A Christmas planner bundle that keeps the budget, the baking and the fun on track
Christmas rarely goes wrong in a big way. It goes wrong in small ways that pile up. A forgotten gift for an aunt you’ll see on the 25th. A budget that’s blown by the 15th. Three dozen cookies short for the school bake sale. A Secret Santa where two people drew each other and nobody noticed until the party. A promised advent calendar that ran out of ideas by day nine.
The Christmas Planning Bundle catches those small things early. It gives you one spreadsheet for the money and gifts, and three printable kits for the baking, the countdown and the gift exchange. Set it up in November and December runs a lot more smoothly.
What’s inside
1. Jollyboard Christmas Planner Spreadsheet ($28.49 alone)
Jollyboard is the main planner. Start by setting a total Christmas budget. Then add everyone you’re buying for, with a budget per person, gift ideas, what you bought, where from and what it cost. The dashboard shows spending against budget in real time, so you know you’re $80 over before you get to the till.
Beyond gifts, it includes a countdown calendar, a stocking stuffer list, a Christmas card tracker with addresses, a holiday party planner with guest list and menu, a recipe organizer, a shopping list and a thank-you note tracker for after the day. It works in Excel and Google Sheets, so you can share it with a partner and avoid buying the same present twice.
2. Tray & Twine Holiday Baking Planner ($4.99)
Holiday baking is a project, and it helps to plan it like one. Tray & Twine includes a cookie count calculator, so you know how many batches you need for gifts, parties and the cookie tin. There’s a baking schedule to spread the work across December, a holiday grocery list, a cookie gift tracker for neighbours and teachers, 4×6 recipe cards, baking conversion charts and pages for running a cookie exchange.
It’s a fillable and printable PDF in US Letter and A4.
3. Ember & Evergreen Advent Activity Cards ($3.99)
An activity advent calendar swaps chocolate for memories. Ember & Evergreen gives you 108 family activity ideas, from making paper snowflakes to driving around to look at lights, writing letters to grandparents or having a hot chocolate picnic in the lounge. That’s enough to fill a calendar three times over, so you can pick ideas that suit your family, your budget and your weather.
A fillable planner helps you assign activities to days around your real December schedule. Print the cards, tuck them into the numbered envelopes and add the day tags. It works for families, classrooms and kindness calendars.
4. Ribbon Draw Secret Santa Kit ($4.99)
Running a gift exchange shouldn’t take a spreadsheet and a hat. Ribbon Draw includes a simple name draw app that makes sure nobody draws themselves and lets you exclude couples from drawing each other. The gift exchange questionnaire asks each person for their likes, sizes and a few ideas, so the gifts actually hit the mark. Matching gift tags and a white elephant game round it out. Use it for family, friends or the office party.
A simple Christmas plan
- Early November: Set your budget and gift list in Jollyboard.
- Mid November: Run the Ribbon Draw name draw and send out questionnaires.
- Late November: Plan the Ember & Evergreen activities and fill the envelopes.
- First week of December: Plan baking quantities and the schedule in Tray & Twine.
- All month: Log purchases in Jollyboard as you shop.
- After Christmas: Tick off thank-you notes and save the file for next year.
Why planning makes Christmas cheaper
Most holiday overspending happens in the last ten days, when time runs out and panic buying starts. A gift list with budgets attached, started in November, means fewer rushed purchases at full price. It also means you can catch Black Friday deals for people already on your list instead of buying random things because they’re on sale. Many families find that tracking spending alone keeps December within budget for the first time.
Who this bundle is for
- Parents who want a calmer, more organised December
- Anyone hosting Christmas lunch or a holiday party
- Teachers and offices running a gift exchange
- Bakers who give cookies as gifts
Formats and compatibility
- Excel spreadsheet with Google Sheets access instructions
- Fillable and printable PDFs in US Letter and A4
- Name draw app and printable tags
- User guides in Word and PDF
This is a digital download. Nothing is shipped, so you can start tonight.
Frequently asked questions
Is the planner dated?
No. Reuse it every year.
Can I use the advent cards in a classroom?
Yes. Many ideas suit groups, and you can print as many as you need.
Does the Secret Santa app need internet?
No. It runs on your device.
Can I print in black and white?
Yes, the printables look fine in greyscale.
The price
Separately, these four products cost $42.46. The bundle is $31.99. You save $10.47, which is 25% off.
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