Christmas food can be stored for future holidays:

• Holiday M&Ms can be sorted and bagged to be used for Valentine’s Day & St. Patrick’s Day
  
• Divide up things like sprinkles & icing from baking kits
  
• Candy canes make adorable Valentine treats when put in the oven
• Chocolate candy and stocking stuffers are good for Easter baskets – many items have Christmas packaging, but just take them out of the package
  

Christmas decorations can be used for all sorts of things:

• New Year’s Eve- shiny tinsel to drape everywhere, silver or gold tablecloths
• January- we leave our non-Christmasy snowmen and snowflakes out for the whole month
• Valentine’s Day – heart decorations, red ribbon, red tablecloth, napkins, plates, cups
• St. Patrick’s Day – green tablecloths, napkins, plates, cups
• Easter – crosses, anything pastel, cellophane for baskets
• Fourth of July – anything red, white, blue or silver – tablecloths, plates, napkins, cups, strings of lights, garland, anything with stars on it
• Birthday parties – candy & toys for goody bags, non-Christmasy gift bags & wrapping paper. Target will have a major toy clearance in January so you can stock up on gifts too.

Snag a few gift sets for:

• upcoming birthday gifts
• Easter baskets
• Mother’s Day & Father’s Day
• party favors – lip gloss, character figurines
• craft projects (bead kits, etc.)
• everyday use – razors, shower gel, lotion, Burt’s Bees sets, sauces & seasonings
• homeschool activities – model kits, experiments

A few more everyday items to grab:

• candles
• tissue paper
• blank cards & envelopes
• baskets
• napkins & plates
• flannel sheets
• ribbon
• dishes – a couple years a go I bought a set of plain ivory dishes for 12, gravy boats, and platters at Walmart for around $30

Get a head start on next year with:

• wrapping paper and bows
• containers for homemade goodies
• Christmas cards – get them filled out over the summer
• Christmas pajamas, shirts, and socks

I also like to venture out when the clearance gets down to 80-90% off. The selection is smaller, but I always find some fun goodies at Michaels to kick off the next Christmas season. I love being able to hand my kids a basket full of craft supplies & kits and truly not care what they do with it because it cost me less than $5!