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How to Create a Magical Christmas on Any Budget · She's On The Money

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Speaker 1: Hello, my name's Santasha Nabananga Bamblet. I'm a proud yor
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Speaker 1: the Order Kerni Whaltbury and a waddery woman. And before
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Speaker 1: we get started on She's on the Money podcast, I
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Speaker 1: would like to acknowledge the traditional custodians of the land
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Speaker 1: of which this podcast is recorded on a wondery country,
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Speaker 1: acknowledging the elders, the ancestors and the next generation coming
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Speaker 1: through as this podcast is about connecting, empowering, knowledge sharing
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Speaker 1: and the storytelling of you to make a difference for
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Speaker 1: today and lasting impact for tomorrow.
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Speaker 2: Let's get into it.
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Speaker 3: She's on the Money, She's on the Money.
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Speaker 2: Hello, and welcome to She's on the Money the podcast. Yes,
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Speaker 2: that's here to help you find the joy and wonder
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Speaker 2: of Christmas without wondering where all your money went. I'm
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Speaker 2: Victoria Devine, the woman who belize holiday magic isn't found
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Speaker 2: in your credit card limit, but in the traditions that
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Speaker 2: you're able to build. As a new mum to little Harvey,
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Speaker 2: I've been thinking a lot about the kind of holiday
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Speaker 2: memories that I want to create as a family for him.
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Speaker 2: It's not for us about extravagant gifts, or Pinterest perfect decor.
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Speaker 2: For me, it's a little bit more about I don't know,
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Speaker 2: the sweet, simple and special moments that don't cause the
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Speaker 2: whole world, but leave your heart and your family feeling full.
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Speaker 2: There's actually science behind why traditions are so important. You know,
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Speaker 2: I always come with the receipts. Research from Emory University
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Speaker 2: has found that family traditions play a huge role in
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Speaker 2: strengthening emotional bonds and building a sense of identity. According
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Speaker 2: to psychologists Robin Fuvoush, creating shared stories and memories as
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Speaker 2: a family helps to make some sense of our experience
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Speaker 2: and even helps to build resilience, which, honestly, the more
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Speaker 2: I look into it, the more a place and importance
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Speaker 2: on this. And that's the magic of holiday traditions. They're
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Speaker 2: about so much more than just the activities themselves. Whether
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Speaker 2: it's baking cookies or hanging ornaments or taking a walk
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Speaker 2: to see the Christmas lights, these moments create a shared
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Speaker 2: history that bring us closer together. And the best part,
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Speaker 2: these traditions do not have to cost a fortune. Some
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Speaker 2: don't even cost a dollar because it's not about spending money,
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Speaker 2: it's about spending time. Because when your family looks back
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Speaker 2: on the holidays, They're not going to remember how much
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Speaker 2: you spent. They're going to remember the laughs. They're going
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Speaker 2: to remember the love and the traditions that make your
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Speaker 2: celebrations uniquely yours. So as you plan for your holidays
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Speaker 2: this year, I want you to think about the traditions
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Speaker 2: that you want to create and or carry on. They're
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Speaker 2: not just great for your budget, they're also at the
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Speaker 2: heart of what makes this season so special. I had
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Speaker 2: a conversation the other week with my mum because making
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Speaker 2: Christmas for Harvey, for his first Christmas special is really
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Speaker 2: important to me. And my mom said, Victoria, do you
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Speaker 2: know when I thought I had cracked the code on Christmas?
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Speaker 2: And I thought when, Like, when did you crack the code?
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Speaker 2: And she said, it was when I was sitting with
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Speaker 2: you and you would have been like seven, and you
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Speaker 2: said your favorite part of Christmas morning was that your
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Speaker 2: sister and you went into our bed and we had
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Speaker 2: breakfast together, and we did do Santa Sacks, but it
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Speaker 2: was that family time. We had the dog, we had
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Speaker 2: the cat, everyone was in the bed, and those family
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Speaker 2: breakfast mornings were what made it's so special for you
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Speaker 2: at seven, that got me thinking, I've been making Harvey
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Speaker 2: Santa Sack. I've been trying to work out cross stitch
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Speaker 2: because i just want him to have something that was
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Speaker 2: made by me. During this time, my husband has said,
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Speaker 2: you know what, every Christmas Eve, I'm going to try
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Speaker 2: and do Christmas baking with Harvey. I just feel like
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Speaker 2: these traditions are the ones that as I get older
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Speaker 2: and as now i'm a first time mum, They're the
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Speaker 2: ones that I'm reminiscing on. I'm not remembering what I
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Speaker 2: got as presents. I'm remembering the times that my mom
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Speaker 2: brought the magic, and that magic was often brought through tradition.
