Is 400 enough for two dc?

[Lipperfromchipper]

Just a Christmas question, dc are 6 and 4,
I have spent about 320 so far and was thinking if I spent another 80 between them on stocking fillers that would be plenty?? But I’m getting cold feet about that!!? How much have you spent on two dc of similar ages??

400 is enough for 10-20 dc. HTH

My sons are 6, 3 and 15 weeks.

6 year old has got an iPad (refurbed of wowcher and yes this will be closely
Monitored and used sparingly), a crayola set, play dough, a Manchester City calendar and a book on the human body as he’s obsessed with how it works.

3 year old has got a bit set of dinosaurs and a big set of zoo animals, a karaoke machine, a how to train your dragon dragon and a big book on dinosaurs.

Baby has got a lava lamp, and a basket full of sensory things I’ve collected, wooden musical instruments, nail crush, foil blanket, rubber spatula etc.

I think maybe £300 for all of that including their Christmas Eve pyjamas, and Christmas Day outfits but I’ll admit I’ve not kept a full count.

I don’t think you sound like you have under spent at all.

Full disclosure, I've spent about £150 for my DD's first Christmas. That includes some really nice wooden toys that I think she'll get a couple of years out of such as an activity block and instrument set, plus a whole host of books that again will last us for a few years, and a couple of soft toys. I don't think that's particularly 'disgusting'. Perhaps it is, but I think quality of what you're buying matters too. My DM is buying her a swing set for the garden which is about £200, but again that will last her for a good few years.

Kids who are getting consoles will use them for a few years, same with bikes most of the time. These are the things that tend to cost more money, but they also last a longer time. It's not like people are necessarily buying £200 of cheap plastic toys and having a zillion parcels for their kids to open. Quality stuff that lasts can be expensive but can be worth paying for, if you are able to afford it. It can also hold resale value decently well.

@Lipperfromchipper I think posters are just deliberately trying to wind you up now. It’s perfectky legitimate to ask that question and I’ve often wondered what others spend.

Ignore them. You certainly don’t have to justify yourself or how much you spend!

If you you earn enough to spend this sort of money then go for it. I don’t think anyone needs validation - especially from Mumsnetters 😂. Personally our 3 year old we’ve spent £100 including stocking fillers and probably won’t get anything for our 3 month old because he doesn’t have a scooby what the hell is going on.
For those spending thousands.. good for you. Enjoy your spoilt kids 👍🏻

@Wrongdissection yip you won unless someone gets their kids to make their own presents in the dark with the light of a fading candle.

OP it’s not about budgeting it’s about getting what they would like or similar within your means which it sounds like.

I am awful I buy wee things as I go along from October so I end up with too much and save some of it for Birthdays or accidentally find it in June . Getting
My DS gifts and watching his face on Christmas morning brings me joy so why bloody not.

Blimey mine are 6 and 3 and I thought spending £100 each that I have was massively OTT

I will have spent about 200 on each by the time I'm done. They hardly have anything to show for it. Video games are 50 a pop.
As long as you can afford it and its stuff they like no harm done

I think £200 each is fairly average, though I’d have spent less whilst so young. I’m determined not to buy for the sake of it this year. So much waste

Of course it bloody is. More than enough unless there's something expensive they particularly want or need.

MarySidney is right - much better of saving most of it for the challenges of the future. They don't need loads of stuff especially this young. It's unethical from a enviromental point of view and teaches kids life is all about consumption, which just perpetuates our problems.

If I could go back I would of spent less at that age and saved the money for the teenage years. I have never had a set amount of money. Some years have been expensive and some not so much. I also spend more as I do not have to buy for other but equally they do not receive much from family members.

It’s astonishing how threatened some of you are, if it’s over £30 it must be plastic tat/on credit cards/bad parenting. Get a grip.
A single decent present can cost £100+ and buying your kids what they want for Christmas won’t make them spoilt ffs

Really??!! There’s no need for such ridiculous questions!*

Yet you've based a whole thread on a ridiculous question and the whole purpose of it seems to be to make yourself feel better. If you really meant to ask if you'd done enough, you would list out what you got them, not the amount you spent. As others have posted, it's about the product, not the amount.

It must have been said already but a Nintendo switch is £370 alone so how do children ever get those for Xmas if half of mumsnet give a satsuma and a piece of coal for Christmas.

So far I’ve spent £180 on DS main present but it’ll be another £100 or so to get other presents. I’ll spend roughly the same for DD maybe a bit less as her presents aren’t as expensive this year. I also but practical things though for them to open line PJ’s, gloves, beakers for school so I can recoup some money.

Their dad also goes OTT and gets them main presents for about £250-450 each 😳 plus loads more on smaller presents 🙄 They’ve had from their dad-Nintendo switches, iPads, VR head sets, electric scooters, £450 electric Range Rover, a hover board, electric scooter

Do you know what, it hardly gets used!!!! It’s a total waste of money most of it and this year I’m struggling as they’ve got everything and they mainly play with they’d iPads (you dervishes got an amazon fire thing)

I meant electric go cart.... too much

Pretty sure my single mum on benefits saved and spent more than £40 on Xmas presents for me in the 90s ... No idea why some people think they're morally superior for choosing to do so now. Just bizarre and joyless.

Agree it's not the monitory value that matters but only on MN would someone be treated like they're insane for spending £200 on a child at Christmas.

So insincere to pretend that seems alien.

@evilmorty What a ridiculous comment 🙄 maybe you can afford to buy each of your kids a NS on hubby’s credit card whilst he’s out ‘cycling’ but those of us that are working class don’t always have the spare cash to buy young kids such expensive presents.

Serious question though, if people think £200 is omg wow massive overspend, why are all these kids getting xboxes and nintendos when everyone is spending £30 which barely buys a medium sized Lego set.

Competitive Christmas underspending and competitive undereating. The two great loves of Mumsnet! Wait till a thread pops up on how much to spend on Christmas dinner

And thank you Mum918 for making up such a lovely little alternative life story for me based on my one sarcastic sentence ❤️

@evilmorty normally on thread so like these it is asked and it’s the grandparents or family members.

mum918
You sound so bitter and miserable

but I do think it shows a lack of empathy to post on a forum where there are regularly threads from families reliant on food banks and worrying about paying rent.

What about the private education threads? Tutors? Style and beauty? How much do you earn threads and the ones about buying or selling houses?