How do you do Christmas presents in your family?

arbroath_lass

74jax wrote: »

Where is the hamper thread pls?

This year's is here

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/4750954

Enjoy!

paulineb_2

I have only my mum and brother to buy for so christmas is generally quite stress free, with friends we just go for a meal or a night out. My mum is fairly easily pleased, a bottle of wine or two, shes also quite arty so I try and get her some craft bits and just look out for other stuff I think shed like as well and my brother is happy with some vouchers, a bit of chocolate and some other bits and pieces I pick up for him. He supports our local football club and so do I so if theres anything he wants from the club shop I'll get him vouchers and he can spend it as he wishes.

We dont make a fuss over Christmas dinner either, I dont eat meat and my mum doesnt either so we'll just have a takeaway, some alcohol, chocolate, the usual and just relax for a few days.

I only give a card to my mum and brother, dont really know my neighbours (you'd know why if you live where I live). I also do my nights out either the week before Christmas or in the week between Christmas and Hogmanay, nights out standing in a pub packed like a sardine, long gone.

jellyhead

Person_one wrote: »

Buy what you can afford and what you feel comfortable with of course, but there's nothing wrong with their generosity! Please try to view it a bit more positively, some of us do get genuine pleasure from giving gifts to the people we love.

I know it sounds horrible to moan about what other people give as gifts, but I live in a teeny tiny house and can't find house room for a mountain of stuff from each set of grandparents who seem to be competing with Santa! Santa loses.

It will be even worse this year because there's another teenager sharing a bedroom. Where on earth do we put the stuff? I often say that one gift is enough, and if they want to give more than one then things like chocolate are always popular, and things like socks, t-shirts or pyjamas with the silly characters on rather than all the plastic tat.

Last year my mum said she felt bad giving my kids a present that cost less than £20 when my stepdad was spending more than £30 on each child of his cousin's children, etc. but I said there's no need to buy extra to make it an equal amount, nobody is counting. A gift is a gift, they are not going to say she spent more on so and so than she did on me.

AlexLK

My wife brought up this topic of Christmas today, as we will be doing on ours on a reduced budget this year and she has a fairly large family.

The plan is to send a small, token gift to each member of our family. However, we are stuck for ideas that are not rather cliched (we don't really want to send chocolates and wine to everyone). My parents buy us quite a few gifts each and some as a couple. They also spoil our son (their only grandchild) absolutely rotten.

jellyhead

I have trimmed my list right down. Nobody minds, we still do birthday presents between friends so there's still the opportunity to get a thoughtful gift that I know that person will like.

I still buy for all relatives who buy for my children though. It would feel rude not to, even if it's just a nice soap or some fudge or thorntons toffee. I tend to buy for the couple if they live together if it's something to eat or drink.

In my husband's family the present buying is more extended than it is in mine. They are a smaller family. My family is huge, even with aggressive trimming I still have 30 gifts outside of my household to buy for, and that's with lumping all couples together if they live together and agreeing with my siblings that we will buy for each other's children but not for each other.

MrSmartprice

jellyhead wrote: »

Last year my mum said she felt bad giving my kids a present that cost less than £20 when my stepdad was spending more than £30 on each child of his cousin's children, etc. but I said there's no need to buy extra to make it an equal amount, nobody is counting. A gift is a gift, they are not going to say she spent more on so and so than she did on me.

Ah, yes. I remember all that nonsense. People calculating how much everybody is spending on everybody else. Competitive gifting!

The true spirit of Christmas.....:rotfl:

marisco_2

Person_one wrote: »

Buy what you can afford and what you feel comfortable with of course, but there's nothing wrong with their generosity! Please try to view it a bit more positively, some of us do get genuine pleasure from giving gifts to the people we love.

Its not a matter of not being able to afford it. It surprises me that you feel able to comment about a family situation you know absolutely nothing at all about. You try putting a positive spin on having presents you have bought for people looked down upon, being asked how much you have bothered spending on them, and being made to feel like bl00dy Scrooge because you choose not to get yourself in debt and turn to payday loans in January to pay for one day in the year!

MrSmartprice

marisco wrote: »

Its not a matter of not being able to afford it. It surprises me that you feel able to comment about a family situation you know absolutely nothing at all about. You try putting a positive spin on having presents you have bought for people looked down upon, being asked how much you have bothered spending on them, and being made to feel like bl00dy Scrooge because you choose not to get yourself in debt and turn to payday loans in January to pay for one day in the year!

You are quite right. The whole thing is a complete nightmare, which is why we opt out. I can see no reason to spend large amounts of money buying tat, which you wouldn't give a second glance to for the rest of the year. In return, you get a similar pile of old tat for which you have no use and even the charity shop thinks twice!

I read your signature, and it occurred to me that it is quite liberating when you abandon any pretence of celebrating the spendfest and actually become Scrooge. Why not go for it?;)

cod3

We (siblings and parents) only buy for the children now. We stopped buying for adults several years ago and it has removed a lot of stress and expense.

nickj_2

we cut right back , after realising we were spending a fortune for people that we don't even see that often , my cousins kids , my friends kids , both mine and mrs j's brothers and wives etc have been cut out ,i reckon we werre buying for so now we only buy for our kids , parents , nephew and niece and maybe 4-5 others , small pressies ,
i've got to the stage now where i don't really need another cook book , or whatever ,