By Nathaniel Sillin

Already dreading what you'll spend this holiday season? It doesn't have to be that way.

Gifts aren't the only budget-busting culprit during the holidays. The weeks between Thanksgiving and New Year's are also a peak time for spending on groceries, travel, events, entertainment, energy, clothes and meals out.

Financial advisors recommend you use no more than 1.5 percent of your annual income on holiday spending (http://www.practicalmoneyskills.com/holiday), so consider the following suggestions to keep it under control:

Start with a list and make a budget. Begin your planning by listing every possible holiday expense you'll face - and don't stop at gifts. Consult the Practical Money Skills for Life comprehensive holiday budget planner (http://www.practicalmoneyskills.com/yourholidaybudget) to help organize your information and track your spending.

Be open about money trouble. If you are facing financial difficulties during the holiday season, don't spend to hide the problem. Don't be ashamed to make adjustments and tell friends and family members that you'd like to temporarily downsize your spending until conditions improve. They might actually appreciate a spending reprieve, too.

Build a bargain-hunting strike force. Let friends and family know you're looking for particular toys, gifts, foods or decorating items and volunteer to do the same for them. Save and share coupons. Encourage your group to find resources, check prices and share requests and ideas via social media. Results can come back in a matter of minutes.

Evaluate all transportation costs. Do you really need to run out of one or two items at a time? Designate certain days of the week for particular items, keep an eye out for free delivery and see if friends and family might want to share errands. Those with large vehicles or trucks can help move, deliver and even install appliances or electronics if they have the skills to do so. Smart transportation choices extend to car pools or public transportation for events and entertainment.

Leverage your creativity. If there's something you make or do really well that people love, consider making such accomplishments into gifts. From specialty food items your friends enjoy, to clothing or art, anything done well can be a gift. Don't rule out lessons or skilled labor as potential holiday gifts, particularly for relatives who can't afford such services at this time. Smart shopping for ingredients or supplies can make such creative gifts a real money saver.

Build a year-round gift stash. If there are gifts or foodstuffs you can buy on sale and keep for a while, you'll have a ready source of thank-you gifts for hosts, teachers or co-workers year-round. Set aside a similar area for cards, gift tags and wrapping paper. Also keep in mind that many retailers put holiday-themed items on sale before the holidays are finished. If you think you'll need these items next year, grab your coupons, take advantage and put those items aside for future gift giving.

Late saving for gifts? Do it anyway. If you don't have a holiday fund set up, don't let that keep you from starting one. Every little bit helps. Take 5-10 percent of your next paycheck and set it aside, doing it each week throughout the holidays. If you keep it up, your holiday fund can eventually become an emergency fund to be used for other savings goals, including retirement.

Take notes for next holiday season. Create a paper or digital file where you can collect ideas for next year. Check print and online resources like Consumer Reports for items that can be bought at specific times of the year at a discount so you are able to hide them for the holidays - but remember where you hid them.

Bottom line: Keeping holidays affordable isn't a challenge when you're willing to do a little planning, idea-sharing and record-keeping. Make it an activity you can do year-round.

INDIANAPOLIS (Saturday, Oct. 31, 2015/National FFA Organization) - Students from Arkansas, Tennessee, Ohio, Iowa, Georgia and Utah have been elected by delegates from throughout the United States to serve on the 2015-16 National FFA Officer team.

Taylor McNeel of Arkansas, an agricultural business major at Southern Arkansas University, was elected president. Nick Baker of Tennessee, an agricultural communications major at the University of Tennessee, will serve as secretary.

Sydney Snider of Ohio, an agricultural communications major at The Ohio State University, was elected eastern region vice president and Abrah Meyer of Iowa, an agricultural business major at Iowa State University, will serve as central region vice president.

Abbey Gretsch of Georgia, an agricultural communications major at the University of Georgia, was elected southern region vice president and Sarah Draper of Utah, an agricultural education major at Utah State University, will serve as western region vice president.

Each year at the National FFA Convention & Expo, six students are elected by delegates to represent the organization as National FFA officers. Delegates elect a president, secretary and vice presidents representing the central, southern, eastern and western regions of the country.

National officers commit to a year of service to the National FFA Organization. Each travels more than 100,000 national and international miles to interact with business and industry leaders, thousands of FFA members and teachers, corporate sponsors, government and education officials, state FFA leaders, the general public and more. The team will lead personal growth and leadership training conferences for FFA members throughout the country and help set policies that will guide the future of FFA and promote agricultural literacy.

The National FFA Organization provides leadership, personal growth and career success training through agricultural education to 629,367 student members who belong to one of 7,757 local FFA chapters throughout the U.S., Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.

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Q: What can Congress do to address the high prices for prescription medicines?

A:  There's no doubt that the price of prescription medicines is a big concern for Iowans. This issue comes up repeatedly at my town meetings. It's not only a pocketbook issue that squeezes household budgets. It's a matter of affording life-saving access to medicine to treat cancer, or paying for prescription drugs that help improve the quality of life for family members suffering from chronic diseases, such as arthritis, diabetes and epilepsy, as an example. Thanks to innovation, research and development, modern medicine is performing medical miracles that are keeping patients healthier, stronger and living longer. By most every measure, from research and development to clinical trials and everything else that goes into bringing a drug to market, it requires significant investment and financial capital. Companies that have invested in costly and lengthy research and development to create the next modern miracle drugs should be able to reap the benefits of their investment in innovation. We also want to ensure that consumers have access to more choice and cheaper alternatives as soon as possible. My bipartisan Preserve Access to Affordable Generics Act is a good place to start. It would fix an anti-competitive practice in which a brand name drug company pays a generic competitor to keep its products off the market. It's a business arrangement often referred to as "pay-for-delay."

