I want to be that person who can gift in moderation; a “want, need, wear, read” parent and just call it a day. Or even better, the person that can forego gifts and do good in the world with their child.
But way in the back of my mind, there lies the classic Christmas dream: my child waking up starry-eyed on Christmas morning to a mountain of presents around the tree, the excitement, the wrapping paper flying, squeals of delight and just pure joy.
Recently, a U.K. mum (Americans can say mum, right?) came under fire for posting a photo of her Christmas tree with 300 presents underneath it. She probably shares the exact same vision, so who am I to judge? If I had a lot of extra cash laying around, I might be tempted to go a little crazy. But I don’t want to just buy things that are going to be played with for a few hours, days, or if I’m lucky, months, and turn the season into a materialistic marathon.
I want that pile of presents, but it’s not what we need. I want my daughter to be awestruck Christmas morning, but it’s not what we need. I want to feel the giddiness of my daughter opening just what she asked Santa for, but it’s not what we need. However, at the age of two, I can’t exactly ask my daughter what she needs for Christmas so much as what she wants; that’s just not a concept she’s going to understand.
I would love to do the four gift rule, not only for my kids, but husband and other family members as well. But like you, I also want my girls to have it all at Christmas. I want to see their eyes light up. This is my first Christmas with two kids. So my oldest child’s budget isn’t as much as it used to be. My budget was $200/child. Which is a huge drop from the $800 I spent on my daughter last year ( which included an expensive puppy, that we just gave away because no one wanted to take care of him.) I decided to only spend $200/ child because my parents spend a ton of money on my girls and over half the stuff they get is not even played with. I was very surprised at how much I was able to get for $200. I got some awesome deals and didn’t even have to leave my house to do it. My daughters favorite gift last year was a used full size tea set I got from eBay for $8.00. She plays with it a couple times a week. I’m trying to learn moderation, my girls are really spoiled and I don’t want them to be. My dad spoiled me. Growing up whatever I wanted I got. For a long time I was such a snob and thought I should have everything. I’m so glad to say that after getting married my husband has grounded me and I’m not the person I used to be. Its also very important for me to teach my children to give to those less fortunate, and Christmas is a great time to do that. And we always tell our kids that Jesus is the greatest gift of all and if Jesus is the only gift we get for Christmas we are blessed. Who knows maybe one day I’ll be able to do the four gift rule. To all of you who do, not just for financial reasons but for teaching your children moderation, my hats off to you.
I have one two-year old. I probably spent less than $200 and that includes a monogrammed, overstuffed chair, which technically could count as need since it’s not a toy. In my house growing up, we each got about 3 presents each, but all presents were wrapped. And we took turns opening them one by one. Doing it that way, you kind of lose count as to how many presents you got. Because we also had stockings full of small/cheap goodies, it felt as if we had a lot to bring back to our rooms when it was all over. MY GOAL: all presents (from parents and Santa) are to be unwrapped and appreciated one by one.