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Christmas

From present ideas to party food, find all your Christmas inspiration here.

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Original poster

To ask what you are buying your dc for christmas and how much do you spend per child?

91 replies

mrsshears · 30/10/2011 08:32

My 2 are 5 and 14 and i'm spending £250 on the 14yr old and about £150 - £200 on the 5yr old.
I would normally spend less on the younger one but she is having a tv and dvd for her bedroom which i consider a bit of an investment as i'm hoping it will last a good few years.
I find with older dc its getting increasingly difficult to spend less as everything they want is so expensive,on dd's list is an ipod touch and some vans.
I'm really interested nosy to see what everyone else spends and what you will be buying Smile

OP posts:
kitbit · 30/10/2011 09:02

We are also on a budget. Genuine question - if you're saving hard all year for this, that £X00 could do so much for the household, how do you leave that money for luxuries when everything else is so tight? We needed a fair bit extea for emergencies this year that wrecked our usual household budget. If I had £100 sitting there there would be no way I could have said 'Can't fix the boiler, that's needed for a DSLite'? ...or is this all 'extra' cash that you have (in which case fair enough although I freely admit it's none of my business either way :o )

ssd · 30/10/2011 09:03

i wasnt critisizing you birds, just seemed a lot to me

if it works for you thats great, i was just thinking how long I'd need to save upto spend that amount, but we are all on different incomes here

TestAnswers · 30/10/2011 09:03

I only have one child so that makes life easier in this respect. I don't have a set budget, very much depends on what my DS wants/needs around Christmas. We bought him nothing for his first Christmas as he had more than enough from everyone else. I guess I spend around £120-£150 on him on average now (age 7) and he usually gets 8 presents from people in addition to this.

ChunkyMonkeyMother · 30/10/2011 09:05

We spent less than £75 on our DS last year - He was only 1 and our house was like a grotto from everyone elses gifts - This year we are spending around £100 but we're in the market for a ride on tractor so it will honestly depend on how cheap we can get one of those for but we will also buy a few little bits to go with so if the tractors £50 we'll only be spending £70 again but if its £100 then we'll end up spending probably £120

I think it gets harder and more expensive as they get older - I remember my Mum n Dad spending over £1k on my brother and I one Christmas, new laptop and a saxophone I don't know how they did it :-(

Groovee · 30/10/2011 09:06

It's 8 weeks today and it's driving me mental. Dd 11 wanted an ipod touch... but now she has a new phone which does everything she wants then she doesn't need it and has said so.

Ds who is 9 today, wrote a stern letter to santa about a PS3 which we'd already bought for his birthday. So far one has a broons annual and one has the beano annual and that is it! They may just get money!

HauntyMython · 30/10/2011 09:10

I'm not sure TBH, as I buy stuff throughout the year while it's cheaper. They are 4 and 2, and their main presents are happyland and a dressing up box.

We've just decided to save some of their presents for their birthday though as they've ended up with too much and we are in shit creek financially now. Just trying to work out which ones to give at Xmas and which to give at their birthdays in summer.

MrsStephenFry · 30/10/2011 09:10

There is an xmas topic and chat for this stuff. Its not an aibu, get it moved.

HauntyMython · 30/10/2011 09:11

(I didn't mean we are in financial trouble because of Xmas btw)

MrsSleepy · 30/10/2011 09:15

£500 each BUT one is getting a laptop and the other is getting an android tablet, Then clothes and bits and pieces.

Birdsgottafly · 30/10/2011 09:15

I am lucky that my mum or my eldest will provide childcare, if needed, so that it doesn't cost me anything to work extra hours. I have lots of transferable skills and can pick up work on agencies.

I don't spend more on Christmas than i have in savings, but i have had to claw mtself to this position and go without alot , when first widowed.

I was like Scarlett Ohara, in Gone with the Wind, were she declares that she will never be poor again (i consider myself lucky to have the skills needed to gain employment).

JennaTailor · 30/10/2011 09:16

DS1 will get £250 cash and £100 on bits and pieces for his stocking.

DS2 will get £150 spent on him on ...books, games etc.

AnathemaDevice · 30/10/2011 09:20

DS (2.6) is getting a microphone and keyboard, and a brio trainset. Got them all at a bootsale, so the whole lot cost me a grand total of £11.50. DD (8months) is getting a Vtech push along toy that I got in a charity shop for £1.50. I'll probably get her some books as well, but we've got so many of DS's old toys that she doesn't really need anything else.

When they're older I'll spend more, but I'm not going to spend a fortune just for the sake of it while they're too young to notice.

altinkum · 30/10/2011 09:21

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

herbietea · 30/10/2011 09:32

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn

MrsStephenFry · 30/10/2011 09:34

Then so can i. And dont call names, you daft tart.

emsyj · 30/10/2011 09:35

You can post where you want, MrsStephenFry, but it is not on to be instructing the OP to "get it moved". Who died and left you king, eh? Hmm

jamandposterpaint · 30/10/2011 09:37

I haven't added it up but I do know that it runs into a couple of hundred for the older two.

I save all year for Christmas and they don't get anything other than on birthdays and Christmas (apart from essentials).

Dd1's extras are so expensive this year too (Converse, Hollister ...) so they're costing as much as her main present.

I don't compare though, to anyone on here or in rl, I gave that up years ago.
Mumsnet tends to be a competitive underspend (you're being extravagant if you buy more than a few dusty books and a satsuma), whereas my rl friends have a competitive overspend.

I buy what my children need as much as what they want. They're happy. I'm happy. Sorted Smile

MrsStephenFry · 30/10/2011 09:37

Queen, dear, I,m a queen.

HauntyMython · 30/10/2011 09:38

I don't see the problem with Xmas-related threads being elsewhere on MN, so long as the title makes it clear it is about Xmas (as this one does!) so humbugs non-Xmas-fans can avoid it :)

MrsStephenFry · 30/10/2011 09:39

Xmas related aibu can go in aibu. This is not one of those.

Lookattheears · 30/10/2011 09:41

£40 each kid.

They have a life that is already very privileged so they don't get indulged at Xmas.

altinkum · 30/10/2011 09:42

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

emsyj · 30/10/2011 09:42

No, you're not a Queen. Sorry to break it to you.

You are bossy and unpleasant, though.

ShellyBoobs · 30/10/2011 09:45

Xmas related aibu can go in aibu

Good of you to allow that.

Can you provide a comprehensive list of what you will and won't allow in AIBU?

Indith · 30/10/2011 09:46

Mine will be 3 and 5.

They have Dec and Jan birthdays so my general rule is they get their "big" present (this year scooters costing £10 each) for their birthday and for Christmas get something between them. I try to empthasise Christmas being about spending time with loved ones, not presents.

This year they need some new storage for their bedroom so that will be their present, not yet bought but will be around £50. Double what I spent on them last year but necessary. I got some book through book club at school so they have nice set of book each at £10 and I spend around £10 on stockings which contain one sweet/chocolate treat, a couple of 50p wind up toys/bouncy balls and one useful thing eg last year was new dressing gowns, this year new bath toys so I can chuck the mouldy ones.

I am well aware that their wants/needs will get more expensive as they get older but I like having a basic pattern of practical things being included as presents established. For now storage but as they get older things like football boots or whatever will have to be presents, simply because we can't afford to buy things like that and then presents on top.

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