consideration!

That should be enough for you to be able to figure something out for the holidays. Being generous doesn’t just mean money. Give back to your loved ones, your community, people who are less unfortunate. Always remember there are people that have it worse than you, and being broke does not mean you’re completely helpless. Spend your holidays making lasting memories!