Sick of Christmas spending

[raj1969]

Anyone else feel like me? I'm absolutely sick of the spend, spend, spend mentality that seems to go hand in hand with Christmas. I usually buy into it and spend a fortune but this year I've massively cut back. I've been completely up front with the kids and told them they won't be getting anything like as much under the tree this year. And I'm only buying token gifts for extended family. I usually spends 1000s by the time you factor in presents, food, decorations, new clothes etc - this year it'll be low hundreds, which still feels too much. It just feels like Christmas has lost its soul - its about 'stuff' now and not what really matters. Spoke to some mums at school and they said they feel the same way.

I'm the opposite I didn't get a lot for Christmas and it the one time in the year I get to really treat my DC we don't take to spent at lot over the year on them so I get great pleasure in there faces on Christmas morning. Why not knock the token gifts on the head and focus on your nuclear family instead?

We stopped gifts for all adults although the DC give grandparents a small present from them. We have also stopped presents for nieces and nephews as there are now 9 children my side of the family alone. Instead we have a Christmas go out get together - this year it was the Panto and Pizza Hut. Christmas is so much more manageable now.

YANBU. We focus on all the free/cheap and fun stuff

• making decorations/cards
• Carol services and christingle
• adventures looking for lovely Christmas lights
• snuggling up to watch a Christmas movie
• dancing around to Christmas music etc etc

Yanbu
This year - after trying and failing other years - I've put my foot down with in laws.
We haven't done adult gifts in my family for a few years now but in laws always refused
I told them this year "We will not be buying for adults this year and will be making donations to charity"
It didn't go down well, but tough! 😀
The whole process of buying gifts for adults who can quite easily buy them for themselves is ridiculous.
I was in town last week and the sheer number of people buying tat because it's on 3 for 2 and "will do for auntie x" depressed the hell out of me!
It also means that this year, for the first time in 21 years mil will not present me with a pair of opaque tights 😂
There really are only so many I can wear....

we've reduced present spending right down this year. And its great. I am so much more chilled. We will give the kids a few things, but mainly money - now they are older and have rent etc they seem to be more broke than when they lived at home. I'm sure there must be so many presents bought that are totally inappropriate, its such a waste of money and time. So much better to pair it down and focus on enjoying your time together instead.

I agree the children will have much less this year. It is excessive. It is also my son's birthday at Christmas time. I have 14 children in the family, not sure I can afford to buy for them all as I need to save money to travel to see my grandmother who is dying. That is more important to me than buying presents.

I have nieces and nephews to buy for
I will stop when they are 18
It's madness to carry on
My sis and bil have far more money than we do. My nephews don't need anything!

I just feel as though we lose sight of what Christmas is meant to be about - it's more about the bling and excess than being together as a family/showing good will to others etc. As a mum I've completely stepped off the mad roundabout of endless shopping, prepping, decorating etc. And I feel better for it.

Yup. Same here too. I can't stop my aunts and uncles and grandparents spending literally £100s on my children - who are the only DCs in the family and get spoiled rotten as a result - but I have put my foot down about the number of presents they give. I've asked that they all club together and buy high-quality stuff that can be re-sold or passed on when outgrown.

Therefore DS (8) got a gorgeous bike (£250!) for his birthday last week and is getting Lego Mindstorms for Christmas. DD (5) is getting a similarly priced bike for Christmas from all of them, and Osmo from us. I can't cope with the marathon present opening on the day otherwise; the ocean of wrapping paper and knee-high piles of gifts just get pointless and sickening.

We have also pleaded the environmental message and asked for as little plastic as poss (with the obvious exception of Lego) to cut down on tat in stockings. Everything in stockings is either consumable, wearable or readable, and where possible has been home-made or bought second-hand.

I feel very smug and worthy as a result

We never over consume during the year and this goes for christmas too.
My children get good quality 3 gifts and a stocking which is not full of plastic crap which gets lost at the bottom of the toy box never to be seen again!

Before children dh & I used to bugger off to Europe and go walking or biking and completely ignore christmas.
Now with the kids we've got really in to it and we stay at home and enjoy family time going for walks, spotting lights, watching films etc.
When the younggest turns 6 I fully expect us to all bugger off again

I don't know why but the sheer pointlessness of buying overpriced tat has really got to me this year...
Do people actually like to receive soap and glory sets from boots when they know the only reason they have them is because they were on 3 for 2??
I've always made sure my dc get lots of books at xmas - that's a gift I don't mind getting lots of 😊

Yes! It's got to me this year more than any. Without wanting to get too morbid, I wonder whether it's got anything to do with all the famous people who've died this year - suddenly, we're all feeling that bit more mortal and realise that all the tat in the world isn't worth time spent with the people who mean the most.

I am dreading Christmas, we have 4 children to buy for this year, last year DS1 was only 1 and DS2 was 4 days old so we spent about £30 on presents and they didn't know any different
My 2 DSD's moved in with us in march and they're mother used to go crazy, the presents would be touching the ceiling, and think iPhones for 5 and 7 year olds... ugh! There is no way we could afford to spend that much on them and even if we could we wouldn't. So I'm dreading their disappointed faces when they come down on Christmas morning. They do have lots of presents to open but it won't be nowhere near what they've been used to

PlonkerFace love and family time will be remembered for many years!

I can relate to that raj . I lost s very dear friend in the Boxing Day tsumani, we were in our early twenties.
Whilst I have learnt to love Christmas again, the rampant consumerism element still gives me the rage

Focus on doing things together as a family (baking, board games, making decorations etc)
Or getting together with your community (Carol services, Christmas day red, light switch on ceremonies etc)

I can't imagine what an empty hollow feeling people must get if they have blown a fortune on pointless crap

plonker - we have 4 between us too and it can get brutally expensive very fast. I grew up as one of four though and the happy memories came from spending time together, and very busy noisy Christmas dinners etc

We have a very tight budget too but I have picked up quite a few things like board games etc on second hand selling sites on Facebook etc so it looks like a reasonable number of presents despite my tiny budget (and they are gifts of "family time" too as we will all enjoy them together)

Focus on all the memories you can make instead : look up all the different traditions- these are all lots of fun when there is a big group of children

Sorry for your loss

Also DS2's birthday is on the 21st and DSD2's birthday is on boxing day! We haven't bought anything for their birthdays yet! We can't afford to buy for anyone other than the children this year, not even each other X

We are feeling this more this year as well. Have tried really hard not to buy loads of crap. Found it challenging that aunts and GPs also wanting to know what the children want so have managed to list a bit more effectively this year; still feels like too much-we have a garage full already... added to the mix DH and DM birthday either side of Xmas and the spending just feels too much. Need some self control now and no twitching!