Budget for childs Xmas present

krlyr

Earning more does not necessarily equate to having more free cash. Nor does more free cash mean a bigger Christmas present budget.

If someone told me how much I had to spend on them or their kids at Christmas (especially if they referred to my earnings!), they probably wouldn't like the reply they got! But on the otherhand, I don't give to receive - if I buy something for someone, I spend what I feel happy spending on then, whether I get an expensive gift, cheap gift, or nothing at all from them. My budget is exactly that - what I've decided to spend, and I decide who to give to, no conditions on they must spend X on me or else the budget is cut..


You say you've spent 'up to' (I assume that means not always) £30 only to get two £10 gifts each - well, you've just spent £25 on this gift, so two £10 gifts isn't far off. Maybe they had to drive out especially for those gifts, spending a few quid on parking, another few on parking. Or maybe she just felt that at their age, there's not a lot of point spending huge amounts on gifts that will probably be forgotten about or outgrown relatively quickly. Or she only wanted to spend £20..but that's her prerogative.

Spendless

Some people are just rubbish at gift buying regardless of how well paid or wealthy they are or how much time they have.

Look at how many threads we have each year over the most useless christmas present. Or maybe she leaves things to the last minute when there's less stuff to choose from. Again consider how many threads we gt complaining about merchandise in the shops from Sept/Oct or people saying 'it's not christmas yet, won't be buying until December maybe your SIL is like this, and to give her own child's toys away :eek:

If you are good at gift buying, espeically on a budget then it might be something you notice more about people who aren't the same.

Perhaps you might be better approaching this from a different angle. How close are you to her? Could you go on a shopping and coffeee trip with her, suggest things that are within a certain budget range, I mean just a general hint rather than a 'can you get'

MrsSippi

ska_lover wrote: »

Maybe she picks up on your seething resentment?


Sorry but your thread is everything that sucks the joy out of Christmas


Given that she earns a lot more than you do - she either:


1) spends a lot more time at work than you do
2) has a far more demanding and stressful job than you do


This woman is providing for her family, not sitting at home overthinking the minor intricacies of life


I don't have little kids, but we stopped doing Xmas years ago due to having a sister in law that behaved like she owned Christmas

Um.....me thinks "seething resentment" is stronging it just a smidge.

Blimey, I ask for opinions and it descends into this and assumptions being made.

And it's maybe just a smidge presumptuous to assume she works harder/longer than I do just cos she earns more (that's not to say she Does or doesn't, just making the point) Does a footballer work harder than a nurse cos they earn a helluva lot more!

Thank you to those who did reply to my question in the way it was intended.

ska_lover

MrsSippi wrote: »

Um.....me thinks "seething resentment" is stronging it just a smidge.

Blimey, I ask for opinions and it descends into this and assumptions being made.

And it's maybe just a smidge presumptuous to assume she works harder/longer than I do just cos she earns more (that's not to say she Does or doesn't, just making the point) Does a footballer work harder than a nurse cos they earn a helluva lot more!

Thank you to those who did reply to my question in the way it was intended.

Despite your response, you do come across as resentful I am afraid to say - in particular when you use her earning power as a reason to attack her ''Given that she earns a lot more than we do... I feel like she could at least make the same effort''

Bearing in mind you are an adult, complaining about a few quids worth of childrens gifts at Christmas - like her kid is getting a fiver more than yours. I don't understand a fellow adult getting bent out of shape over this.

I was always taught 'you don't give, to receive' - as in giving a present is a selfless act, for the joy of giving - but clearly that is old fashioned.

MrsSippi

ska_lover wrote: »

Despite your response, you do come across as resentful I am afraid to say - in particular when you use her earning power as a reason to attack her ''Given that she earns a lot more than we do... I feel like she could at least make the same effort''

Bearing in mind you are an adult, complaining about a few quids worth of childrens gifts at Christmas - like her kid is getting a fiver more than yours. I don't understand a fellow adult getting bent out of shape over this.

I was always taught 'you don't give, to receive' - as in giving a present is a selfless act, for the joy of giving - but clearly that is old fashioned.

Ok, point taken, though I would disagree - though maybe my post had a 'tone'to it that I hadn't intended.

My issue was not so much the ins and outs of present etiquette so to speak but to get a general consensus of people's opinions. Or to put it another way if someone said to you (not you personally) in the course of a conversation "do you have a budget for buying neices/nephews presents and if so how do you work it out?" a reply would be given - probably along the lines of either "we generally set a budget per child" or "we don't really think of it that way, we just buy a present that we think the child would like". That was more what I was asking (or at least thats what was meant) - as a general query .