total christmas cost?

[giveyourselfashiny]

How much have u spent in total for Christmas? I'm thinking about starting saving for next yr and just wondered how much people actually spend? I know I spend more than I think cause I buy bits over the yr, but in total, for everyone for everything inc food, drink and night out we have prob spent 600! Which is mental, and will be coming down next year!

Christmas is really for children and I no longer spend silly money on family and friends and they don't on us, whats the point? Spent about £200 on dd, nothing on dh, £40 on nephew and niece. Extra £75 on food. Nothing on credit card, all paid for in cash, therefore no nasty surprises in January.

nota clue! 400 all in ?

I should say as well that we normally spend a fair bit on food anyway, even outside of Christmas .

£350 in total. £200 on food £150 on gifts and wrapping and card etc. Oh and another £70 for an extra tank of fuel than we'd normally use, so £420. I handmade bath bombs for all my girlfriends and only bought £50 of gifts for my DH-within the family we didn't bother at all apart from for the kids. I haven't had many presents myself and do feel like it was a bit of shit christmas in terms of that-but I don't feel hard done by-i'm a grown up now time to suck it up. :)

There was no NYE eve out for us this year ad we had one bottle of wine and 1 4 pack of beer. I'm pregnant and DH was on antibiotics throughout.

Doesn't this thread re-enforce that "xmas" has gone mad? People getting in to debt because of one day a year (which they have actually forgotten the meaning of altogether).

Yep.

I never understand why people assume that overexpenditure at Christmas means that people have "lost the true meaning of Christmas". Generally, it tends to stem from wanting to spend time and give gifts to loved ones. While it can be made more complicated by family dynamics and cultural factors, it really isn't any different to spending money on an annual Summer break except, if anything, most people spend very little of it on themselves. It doesn't really tally that they don't appreciate, say, the birth of Christ (if they are Christian) or that they are grasping, materialistic fools interested in acquiring ever-increasing amounts of stuff just because they spend money on gifts for the people in their lives!

No- but when it comes down to children writing Christmas lists, it does become about something else.

My dcs get no presents outside of Christmas and birthdays, so I expect to get them a lot at that time of year. Plus we have a small family who buy for them.

We love Christmas.

I'm not going to name or embarrass anyone but if you read the whole post there are people who have overspent. There are also many who have overspent and are far too embarrassed to admit it here.

"There are also many who have overspent and are far too embarrassed to admit it here" . How do you know?

We overspent, I know we did. We didn't get into any debt for it though, and given that the largest chunk of expenditure was just physically getting to be with our families for Christmas, I don't particularly see how it Means Something Grand about the True Meaning of Christmas.

Initially, the flights from the UK to Ireland were going to be 780 for three of us! We managed to get it down to 300 for ds and I and another 120 for dh but it is clearly stupid money to spend in some ways, given that it is half this at other times of year. However, it means we are idiots who don't know the meaning of money? with the people we love at a time we can all be together. As I said, I think the gift spending limit was set too high by our family, but buying (in total) four gifts from our family for a total of 14 adults and spending 100 on gifts for 6 cousins that ds sees twice a year if we're lucky (which accounts for the vast majority of money spent) is not exactly a massive extravagance.

Besides, it's opportunity cost, isn't it? We had to eat cheap meats and stay in for November and most of December, and will feel the brunt until the end of February easily.. but there is no great moral benefit to choosing to spend money differently. There will be no wolves at the door because we chose to spend money on our families.

About £500 I think ...

£100 on gifts from Tesco's or Smith's - catching the Boxing day sales for family gifts before visiting DGPs and all at theirs
£100 in Notcutts mainly stocking related, but a few other family gifts
£100 from home on line, book catalogue, down-loading new games for gadgets.
£50 pre-Christmas shopping trip with the DCs
£50 Christmas outing with the DCs to visit Santa at nearby farm (possibly slightly less, but we did have lunch there too)
£50 petrol for visiting DGPs and family
£50 for contributions of drinks and nibbles to friends parties and Open House.

DH spent about £100 too, mainly on a great games table for DCs from charity shop. And DGPs gave us £150 with which I bought a table-tennis table from Amazon. So we now have a fully functioning games emporium ! ...

... but are rather broke as we head into the New Year

Completely agree with 9while5. We are religious, we had a lovely time with family and friends and shared that time and shared our home and our food, etc. I don't see how that is materialistic at all. Our DC had about £250 spent on them by us - both not each (plus more from doting grandparents) and they are 13 and 17 and therefore acquiring more expensive tastes and equipment. They were pleased with what they had.

Actually, next year I think I will be much more generous because what we spent was a miniscule percentage of our budget and I'm going to take a leaf out some of your books and let rip a bit more next year. We will go to a show, we will have a dinner out, we will have better presents all round. I have been far too conscious for far too long of avoiding materialism at this time of the year.

Thank you Mnetters you have helped me get celebrating into a better perspective.

Both DH and I are atheists so Christmas to us isn't about religion but it is very much about family, spending time together and reflecting on the year before. I love Christmas and all the sentiment that goes along with it.

I don't feel that we overspent although I know in comparison to some we spent a lot but it's all relative isn't it - we would never get in debt for Christmas or spend more than we can easily afford.

I have done Christmas on shoestring in the past when we didn't have much money and still had a fab time, we don't have to scrimp and save any more and feel very fortunate and thankful for that.

I should point out that our DD never asks for anything and did not expect anything big for Christmas at all and was so very grateful on Christmas morning for all of her presents.

We are not a religious family. We do not buy loads for the children as others buy them so much.

But we did do so much stuff; travelled to Berlin, shows, many lovely dinners, pantomine, Christmas markets. As much as we could squeeze into the week whilst still feeling totally luxurious.

But it's my family's thing that we do because we only see each other once a year.

Have no idea how much it cost.

I have not got into debt, our money is mainly spent entertains people we love. My dd has never had a Christmas list and we don't spend a lot on gifts. To be honest gifts are a tiny part of our Christmas, to the extent that do and I don't bother for one another.

I adore being a homemaker and host and this is one of the few times I get to that the way I would wish as I have to work . So we push the boat out.

Not much

I buy over the year - books in sale, small lego models when on sale.

I also buy decent things when poundshop have them in - this years bargain mini wooden tea sets and zhu zhu hamster clothing!

This year spent:

£30 mum/dad
£25 (sis/herdp/her DS)
£25 Dbro/ his GF)
£30 closest friend
£15 her DC's
£15 other DC's
£80 my DS

Just realised that £210 But as I say most of that was throughout the year so didn't seem as much.

Food - normal really as ate out xmas day/boxing day at mums.
trips - cinema/ themepark (have season tickets) so no more than normal

I had biscuits/chocs/wine from pupils so didn't have to spend extra on these either as plenty to go around.

£200 on dd1
£150 0n dd2
for xmas
£150 for dd2s bday in jan

rest of family
£150

was away for xmas

"I paid for a skiing holiday for 6 to France over Christmas, but not sure if that counts. It's all relative. The important issue is whether someone is living within their means.

Christmas is about giving and religion. People who make it about acquiring material possessions need to spend longer on their knees and sort their values out."

Xenia nailed it.