Make a holiday budget, and then stick to it!

My wife is amazing.

I never give her enough credit for the masterful job she does running our household, and she's outdone herself this holiday season.

I know Christmas isn't here yet, so we're not completely out of the financial woods. But despite an unexpected money crunch, it appears that we are going to get through the season with no — or very little — credit-card debt.

That borders on miraculous, and it's all because she planned for holiday expenses, and then followed through on her plans.

But my wife's expertise doesn't help you, does it? So I called Mike Peterson, spokesman for American Credit Foundation in Midvale, for some Christmas spending tips.

Mike says the average person can and should avoid holiday debt. And the first step, he says, is to set a budget.

"So many of us don't really think of that," Mike says. "We think about the gifts that we need to get for each individual, but we don't necessarily set a budget."

People go out unthinkingly and buy gifts, and end up deep in debt. In fact, he says, the average American needs six months to pay off debt from Christmas spending.

"Especially in this economy, we don't want to be taking six months to pay off Christmas spending," Mike says.

"Make a budget, and once you've got your budget, then go through and identify items for the individuals you need to buy for."

If you don't have enough money to cover all of those gifts, trim your shopping list. Mike says you can do that in two ways: Go back through your list and choose items that are more affordable; or remove people from the list.

"Your cousin's husband's brother's wife may not need a gift this holiday season," Mike jokes. "That's a tough one, but I think when it comes down to it, most individuals who are getting a gift would prefer that someone not go into debt to get it for them."

When you go shopping, take the list with you. That will help you stave off impulse buys.

"Before you go into a store, promise yourself that you're only going to buy the things that are on the list," Mike says. "Make your list, check it twice, and then take it with you as you go shopping."

He also recommends that you be careful about giving homemade crafts. This can be a way to save money, Mike says, but some people get carried away and spend more on homemade gifts than they would on off-the-shelf items.

"It's fine to do, and it's absolutely great to receive those homemade gifts," he says. "But if you're doing it, make sure you get the dollars and cents straightened out."