To ask how much you spend on your kids at Xmas? (AND if you buy clothes as gifts!)

[Zara87]

We are putting together our budget for Xmas this year. I'm on mat leave so it's quite tight plus we have a huge family.
I'm thinking ds age 3 - spend around £200
Ds age 6 months-spend around £100 (And put some in his savings)

So just curious really as to what you budget per child? I'm fully aware as they get older our budget will no doubt have to increase significantly.
Also I was surprised when talking amongst friends that they don't buy clothes for their dc as presents as they see them as a necessity and not a gift (unless it's something the kid wants such as trainers).

I just am trying to get a snap shot of Xmases to come :-)

@nomudlotus :-(
I agree with what you say. I've already bought ds some bing pjs so he'll be getting clothes regardless now!

Yes PJs are always a must

These threads never give a good answer in my opinion, you'll get some that think £100 is a fortune & some that think it's one present - it's all relative.

I don't include clothes are presents, they need clothes all year round but have plenty of friends that do, each to their own

Pjs at Christmas are definitely a must.
And I say that as a 30 odd year old. Get annoyed if DP forgets lol

@Flutternotsoshy its reassuring to see you do clothes too.

Not that much. Mine are 10, 11 and 13. I'll get them either theatre tickets/sports tickets each, maybe about £10-£15 each to fill stockings and a present of some sort each. This could be with between £20 - £60 each. They also get a new set of clothes. I don't make a point of spending the same amount of money on each child as long as the amount of stuff looks about the same.

Ds1 is 12 on Boxing day so quite a bit maybe £250 for birthday and xmas ? Ds2 has severe autism and would be delighted. With a bag of balls of wool and Blu tack

Comparison is the thief of joy.

@NoMudNoLotus

Our family have always done clothes at Christmas. Normally it's a "fancy" outfit, something a little bit special that wouldn't be bought routinely.
(And obviously pajamas)

Most people I know do clothing at Christmas though. Didn't realise it wasn't a "thing" until I read this thread.

I don't really have a budget, I tend to buy:
Pjs
A onesie
Some books
A dvd
A few cheap stocking fillers
A big present (if there is one they want).

I guess it's about £100 ish if I add it up

Around £160 on my 3 year old and £130 on my 1 year old. This includes stocking and pjs but don’t do clothes as gifts. I Will buy something nice and festive to wear to events in December though.

I set a budget of what I can realistically afford per child, then spend up to that but not necessarily all of it. Ds1 I could have gone way over budget, there are so many new interests he has and things I know he will love. Also he has a winter birthday so want to make sure he’s got enough to keep him going. Ds2 doesn’t need as much as he has all of his brothers old stuff so I don’t need to spend the full amount

I buy clothes or shoes for all of mine for Xmas, but they’re all interested in fashion/their own personal style and they enjoy having new clothes for the sake of it. I also buy nicer stuff than I would if I was getting necessities in George, such as Converse for my oldest.

I wouldn’t be wrapping up knickers or babygros for a 6 month old.

DC will be six months old and we’re not going to spend anything, it hadn’t even occurred to me.

I have spoken to friends about this and found that there has been an embarrassed silence.
DH and I are in the financial position of being able to give away now, rather than having it taxed when we die.
So the boys, 34 and 32 get £1000 at Christmas and their birthdays. Cash into their accounts plus a small present if they are at home as both live away.

I’ll probably spend £50/£60 on DS this year. He’s only 4 months old so he’ll be more interested in trying to eat the paper! I won’t be buying him clothes for Christmas, I can remember being a bit put out that Santa brought me some clothes one Christmas instead of more toys. (That makes me sound so ungrateful I know but I was only young & I’m just telling the truth!)

Toooo much. Depends though - they are teenagers so expensive gadgets and games - but some years really vary depending on what they need. They do get clothes and practical things to bulk it out.

£80ish for 2.5 year old. 2 big toys and a stocking. Hopefully they'll be reduced between now and Christmas

Mine get clothes to bulk it out. I don't have a budget per se, they give me a list with things on it in order of preference and I get 1-2 items off it depending on the price of the items.

I don't price match either. If one asks for something worth 50 and the other asks for something worth 25 that's what I get.

I do however like to give them the same number of parcels to open lol

I don't have a set budget because I buy throughout the year when I see a bargain. Spent £60 in Smiggle today between 2 kids. They're starting to think about Xmas. My boy wants more Lego but he doesn't really need any more so I'm going to encourage going for something small. My girl will get some Lego just for her as her brother hogs it (most of it was bought for him).
I always add "essentials" in to their pressies. Socks, pants, new toothbrush,smellies, tops, trousers.
They are 8 and 9 and I love seeing their little faces when they see the massive pile of pressies. They have never mentioned being upset by getting essentials, they are too busy playing with the toys they do get.
We do one main pressie each but this year, they'll probably get a joint main pressie - TV for their bedroom. They don't have games consoles etc yet.

Worked out roughly 100-150 each (aged 8 & 5). I think it's with stocking fillers on top of that, but I'm trying hard to remember! Definitely no clothes though.

Last year my dd’s were just 2 and 4. Dd1 got £100 and dd2 had £30. This year dd2 has more interests so I’m happy to spend upto £100 on her too but will stop if I think she has enough before then. I’m planning on giving them a new onesie at the beginning of December and Christmas pyjamas on Christmas Eve. I will give clothes but won’t include this in their Christmas budget. Anything I’ve bought that they don’t need to wear before Christmas (I sometimes buy ahead in sales) I’ll wrap up just to make it look like more under the tree for the wow factor.

Between £100 and £200 each (was less when they were younger and money was tighter.

And yes to clothing and to practical things that they actually need. Ds2 is getting his own hairdrier and a Nike bag for the gym this year, amongst other things.

I’ve never added it up but it’s always a lot less than I can afford . They get pants and socks in their stockings each year . Buy one big they want and a few smaller ones . I aim for approximately 6-8 to open and then their stocking .
So eg tablet , Lego, headphones , booklet , jigsaw , board game then stocking. Don’t go crazy , it’s not worth the hassle or expense

Our budget has crept up f4om £100 to £200 as the dc got older and our income increased. £100 Is more than enough at your dc's age (and the baby will need very little really).

I only buy clothes as presents if they are exciting in some way e.g. glittery shoes or a top with a certain character on.

DS who will be 6 months, nothing or maybe just a token present. Relatives will buy stuff, we don't have a lot of space and tbh he just doesn't need it

DS who's 14 probably around £200-£250 but that does include things like clothing and socks, and other small things he might need etc. to pad out his stocking.

Adult DD who has left home I'll say around £100 but will probably end up a bit more as am always seeing little things she'd like