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Speaker 2: It's funny because these traditions now as adults do start
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Speaker 2: to dwindle because we don't spend the same Christmas together
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Speaker 2: every single year. I now have my husband's family to
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Speaker 2: negotiate with when it comes to spending Christmas together. But
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Speaker 2: if I am at my parents on Christmas Eve, you
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Speaker 2: can bet your bottom dollar my dad is sticking us
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Speaker 2: in the backseat of the car and we are driving
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Speaker 2: around to see the Christmas lights. That's just how it
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Speaker 2: works in our family. And there are so many different
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Speaker 2: things that could work for you. But I think that this,
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Speaker 2: for me is an episode about being a gentle reminder
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Speaker 2: that Christmas isn't about how much you spend, but more
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Speaker 2: about how much you can care and how much you
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Speaker 2: can show others that you care. I was talking to
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Speaker 2: our producer Emma before this episode, and we were sharing
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Speaker 2: our Christmas traditions, because that's something I love talking about.
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Speaker 2: And Emma was saying that when she was little, her
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Speaker 2: family got a real Christmas tree, and her siblings and
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Speaker 2: her her mum would take the Christmas tree. It would
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Speaker 2: be up in the lounge room and her mum would
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Speaker 2: cut a branch off, so a couple of branches off
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Speaker 2: for each of the kids and put it in a
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Speaker 2: little bucket in some sand in their bedrooms so that
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Speaker 2: they had a mini Christmas tree and they would decorate
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Speaker 2: it themselves. And I just think there are so many things.
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Speaker 2: It doesn't have to be cut paste like you know
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Speaker 2: you do Santa Sacks. It could be something like the
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Speaker 2: Christmas trees. I remember my mum one year it was like, oh,
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Speaker 2: we're get a theme Christmas and it's going to be
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Speaker 2: an Aussie Christmas. And I remember being like what, and
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Speaker 2: Mum took us up bushwalking where we lived, and we
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Speaker 2: had to pick the best gum tree branch that we
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Speaker 2: could find, and that became our quote ousie Christmas tree.
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Speaker 2: There are just so many things that you can do
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Speaker 2: on Christmas that make it feel festive, that don't involve
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Speaker 2: a lot of money, that make you feel like the
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Speaker 2: festivity hasn't been lost on over commercialized crap. I feel
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Speaker 2: like so often at the moment, having just finished Black
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Speaker 2: Friday sales and going into the push for sales for Christmas,
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Speaker 2: you wouldn't be wrong if you have been thinking that
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Speaker 2: Christmas is all about spending money, and the more money
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Speaker 2: that is spent, the more you care, when in reality,
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Speaker 2: you can think back to what that might have meant
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Speaker 2: for you as a child, if you think back to
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Speaker 2: you growing up at Christmas time, what were the most
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Speaker 2: special things? And on the flip side, if you didn't
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Speaker 2: grow up with that type of family and you are
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Speaker 2: trying to establish these Christmas traditions for the first time,
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Speaker 2: being able to reflect on maybe what you didn't have
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Speaker 2: and maybe what you would like to provide your children with,
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Speaker 2: I can almost guarantee it's not stuff, it's feelings, it's emotional,
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Speaker 2: it's connection, how do you do that for one another?
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Speaker 2: Another example is the silly things that you do for kids.
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Speaker 2: It's like my mum would always tell us that we
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Speaker 2: had to leave out carrots for Rudolph and we also
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Speaker 2: had to make sure that there was a drink for Santa. Now,
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Speaker 2: on reflection, my mum told me that Santa didn't like
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Speaker 2: milk because it's Australia and no one wants to drink
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Speaker 2: milk in the middle of summer, and he wanted a beer.
