To think it’s easter not christmas?

[backagainohdear]

What is going on with easter these days?
My social media is full of photos of piles of easter eggs, toys & clothes!
Mine got one each (well a tub of haribo for one as he doesn’t like easter eggs.)
AIBU to think people go over the top in some weird bid to show off?

I think in part you copy how you were raised.
i was raised in a typical working class council housed family. We never went in holiday but I would get mountains of small gifts at Christmas. Easter was treated like a small Christmas. (We’d always have an Easter lunch too) I would get a fair bit of stuff at Easter including clothes. (I think my mum would buy what I needed for the coming spring/ summer) and include that as part of my Easter gifts. When I had kids, I did the same. Loads of eggs (because that’s what my Easters looked like as a child) and I’d buy the season’s clothes and include those in the pile. Sometimes I’ve included crafts.
This year I’ve scaled it back as they don’t really need a lot of clothing. And I don’t have the energy. My son is shocked we haven’t done an egg hunt this year (he’s twelve.) That said, Easter has never been about toys/ gadgets in our family.

Hahaha! Its a new thing people do where they make a box of Halloween related toys /items for their kids. Similar to a Christmas eve box - dont even get me started on them!

I miss the days where the excitement was in getting dressed up in your spooky costume and showing it off in the street, going trick'or'treating. Looking forward to sharing out your trick'or'treat loot and being buzzing with all your sweets. Im sure kids still do this, but i just feel the expectation of getting gifts on Halloween ruins the tradition. Not every occassion has to be about getting gifts!

No one is making you take part in any of that. Or commit to any kind of minimum spend. Shops putting their stuff out early means people that do want to - as per their free will - can spread the cost rather than feel the hit in one pay packet. Yes, it makes money for shops too. We live in a capitalist society. I’d rather not but we do, it ain’t going away and consumption powers it. People NOT spending money is when things go tits up. Again, I wouldn’t have organised the world this way but it wasn’t up to me.

And a year without all of that would just be work and war. Brilliant. I’ll take my bunch of daffs on Mother’s Day and carve my pumpkin as a grown adult, thanks.

All personal choices. Marketing gives people information - people make choices.

My friend does boo baskets for her children. She’s one of those weird people who won’t take them trick or treating and this is their alternative. 😁 Sweets and crafts in it I think. Sometimes hair accessories etc for the girls.
I’ll probably do it each year when mine turn 13 - and too old for trick or treating to soften the blow!
I don’t do Christmas Eve boxes. I also think a boo basket plus trick or treating is a bit much.

people have always got eggs, you just see it more because of social media.
Whether anyone needs to be stuffing chocolate is another matter.

Easter always been pretty big for us . I grew up in 1960s/70s
It was church with new dress and sandals . Big lunch and a chocolate egg ( maybe a couple from relatives ) Hard boiled dyed eggs and home baking too .
Easter Monday was a day trip out or relatives visiting . Good Friday was church and hot cross buns and simmel . Even think we went to Maundy services a couple of times too .
It’s a nice break now and chance to relax . An appreciation of spring and summer to come .
Agree probably over commercialised but I choose to ignore that aspect .

Feels more like Christmas than Easter here, it's snowing 🌨️

Thanks for the explanation, glad I missed all that! 😂
I've heard of Christmas Eve boxes (not that I ever did that, they get enough presents on Christmas Day as it is 😁)

I agree with all of this. I bought 4 Xmas eve boxes at Christmas, but I’ll tell you how I felt when I bought them… Stressed.
I ended up not using them because it wasn’t something I wanted to do, and not something I had enough headspace or money for. And what a relief it was to not bother. The kids didn’t know any different and lo and behold they had a fantastic Christmas.

You’re right there’s too much pressure, and I almost fell for it!

Easter is here and I’ve done what I’ve always done. Easter eggs and a little teddy. I’ve never known the kids be anything but happy and excited. I think that if I gave them a pile of toys it would actually dilute Easter.

Thats what I think! It ruins the excitement a bit as well of getting gifts on Christmas day, to have already received a box of stuff on Christmas eve. Each to their own but I dont do it, and certainly dont do boo boxes

Well it was snowing in Scotland. Also how can you say Easter is not like Christmas. This thread is full of people trying to shame and judge people for what they do and constantly saying "it is all for social media." Seems like a mumsnet Christmas to me...

Spot on. The retail industry coming up with a new trend so people spend more money and then influencers on social media get involved and then people follow like sheep and before you know it it’s normal. And don’t get me started on Christmas Eve boxes.

I have to say YABU, because no-one I know does this. Only Easter eggs for all the children I know.

And so what? People have always got ideas from other people, or celebrity magazines or whatever Queen Victoria was doing...it's just the medium that changes.

Never heard of boo boxes. What a load of rubbish. People must have more money than sense. Cost of living crisis??

It’s because people are making a choice other people evaluate it.
One persons celebration is another persons upset at the tat, expense and waste of resources.
It’s fine to say “you do you” but it goes both ways.

And as was pointed out numerous times on the Christmas thread, consumerism affects everyone. Having things in the shops early means things sell out quicker - so actually we all have to buy earlier.

Luckily it does seem we have gone back a bit, most of shops including the supermarkets have closed today.

Also, the childhood years are short. One minute my DD was all excited about her Easter egg hunt and next thing I knew, she was planning a night out in the pub with her work friends and telling me not to bother buying her an Easter egg. If I'm fortunate enough to have grandkids, I'll be buying them Peter Rabbit babygrows and all the Easter chicks and cuddly lambs I can find. I won't be putting it on social media though, because I'm a bit past that.

Meanwhile, I hope my lovely aunt sends me some photos of her grandchildren enjoying Easter. I certainly won't be sneering at the photos. I'll be messaging her back and telling her how cute her little grandchildren are, and I'll be thanking her for sharing the photos.

The only reason most shops are closed today is because it is the law. There’s only 2 days a year that shops of a certain size are not allowed to open and that’s Christmas Day and Easter Sunday.

An out of town shopping centre near me is owned by non Christian’s and have been fighting for years to be allowed to open on Easter Sunday.

At least the garden centers are open! god only hates his followers going to supermarkets he's ok with plants.

Yanbu. But I think it is totally crass to post pictures of gifts given /received on social media anyway

@

True, it’s not a crime, but some people do care about the effects of out of control capitalism on every day life. The pressures of Christmas on people’s budgets, not to mention their mental health with the pressure to provide for children and ‘keep up’ are already well documented. Then there’s the environment. Sure, a lot of people don’t care, but for those that do, it is just observing that Easter is in danger of going the same way.

I’m wearing a new blouse for Easter. Partially this is due to losing a couple of dress sizes, so my Spring clothes from last year don’t fit. However, I always had a new outfit for my home town’s Procession of Witness (‘Easter Parade’) on Good Friday when I was growing up. I have bought DH a new shirt and student DS has requested new jeans.

One egg each, making a proper Sunday lunch with all trimmings and taking it to my parents’, home made cake to go with a cup of tea later.

I live in the flattest part of the country, so no egg rolling sadly.

What do you mean? What stuff on here wouldn't people buy anyway? New PJs, scooters, clothes for holidays? All normal stuff just given with a bit of ceremony. Maybe a large amount of eggs but I'm sure they lasted a while.

You don’t have to follow them. We don’t.