How many presents roughly do you buy for a 2.5/3 year old?

[evensteven]

I know most people don't have a set amount, but how many do you buy/did you buy for this age? I think I've gone way too far already. I've bought (so far 😩) 23 presents. I don't know why I started this early, I don't know why I've bought so much. Will definitely be putting some away for her birthday but there's still a few to get that she'd genuinely want, rather than me just buying something on a whim because it was on sale. I think, excluding stocking, she'll end up with about 20, with some being kept for her birthday for next year. Aside from us, she'll get about 8 things from family. Will 20 be far too much? I would keep a lot of it until next year but most of it are character toys from programmes she likes and I can't guarantee she'll be into them next year.

I do the same as starlight (need , want, wear , read) and my dc are 2 and 3 x

In Denmark, where I live, we do advent gifts, where we give one gift each sunday in December so 4 gifts in total. Could you do something like that?

No more than 4 gifts in our house from us, 2 small ones plus a few sweets in the stockings, then 2 under the tree.

It’s easy to get carried away, but you’re going to overwhelm her. Can you store some of it for another year? Otherwise I’d use it for birthday presents for other children (I’ve a box of suitable bits in a drawer), or get a family member to ‘gift’ it.

I think it’s easy to get carried away, I know I did with my eldest at this age. I learnt to calm down in the end thank god because a lot of it was a waste of time/money.

I would also caution against getting too many toys related to tv shows they like at this age at least, as they move on quickly and certain toys (peppa pig stuff for example) is truly shit quality and massively over priced.

You could certainly give her a couple of those items between now and Christmas, it's only the end of August. A teddy, a happyland set and maybe one of her fave tv show toys, spread over the next three months, is hardly going to turn her into a demanding little diva!

Definitely keep some back for her birthday and as pp said let other family members give some as Xmas and birthday gifts too. If you have similar aged dns or you buy for friends dcs birthdays/Christmas then you could probably put some of what you've bought by for them.

You could use a few smaller ones for each Sunday as mentioned above, see if family want to either gift any of those and give one on Christmas Eve (if you do xmas eve box etc)

I probably have similar amount for youngest if it was listed but some of it is clothes/pjs/new coat (things he needs at that point anyway).

We tend to go a bit overboard at christmas but we dont buy a lot through the year in terms of new toys.

My DD will be 2 years 9 months this Christmas. she will get one "big" present from us - possibly a dolls house or toy garage - costing around £30-50.
She also has a stocking which will probably have around 8 small presents, costing a few £ each. Things I've already bought are a sticker book (£2), playdoh fun factory (£5), wooden toaster (£6).

We have a big family so she will get a lot of presents from other people

I don’t think it’s that bad really. I would keep the Playmobil 123 sets back for when baby is older. Then keep one for Easter maybe (teddy?), one for a reward when she cracks potty training if she hasn’t already. Try and ‘sell’ a couple to family members to give.

Then open a few smaller bits to fill her stocking. I fill my dcs with proper stuff anyway because at least it will be wanted and play with unlike the usual stocking tat.

If you do all that it’s really not that bad. I don’t know anyone in RL who only gives 1 or 2 gifts for Christmas

DD will be three and will be getting a similar amount from us. I had a wobble at my list last week but when I pulled what I’ve got already out, It looks a lot less in real life than when written down as a list.

I would definitely ask if your family would buy some off you. Playmobil would sell well second hand or would be okay to keep back.
Perhaps could some friends buy some off you for their children of a similar age? I went overboard buying imaginext one year for DS when he was just turned 3. He opened two parcels and didn’t want to do any more.

I think it's fine. Kids this age love opening more than anything. Stagger it over the day! She will love it!

If you think it's too much keep some for potty training bribery?

To me that isn't excessive. I have a very generous mum and dad who you could say over indulged us all. That's just the way they are. I think they did it because our grandparents or other family never bothered with us so for mum she felt like we were missing out which of course we didn't. But it's carried on and we are all guilty of it now 😳. But now I just see it as the norm because I'm just used to it x

I would say it's fine. Looking at last year's list my daughter had around 50 gifts anything from £1 and upwards. We normally budget around £400-£500 per kid.im always shocked how different it is on here to where I'm from. The norm is piles as I describe reducing in size as kids get older and each item becomes more expensive. I would do what makes you feel most happy and comfortable.

I plan to give DS 3.5 two presents and a stocking. He does get an awful lot from family though! He also doesn't actually play with toys.

I would space them out over the year, no need for them all to be given on one day :)

DD got about that many from us/Santa last year at nearly 3. She took two days to open it all and loved everything. Categorically don't count clothes/shoes etc as gifts although everyone has to have something new to wear on the big day. We also have a very large (and very generous) family who all went overboard too.

It's exactly how I remember Christmas as a kid and I've just carried it on to her. This year she's been adding stuff onto her list since about May and I've picked up bits as I've gone.

Don't sweat it. If you can comfortably afford it it's not harming anyone.

It doesn't look that bad a list to me. I've never met anyone IRL who get their kids 1 or 2 items, it's always piles. Maybe it's a regional thing?

I know I normally end up around the 30 gifts mark for my ds and have since he was about 2. It never looks quite as much once wrapped and put in a pile. We're scaling back a bit this year but it's only as we now have a baby as well, and we moved house this year and I became a SAHM so finances are tighter!

One or two presents, plus stockings.

My daughter was three just before last Xmas. I went similarly ott, especially as she'd just had her birthday too. She was definitely overwhelmed. The stand out memory is her noticing the mince pie and carrot had gone, and her excitement connected to this, not the present opening... but I'll still probably not learn and go ott again this year!