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Speaker 2: I know where that was going. But it's so nice
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Speaker 2: that we were able to have that magic waking up
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Speaker 2: on Christmas morning. And it wasn't again about the tradition.
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Speaker 2: It was the fact that Santa had come for us.
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Speaker 2: It was the idea that Rudolph did enjoy some of
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Speaker 2: that carrot and oh my gosh, why are there so
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Speaker 2: many bits on the floor. I can't believe he's so messy.
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Speaker 2: I think it's about creating a tradition that makes sense
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Speaker 2: for you and your family. It's not about replicating someone else's.
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Speaker 2: It's about creating traditions that feel authentic to you. All Right,
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Speaker 2: I'm going to cut it there, because I could talk
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Speaker 2: about Christmas tradition literally forever. There are so many things,
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Speaker 2: and police feel free to slide into my DMS and
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Speaker 2: share with me your Christmas traditions because I am looking
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Speaker 2: for as much inspiration as I can. I don't know
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Speaker 2: about you, but because it is my child's first Christmas,
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Speaker 2: I have this unnecessary amount of pressure that I'm putting
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Speaker 2: on myself to make sure I'm getting all of his
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Speaker 2: traditions set up this year so I can tell him that, oh,
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Speaker 2: we've been doing this since you were born. Ridiculous, I know,
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Speaker 2: but I am looking for inspiration literally everywhere. And if
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Speaker 2: you're loving these festive ideas as much as I am,
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Speaker 2: I want you to stick around because after the break,
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Speaker 2: we're going to crank up the Christmas magic a little
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Speaker 2: bit further without cranking up your spending. So don't go anywhere,
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Speaker 2: all right, my friends, We are back, and I am
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Speaker 2: very ready because it wouldn't make Christmas without my community.
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Speaker 2: And so when I started talking about Christmas tradition, I
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Speaker 2: obviously reached out to you guys and said, all right,
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Speaker 2: share with me some of your Christmas traditions. And I've
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Speaker 2: pulled out just a few of them to share with
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Speaker 2: you because I didn't want it to be information overload.
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Speaker 2: But one of my favorites that came out of the
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Speaker 2: Sheese on the Money community was from Ashley, who said,
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Speaker 2: we sleep under the Christmas tree one night in the
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Speaker 2: lead up to Christmas. We pull the mattress off our bed,
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Speaker 2: we make a little nest, we watch a Christmas movie
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Speaker 2: and sleep with the Christmas tree lights on for the atmosphere. Honestly,
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Speaker 2: doesn't that just sound like the ultimate festive self care?
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Speaker 2: I have already put this one aside to tell Steve
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Speaker 2: that we need to do it. I don't know how
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Speaker 2: much he's going to appreciate me trying to drag a
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Speaker 2: king size, very heavy mattress down the hallway. But when
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Speaker 2: there is a will, there is a way. And I mean,
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Speaker 2: here's the thing. It's not just cozy. This is actually
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Speaker 2: backed by science. Experts have found that twinkling lights and
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Speaker 2: colors of Christmas decorations can actually boost your serotonin levels,
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Speaker 2: and those are the happy chemicals in our brain. If
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Speaker 2: you're going to pair that with the warm glow of
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Speaker 2: a Christmas tree, it's no wonder that this tradition feels
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Speaker 2: kind of like a warm hug for your soul. Imagine
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Speaker 2: if it was like a family sleepover in the lounge
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Speaker 2: room and as kids come along, you start to add
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Speaker 2: them in. I actually am so excited and please expect
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Speaker 2: to see this traditional my Instagram feeder at some point
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Speaker 2: in the very near future. We had another beautiful community
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Speaker 2: member ride in. This one is from Katie and she said,
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Speaker 2: every time we go on a family holiday, we try
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Speaker 2: really hard to buy Christmas decorations overseas or on any
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Speaker 2: trip we go to because we try really hard to
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Speaker 2: be sustainable and not fit a new theme for the
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Speaker 2: Christmas tree every single year. Slowly, your decorations are going
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Speaker 2: to become something that reminds you of amazing times, but
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Speaker 2: also they stop you buying new ones all the time. Obviously,
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Speaker 2: this is going to take a few years to build up.
