To ask if you’d be happy with these gifts for your child’s birthday?

[presentconundrum]

Child is under 5, and in my family.

I’ve got:

a peppa pig art set - this is the main present, it’s a decent size.

Four colouring books, a sticker book and some crayons

a large puzzle

a little “pet care” toy - just a little dog and some accessories

all are within the appropriate age range. Is this enough??? Looking at it now it seems quite small and I might need to raid their Christmas presents to boost it.

total cost is probably about £45

I personally would think that's not enough 😂

You’re not answerable to anyone regards what you buy your child for her birthday. If she’s the arty type, she’ll love it 🙂

Whoops, not your child 🤣

Its more than enough. Children get too much tat nowadays most of which usually ends up broken and heading for the bin

One present is enough for children outside your immediate family, surely?
There’s no need to create a “pile”, for any occasion

That's enough for if they were your actual child I'd say! Aunts and uncles etc just buy 1 thing for my kids, always less than 50 quid and normally nothing too exciting, grandparents normally get a few little bits and 1 "big" present, but again nothing massive eg. For 10th birthday they got ny son some chocolate, 2 books and a chess set. Definitely don't buy anything else!

Is the child happy with that ? Yes ? End of subject.
Nothing to do with what you spend. If it, even just one item, is what they like that's more than good enough.

I can’t imagine just gifting anyone ONE present!

Well, they’ve been opened and the child wasn’t overwhelmed or upset. Loved them all and very happy!

Why on earth not?

Whyever not? All my family get just one gift from me and I get one from each of them. There is no need for any more - you finish up touting round for more tat that will finish up in landfill.

When my children were little I did stocking presents for them.... little funny things (orange, water tree, puzzled etc.) - but otherwise it was just the one present.

Make a decision to cut down on all this consumerism for its own sake.

This is similar to me. I have 14 nephews and nieces across my side and DH side of family have 3 so 17 gifts in total. £20-25 is what they get.

My own children get 50 pound for a birthday if it's not your own child what you have spent is more than enough

So if you'd spent £100 on something really special, that wouldn't be enough because it's not multiple presents?

I would absolutely give four gifts to a niece/ nephew for their birthday. I also don't think £45 is too much to spend. People are different.

Of course they would be happy, they sounded very nice presents. But remember once you start it will be expected and as they get older the presents will become more expensive.

To put that into perspective, DS (9) got a dinosaur book from his aunt that she’d bought at the town library ex-stock sale. We had to go round so he could open it on ceremony.

He‘s never been in to dinosaurs.

Yes, me too, I just buy one present .

I agree with people saying this is too much. It used to feel really stressful when mine were younger and relatives showered them with piles of presents - they're doing it to be generous I know, but as PP have said it's overwhelming for the child and makes receiving gifts something they take entirely for granted and start to get bored with. More presents doesn't = more enjoyment; the opposite in fact. I don't want my kids to be "spoilt rotten" I want them to feel genuine pleasure and gratitude in the gifts they receive. I also don't want a house full of unnecessary clutter which has been bought for the sake of giving a pile of presents. As a society we are drowning in unnecessary "stuff".

Edited for typo.

Too much for me. My budget was around £15-£20 and up to £25 if I saw something that would have really suited them.

At 5, they sounds perfect though.

I only spend around £30 on my niece and nephew. They get so much stuff! But i do put everything in a big cardboard box and then turn the box into something like a castle or a car or something. They just like fuss and fun things, they don't need loads

In our family, nieces and nephews are gifted one present from each household (amd some households mightn’t give a gift at all). I only ever buy one gift for anyone really, adult or child. The exception if it was a gift of books. Or if it was a colouring book, then crayons would be included. But there wouldn’t be a bundle or a pile of gifts given.

Thats a lovely lot of generous, thoughtful gifts.

Glad she liked them. Presumably one of the parents would have a quiet word if they felt you'd given too many gifts. I've been buying a similar sort of small bundle of things for my nephew eg a book, colouring book, small bag of Haribos, small lego set. He doesn't seem overwhelmed by it or behave spoilt and ask for more gifts.

The art supplies will presumably get used and eventually end up in recycling. The child has developed their fine motor skills, I don't see it as being a wasteful and unnecessary. As they get older, chances are they will be able to ask for one item they'd like which will probably be something more expensive that some paints and colouring books! 😄At this age they're still figuring out what they like and enjoy doing.

Lovely gifts! I would've been very happy watching my children open them when they were younger