I'm just so rubbish at christmas shopping!

[Clowance]

Was going to be organised and on the ball this year but it's all going wrong!

Have no real money left and haven't bought presents for anyone apart from DS.

Just looked in my present bag and i have bought:

2 jigsaw puzzles - why when DS has loads already and one would have done?
2 jumpers - why when DS doesn't like to wear jumpers and has a wardrobe full of ones he doesn't wear?
A big pack of stickers - why when all he will do is stick them all over the house in 5 mins only for me to take them all off and put them in the bin?
A small car - why when he has hundreds and it'll just get added to the car basket?
A game - looks, and was, cheap so will probably be rubbish.
A dvd - why when i moan he watches too much tv already?

Only have one thing i know he will like, but bought it before i read any reviews so i'm not even sure that's going to be very good anymore. And only one of the above will fit in his stocking

sigh

why did you buy those things if you know he wont like them? how old is ds? if he is around 3-4 then stocking fillers could be, a tube of bubbles, some crayons, pants and socks, small notebook for doodling in,bottle of bubble bath, chocolate coins, small teddy to go in the top. if you look in the right places, you can get all of this for less than a tenner. what kind of things would he like for a main present? if you look at the entertainer website, www.thetoyshop.com
they have a load of toys really cheap at the moment, ben 10 stuff, and plenty of things for small boys

I love x-mas shopping, i wish i had boys to buy for .

I try and buy things which will keep them busy on x-mas day (as well as the rest of the year) so i have time to cook lunch, so i try and buy one toy that does not need a lot of putting together as well as some craft sets which dd1 can get on and do/make on x-mas day when i am busy. Her main present is always playmobil (she loves the stuff) so needs me to spend hours putting it together (i do this in the afternoon with help from my dad (dh falls asleep or is glued to the tv).

I have done most of my shopping online using

toyshop.com
character.com
boots.com

oh and E-bay.

There are far more bargains online than you will find in the shops.

I didn't say he won't like them; he will (well maybe apart from the jumpers)

I'm more moaning about my lack of christmas shopping ability, like not remembering what i have already bought and ending up with double jumpers and puzzles.

Also i have only bought more of the things he alrady has, rather than completely new toys etc.

He is so difficult to buy for because he doesn't play as such so i feel any toys are a waste but i can't get him nothing! And i don't want to buy him a load of small plastic tat.

Main present is sorted though so at least thats something. Just the rest of family and friends to go!

ahhh i feel a bah humbug coming on

Could you take the jumpers and one of the puzzles back and get a refund?

I keep lists. I always buy too many things for one person and then forget three others too!

I love lists. I make a new one regularly and keep it in my handbag. Only keep the people who need presents on it or specific things I am looking for. Searching on internet sites gives me good ideas and shops like TK Maxx have great savings on lots of things.

I think i'm going to take a step back, calm down, and make some lists.

One puzzle i will keep back for a another time or for a birthday present, and keep back one of the jumpers (DS is a skinny thing who doesn't grow so should still fit for months to come yet!)

I'm so desperate to enjoy christmas but am so stressed with uni work that everything is getting messed up and i'm geting nowhere with any of it!

Way forward: lists, lists, lists

I'm not great either. I went to a shopping centre yesterday (a really good one, I love it there) and I spent E190. When I got back I wrote out what I'd spent and calculated that only 30% of that went on presents!!

I'd bought coffee and juice in starbucks, an outfit for my son, eczema cream, a meal for three hungry tired shoppers in Nandos (very nice though and worth it). Got conned into letting the kids go on 'the christmas train' - total four more euro, 4 for parking... 15 on toiletries for myself.

I think I got three presents yesterday and spent 190. That is BAAAAD. My next trip needs to be a hell of lot more efficient.

Ive made a list this year on Word. Each DC has a column and things Ive bought I type in Black with a running total, things I see online or elsewhere I write in red with a running total. DD has concert tickets so it makes it easy to see those types of presents and add on the cost.

I usually see loads of things that the DC would like when ive got no money and when I go to buy something its differnt
and I kick myself when I rememer what I saw in the first place.

Oh I feel for you Maggie!

I start off shopping trips feeling enthusiastic and confident but then it all goes down hill. Nothing worse than getting home and going through the shopping bags to discover you have actually bought very little but spent lots.

Wow teamcullen, i'm loving the use of Word and a colour system. I might ditch my sheet of paper and biro

Agree on-line shopping is the way to go
(if you are in a place where parcels can reach you easily)

I get distracted and overwhelmed in big shopping centres.

Calm shopping according to a list in front of the computer, with a nice strong coffee by your side is definitely the way to go

A good tip is to choose what you think are appropriate items, "fill your basket", print out the list, but don't confirm or pay.

Then go back and look again at it a few days later and you can delete anything you are unsure about. It's easier to make much more objective choices that way, also it gives you a day or two to compare prices ...

Being a bit scatter-brained and prone to duplicating presents, this really works for me ...

Good luck!

I always have my lists in my filofax (moi? stuck in the 80s? ) and keep each list from previous years so that I don't replicate presents every year... there's a danger I'll get my dad golfing books every year if I'm really lazy!