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Speaker 2: I asked further, obviously because in our DMS, I just
10:39
Speaker 2: want to talk all things Christmas, and she said she
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Speaker 2: has ones ranging from a woven grass angel from Tanzania
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Speaker 2: to carved olive wood nativity figurines from Edinburgh made in Bethlehem.
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Speaker 2: Ornaments with memories just make it so much more special,
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Speaker 2: and honestly, I couldn't agree more. I was watching a
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Speaker 2: TikTok video the other day because as you guys, no,
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Speaker 2: I am chronically online, and there was an influencer saying,
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Speaker 2: my kids can never touch my Christmas tree. I'm going
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Speaker 2: to decorate it while they're asleep, and like you do you.
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Speaker 2: But I remember one of the coolest things when I
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Speaker 2: was growing up was that my mom took my sister
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Speaker 2: and I shopping every single year. And it was like
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Speaker 2: a shopping trip that sometimes stretched over a few different
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Speaker 2: stores or like a few different hours. And what we
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Speaker 2: would do is Mum would say, you have to pick
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Speaker 2: a Christmas decoration. And we would always pick a Christmas
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Speaker 2: decoration each to decorate our tree with. And every year
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Speaker 2: they became a little bit more unhinged. I remember one
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Speaker 2: year my sister picked a red Elmo that she wanted
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Speaker 2: on the tree. I would always pick those really fancy
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Speaker 2: glass looking dancer crystal ornaments and then cry when they
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Speaker 2: inevitably ended up broken. But these ornaments came with so
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Speaker 2: many special memories. And now whenever my mum gets all
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Speaker 2: of the Christmas decorations out to decorate the Christmas tree,
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Speaker 2: I love seeing them. I mean, I don't love, I
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Speaker 2: do love, I don't love. I just think it's a
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Speaker 2: bit weird if we're being honest, that my mom still
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Speaker 2: has the half paper plate with the toilet roll that
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Speaker 2: I'm made in Kinder. In fact, I'm surprised it has
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Speaker 2: lived a life as long as this. But the idea
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Speaker 2: of Christmas being a little bit more magic, I can
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Speaker 2: definitely get behind, all right. I have a couple more
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Speaker 2: so strap in because we're still being festive. This one
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Speaker 2: comes from Rachel. She said, we buy ornaments to signify
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Speaker 2: a really important milestone in our lives. For example, the
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Speaker 2: year we bought a house, I got a little house ornament.
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Speaker 2: The year we got engaged in Sydney, I got a
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Speaker 2: little Sydney Opera house ball ball. I like to make
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Speaker 2: sure I put the year on it too, using little stickers.
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Speaker 2: I also make sure to put the year on it
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Speaker 2: to using little stickers. I love this and something else
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Speaker 2: that my mom did. We often. I don't know about
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Speaker 2: you guys, but flat ornaments used to be a massive thing.
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Speaker 2: So like shapes of sand, he faces and whatnot. My
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Speaker 2: mom would always write our name and put the year
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Speaker 2: that she purchased that orna on the back of it.
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Speaker 2: So if you go to our family Christmas tree, you
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Speaker 2: can basically turn around any ornament and see Victoria nineteen
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Speaker 2: ninety four or Victoria nineteen ninety seven, and I just
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Speaker 2: think that that is so fun. In the first year,
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Speaker 2: you might be like, oh, whatever it says Victoria twenty
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Speaker 2: twenty four, but I promise time flies and soon it'll
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Speaker 2: be twenty thirty four and you'll be looking at those
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Speaker 2: same decorations being really glad that you set up that tradition. Now,
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Speaker 2: you're not going to be surprised by this one, because
13:27
Speaker 2: I am a massive animal lover, so I loved this
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Speaker 2: one from Lilian. Lilian said, and I didn't even know
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Speaker 2: that you could do this, But I'm going to have
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Speaker 2: to renegotiate Christmas Morning with my family so that I
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Speaker 2: can join you. Lilian, But she said, every Christmas Morning,
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Speaker 2: I volunteer at the RSPCA so that I can share
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Speaker 2: the love with the animals. B for real, Is that
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Speaker 2: not the best Christmas tradition you have heard of. Studies
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Speaker 2: also show the volunteering boosts feelings of happiness and it
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Speaker 2: also reduces stress. It's called the helper is high, that warm,
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Speaker 2: fuzzy feeling that you get when you know you've made
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Speaker 2: someone's day a little bit brighter, and doing it around
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Speaker 2: Christmas time. What a win. It's no surprise that giving
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Speaker 2: your time to others releases in dolphins. It's the same
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Speaker 2: feel good chemical you get from exercise or eating your
14:13
Speaker 2: favorite chocolate. And I'm telling you right now, I would
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Speaker 2: much prefer to eat chocolate and volunteer than exercise. But
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Speaker 2: let's be honest, it's more than just a temporary mood boost.
