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Amaryllises, engagement rings & wildlife trackers – this week's MSE Forum highlights

Forum Executive

6 December 2024

This week Forumites are looking to Christmas and beyond, thinking about how they can adopt new MoneySaving habits in 2025. Read on for more of the week's best bits from our community.

If you're not a member yet, here's how to register for the MSE Forum. It's simple and quick to join.

A few of this week's top threads

These are some of the Forum discussions that caught our eye this week:

Money Moral Dilemma

Every week, the Money Tips email features a real-life Money Moral Dilemma (MMD for short). They're intended to encourage debate and, as such, they're usually among the most discussed threads each week.

Should I pay Mum back after she replaced my gift to my aunt without asking me?

I gave my mum a present to take to my aunt, as she was seeing her before Christmas and I wasn't. But instead of giving my gift, she bought a different one without consulting me and gave it to my aunt on my behalf. I'm upset as she obviously thought my gift was inadequate or unsuitable. Mum returned the original gift to me and wants me to reimburse her for the new one, which was of roughly equal value. Should I take it on the chin and pay her back, or hold off and tell her how I feel?

See what our MSE Forumites had to say and add your own thoughts on the Money Moral Dilemma discussion thread. Do please stick to the MSE Forum rules: keep it kind and keep it clean. Remember, there's a real person behind every dilemma.

Got a Money Moral Dilemma of your own? Email us at MMD@moneysavingexpert.com and it could be featured.

Photo of the week

We love seeing the seasonal creations our crafting community has come up with. AlwaysAllie recently shared this snap of these snowmen decorations made from salvaged wood.

snowmen decorations made with salvaged wood

Please note: We love seeing your photos in the MSE Forum, but if you're uploading one, make sure it doesn't include any personally-identifiable information such as your face or address.

Challenge corner

It's easy for December to be an expensive month, so why not balance out any bigger-spending days with some no-spend days where you make an extra effort to avoid buying non-essentials? There's mutual support and encouragement in this month's No Spend Day Challenge thread.

Latest comping wins

It's been a good week for several members of our competitions community, with an unexpected cheque in the post for £1,001 for philg28 who said it was "a fantastic end to a long dry spell of no-wins, and has motivated me to keep going".

Advent competition season is in full swing, and cathelen was pleased to win their first prize.

As ever, the Competitions time board is the best jumping-off point for all things comping.

Your two cents

With prices on the rise, are there some things you'll be cutting out or downshifting this Christmas? Or do you have some non-negotiable festivities that you refuse to compromise on? Let us know.

And remember to keep checking the Forum Advent calendar each day till Christmas for a daily dose of Forum festive wisdom.

If you're not a member yet, it's easy to register for the MSE Forum.