Q: How do pay-for-delay deals work?

A: Consumers are paying artificially higher prices for certain drugs that are on the market. What's happening is brand name drug companies are paying certain generic drug companies to delay bringing their product to market. They are reaching patent settlement agreements that twist logic on its head. This pay-to-delay practice is anti-competitive and unlawful. A 2014 report from the Federal Trade Commission listed 29 potential pay-for-delay settlements that involved 21 brand name pharmaceutical products. The FTC reported the combined U.S. sales for these brand name drugs reached roughly $4.3 billion. When brand name pharmaceutical giants use anti-competitive "pay-for-delay" agreements to keep less expensive generics off the pharmacy store shelves, it prevents competition from putting downward pressure on retail drug prices. Ultimately, these sweetheart deals are keeping more affordable prescription drugs out of consumers' medicine cabinets. Pay-for-delay drives up out-of-pocket costs for sick patients. Such anti-competitive pay-offs are rip-offs to consumers and the taxpaying public.

Q: How would your bill fix this problem?

A: My bill would prevent brand name drug companies from subverting a 1984 federal law that was designed to foster market entry of generic drugs and preserve incentives for innovation in the pharmaceuticals industry. Consumers know that generic drugs generally cost less than brand name drugs. In fact, they can cost up to 90 percent less. And federal tax dollars pay an estimated 38.6 percent of prescription medicine in the United States through Medicare and Medicaid. The taxpaying public's share is expected to rise to 47 percent within the next decade. So when generic makers and brand name drug manufacturers enter financial agreements that provide a benefit to the generic company so long as it agrees to limit, delay or stay out of the market - consumers and taxpayers get the short end of the stick.  As chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, which has jurisdiction of the nation's anti-trust and patent laws, I am keenly tuned in to our nation's historical embrace of patent protections to foster innovation, ownership and prosperity in America, as well as the need to be vigilant about abusive behavior that harms Americans. I am working to uphold and strengthen this legacy to help ensure the marketplace operates fair and square for consumers, innovators, entrepreneurs and taxpayers. Straightening out anti-competitive practices that are turning patent policy on its head is the right thing to do for the public good, from individual patients to the public health and the public purse.

(Oct. 30, 2015) - The American Red Cross encourages eligible donors to give blood to help ensure a sufficient blood supply throughout the holiday season.

A seasonal decline in donations often occurs from Thanksgiving to New Year's Day when donors get busy with family gatherings and travel. However, patients don't get a holiday vacation from needing lifesaving transfusions. In fact, every two seconds, someone in the U.S. needs blood.

Lorie Alwes remembers her father being called often to give blood - even on holidays. He had type O negative blood, the universal blood type. "One time it was in the middle of Thanksgiving dinner and off he went without hesitation," she recalls. "He explained to us kids that his blood was used in emergency situations and could possibly save another life."

Years later, Alwes learned that she also has type O negative blood. She has since donated whenever needed and has encouraged her 17-year-old son to carry on the lifesaving family tradition that was so important to his grandfather.

Donors with all blood types are needed, and especially those with types O negative, B negative, A negative and AB. All those who come to donate Nov. 25-29 will get a Red Cross mixing spoon and celebrity chef recipe set, while supplies last.

To make an appointment to donate blood, people can download the Red Cross Blood Donor App from app stores, visit redcrossblood.org or call 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767).

Upcoming blood donation opportunities:

Carroll County, IL

Milledgeville

11/16/2015: 1 p.m. - 6 p.m., Milledgeville Men's Club, 204 S Main Ave

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Henry County, IL

Woodhull

11/20/2015: 9 a.m. - 2 p.m., Woodhull Alwood High School, 301 East 5th

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Lee County, IL

Dixon

11/17/2015: 10:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m., Borg Warner, 1350 Franklin Grove Rd.

Paw Paw

11/16/2015: 2 p.m. - 6 p.m., Paw Paw High School, 511 Chapman

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Mercer County, IL

Aledo

11/17/2015: 11:30 a.m. - 5:30 p.m., VFW Hall, 106 SW 3rd Ave.

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Whiteside County, IL

Fulton

11/24/2015: 8 a.m. - 1 p.m., Robert Fulton Community Center, 912 4th St.

Morrison

11/19/2015: 12 p.m. - 6 p.m., United Methodist Church, 200 West Lincolnway

Rock Falls

11/18/2015: 2 p.m. - 6 p.m., Rock Falls Blood Donation Center, 112 W. Second St.

11/25/2015: 10 a.m. - 2 p.m., Rock Falls Blood Donation Center, 112 W. Second St.

How to donate blood

Simply download the American Red Cross Blood Donor App, visit redcrossblood.org or call 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767) to make an appointment or for more information. All blood types are needed to ensure a reliable supply for patients. A blood donor card or driver's license or two other forms of identification are required at check-in. Individuals who are 17 years of age (16 with parental consent in some states), weigh at least 110 pounds and are in generally good health may be eligible to donate blood. High school students and other donors 18 years of age and younger also have to meet certain height and weight requirements.

Blood donors can now save time at their next donation by using RapidPass to complete their pre-donation reading and health history questionnaire online, on the day of their donation, prior to arriving at the blood drive. To get started and learn more, visit redcrossblood.org/RapidPass and follow the instructions on the site.

About the American Red Cross

The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides emotional support to victims of disasters; supplies about 40 percent of the nation's blood; teaches skills that save lives; provides international humanitarian aid; and supports military members and their families. The Red Cross is a not-for-profit organization that depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to perform its mission. For more information, please visit redcross.org or visit us on Twitter at @RedCross.

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