I've had some lows with work situations and loved ones always understand that kind of situation. What I've done in the past is get creative and try to still give gifts that are homemade or otherwise don't require money. Most of the time, they are so happy and excited for something so novel.

Further reading: http://zenhabits.net/argh/, http://zenhabits.net/bah/, http://zenhabits.net/giftless/