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Speaker 2: Volunteering also helps create a sense of purpose and connection,
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Speaker 2: especially during a time when a lot of us might
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Speaker 2: actually be feeling a little disconnected. Being part of something
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Speaker 2: bigger like a community meal or a Christmas charity drive
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Speaker 2: reminds us of the true meaning of the season, generosity, kindness, togetherness.
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Speaker 2: And here's the best part, it doesn't have to take
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Speaker 2: up your whole day. Even an hour or two of
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Speaker 2: lending a hand can leave you with a glow that
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Speaker 2: lasts long after the tinsel and wrapping paper are packed away.
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Speaker 2: So if you're feeling overwhelmed by the pressure to spend
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Speaker 2: this Christmas, I really want you to remember the magic
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Speaker 2: of Holidays has never been, and will never be, about
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Speaker 2: how much money you spend. It's not about how much
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Speaker 2: money is in your bank account. It's about the memories
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Speaker 2: that you make, the traditions that you create, and the
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Speaker 2: moments of love and joy that you get to share
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Speaker 2: with the people that you care about the most, even
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Speaker 2: if that's just you hanging out with yourself. Maybe make
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Speaker 2: some Christmas traditions for yourself. If I was going to
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Speaker 2: spend Christmas Day on my own, oh my gosh, it
15:27
Speaker 2: would be the most festive self cared day ever. I
15:31
Speaker 2: get to sleep in, breakfast in bed on my own,
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Speaker 2: reading one of my favorite books, going for a long
15:37
Speaker 2: walk with maybe your favorite podcast in your ears. It
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Speaker 2: doesn't have to be about other people, but it can
15:43
Speaker 2: be about creating moments of love and joy for those
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Speaker 2: people who surround you, even if that is just you.
15:50
Speaker 2: It's so easy to feel like you have to go
15:52
Speaker 2: all out during Christmas to buy the biggest, best gifts,
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Speaker 2: toast the perfect lunch, or maybe even make it look
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Speaker 2: like a Pinterest board exploded in your living room. But
16:02
Speaker 2: here's the thing. Literally, nobody remembers the price tag on
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Speaker 2: the presence. They remember how you made them feel. So
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Speaker 2: I want you to give yourself permission to step back
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Speaker 2: a little bit. We're gonna slow down and We're going
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Speaker 2: to focus on the things that actually matter in this world.
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Speaker 2: Because the most magical parts of Christmas, the laughter, the love,
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Speaker 2: the connection, they're free and they're what makes this time
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Speaker 2: of year so insanely special. Trust me, your Christmas doesn't
16:28
Speaker 2: have to cost the world to feel magical. And if
16:31
Speaker 2: you want to sprinkle a little bit of magic or
16:33
Speaker 2: my shoes on the money Teams Christmases this year, if
16:37
Speaker 2: you wouldn't mind, it would be very kind of you
16:39
Speaker 2: to leave us a review. It's basically the online equivalent
16:43
Speaker 2: of leaving cookies out for Santa, except instead of helping
16:46
Speaker 2: us deliver presence, it's helping us reach more amazing listeners
16:50
Speaker 2: like you, spreading the festive financial magic far and wide.
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Speaker 2: Have a good day, guys. The advice shared on She's
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