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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To not get baby much for xmas?

60 replies

Bouncingbelle · 05/12/2017 07:37

Im on a few fb groups for mums & babies. I can't believe I'm buying into peer pressure but everyone seems to have bought their babies loads (and i mean LOADS) for xmas - even asking for advice on loans to get more(!). Now I'm panicking as i've only got my 15 month old a few gifts - a torch (he loves lights), a pretend aquarium (he loves fish), a toy tractor with animals, a personalised wooden toy box & some books. That's it. Dh has just been made redundant so we dont have tons of cash to spare, i have a large family so he will get lots of gifts & I'd rather get him decent presents for his birthday in the summer as he will be walking & at a different stage then so will be needing new things. Am i being sensible or just tight??

OP posts:
hopefulclam · 05/12/2017 07:39

That's loads, yadnbu he won't even remeber of it. Keep it for when he's older, I'm sure he will be really happy with any gift at all Xmas Grin

LadyB49 · 05/12/2017 07:40

You're being very sensible. Def not tight. 👍

MrsPicklesonSmythe · 05/12/2017 07:40

Your baby doesn't care, he'll be more interested in the lights/wrapping paper/general excitement. If other people have more money then sense leave them to it but your son won't suffer because he only got presents he'd actually like for Christmas. You're doing fine.

Mrsemcgregor · 05/12/2017 07:40

Completely sensible. Your 15 month old has no concept whatsoever of Christmas or gifts.

I wrapped up a load of bibs, onesies and other practical things for mine when they were babies. The best bit for them was ripping off the wrapping anyway!!!

RhinoGirl · 05/12/2017 07:41

Definately sensible! He won’t know any different OP, & like you say he’ll have a few gifts from other people. It’s about making memories and traditions when they are this young.

BertieBotts · 05/12/2017 07:41

Sensible. He won't even know it's Christmas.

Loans for Christmas presents is a shocking idea, especially if they already have presents. Anyone doing that will end up in big financial trouble.

00100001 · 05/12/2017 07:41

People are considering GETTING LOANS from fund Christmas presents for a baby??????

Madness!

MsVestibule · 05/12/2017 07:41

For my baby’s first Christmas (she was 10 months) I bought her about three presents from a charity shop totalling £10!! Now she’s 10, it’s a little bit more than that...

Seriously, do NOT give into any perceived peer pressure. If they ask what you’re buying him, either lie or say ‘oh, just a few bits, I’ll be buying him more for his birthday’ etc.

00100001 · 05/12/2017 07:42

We didn't even bother getting anything for DS for his first Christmas, he was 9 months old

marcopront · 05/12/2017 07:42

I agree completely.
I lived overseas and came back for Christmas with my 2.5 month old. I saw no point in buying her presents. I would buy them, wrap them, open them and then carry them back. She would just lie there being a small baby. My step mother disagreed and brought her presents, I only had to open and carry those though.

DivisionBelle · 05/12/2017 07:44

Brilliant presents, OP, and you are being very sensible. Our eldest’s first Christmas was a wooden xylophone and a book.

whatkatydidnext1 · 05/12/2017 07:45

YOU ARE NOT BEING TIGHT. YOU ARE BEING SENSIBLE. sorry to shout. Do not buy into it seriously.

ImAMarshmellow · 05/12/2017 07:46

I'm the same as you OP, we've bought our 15 month old a few bits and did the same for his birthday.

I don't like the Concept of buying loads of gifts, I would rather 5 gifts he would like, compared to 40 gifts he would never bother with.

He'll end up with new toys through the year, he doesn't need them all at once.

AuntieStella · 05/12/2017 07:49

What you have bought for your DC is more than mine had as a baby (just a soft toy Tinky Winky). Then again, that baby is now grown up.

Some families have the habit of getting loads of presents, others just don't. You can decide what your own, personal, family style will be.

Lovelilies · 05/12/2017 07:50

Last year I got DD2 (6m ) a foil emergency blanket from the £ shop. She loved it!
This year she's 18m and is getting a little dolls pram, she loves them at nursery, and my mum is buying her a doll. And a couple of books.
I'm not being tight, we have more than enough plastic shite toys to wade through on a daily basis!

MrsMotherHen · 05/12/2017 07:51

Perfect amount!

We have got our 6 month old.
A crinkly teddy toy thing
Stack toy
A doll
Inflatable roller toy
Thats it cost about £25 in total and i still think its too much she wont have a clue.
My DS2 has
A bike
Kitchen with food and pans
Play doh
Bubbles
Books
Thats all his getting last year he got far too much got over whelmed and threw a tantrum.

allthegoodusernameshavegone · 05/12/2017 07:51

Going into dept to purchase more gifts for your children of any age is surely irresponsible parenting.

HRTpatch · 05/12/2017 07:53

We never bought anything for their first Xmas. They were 4 months old!!!
People who go into debt are idiots who shouldn't be responsible for children.

LittleLionMansMummy · 05/12/2017 07:53

Dd will be 13 months at Christmas. She'll get a stocking because 7yo ds still believes in Father Christmas. She'll get one main present under the tree from father Christmas (£35) and a couple of bath time toys from us. She'll get loads of other things from my family and I think it can get quite obscene. For her first birthday we started off her junior isa instead. Yanbu op. We still don't really 'splash out' even on ds. I'd rather take them on nice holidays and encourage them to appreciate what they have.

starsinyourpies · 05/12/2017 07:54

I have bought my 10 month old new socks Smile, and a push along car. She will be very happy!

QueenNefertitty · 05/12/2017 07:57

Nah very sensible.

I've spent about £100 on my DS who's also 15mo, but it's things that he will use all year. He started walking about 3 months ago, so bought him a scoot along sturdy trike, and a sand and water table because he's obsessed with water ... and sand. It'll last him a fair while. He's got a couple of bath toys too, but other than cheap crayons/ paper/ finger paints/ couple of books, I won't be buying anything else.

Categoric · 05/12/2017 08:00

We have never done the masses of presents routine for DCs and actively discourage the GPs from doing so. Partly because they end up overwhelmed and partly because we have nowhere to store everything. Where do people keep all this stuff?

LondonGirl83 · 05/12/2017 08:04

Sensible- my DD will be 10 months and she is getting a small toy, book and puzzle. In total it's less than 35 quid.

Aria2015 · 05/12/2017 08:04

I’ve got my 2.5 year old 6 gifts and 2 are books and the others just small. He understands what gifts are but still has no real concept of Christmas so I’m saving money while I can! I don’t like the idea of over indulging him anyway but certainly not while he’s still so young. You’re being sensible imo.

LunasSpectreSpecs · 05/12/2017 08:06

People are considering GETTING LOANS from fund Christmas presents for a baby??????

Total madness. But when Christmas is a consumer greedfest for many people, you can see how it happens. Parents measure their child's happiness in terms of how much "stuff" they have to open, even when the child is far too young to have a cliue what's going on beyond liking the sparkly lights. It's their way of showing what an amazing parent they are - they have so much STUFF!!

My first child was 9 months old at his first Christmas, he had just started crawling and the one thing I remember from that year was constantly trying to stop him trashing the tree.

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