Christmas Gifts

[rdjrneace]

I have 8 grandchildren, 2 grown children, 2 in-law children, hubby, doggie and a partridge in a pear tree that I buy Christmas gifts for. Normally by now I have bought at least 1/2 of the gifts and this year I have NOTHING.

I am so stumped on the kids and you know the funny thing is I asked 3 of the kids (13, 10 & 8 ages) what they wanted and they actually could not come up with anything (other than a dog which I can't get without parents approval).

Have you started shopping? Done? or not buying?

[jacinda]

If the kids can't think of anything, then they obviously don't need anything. We were in the same boat one year when it came to extended family. All of our kids had everything they needed. In the end we all agreed to do a service for someone, or donate to a charity of our choice in lieu of a gift. It could cost as much or as little as each family chose. Come Christmas Day, we'd then announce to the rest of the extended families what we chose and why, and what we did.

E.g. My family decided to donate a box of toys to Starship Children's Hospital, and commit to making regular monthly monetary donations afterwards. My sister's family decided to buy a beehive and a goat in Africa to support one of the charities over there and help sustain a couple of African families. Another sister donated DVDs and toys to her local hospital which her kids had been in and out of a lot. Each family decided on their own what they wanted to do, involved the kids, and taught them about serving others in need. It was a great experience, and we have since carried it on year after year.

We've also not bought for adults for years. It used to be grandkids, nephews and nieces only, but now we just buy for our own families. Seems wasteful otherwise. I find it hard enough to buy stuff for my own kids. Both girls have birthdays late in the year, so we've already gone through most of their wish lists.

[SeattleSheri]

ITA, buying gifts almost seems like a fruitless effort. I mostly try to give people keepsakes or something I know they can use, but my kids are so horrible to shop for. I never buy many gifts before December. I feel like it's such a commercialized holiday. Everyone feels obligated to buy/give something.

[LeeAndra]

I have A LOT of people to buy for at Christmastime. All of the adults on my side get at least one gift for every other adult/couple (a non-negotiable I have tried so hard to negotiate away!). Since my parents & my husband and me are the only 2 couples, this is a minimum of 5 gifts, and that doesn't count my nephew or my own two kids. Gift cards are okay but 'real' gifts are preferred.

I refuse to be stressed out over a process I find silly so... I'm not. Most of those adults can buy whatever they want whenever they want (and do), and a couple of them are incredibly picky (and vocal about it) so I pick a day & a store in December and buy the first thing I see that I think they might like. This rarely takes more than an hour (not including standing in line - ha!) & gets most of my list taken care of with minimal fuss.

There are only 6 adults/3 couples on my ILs' side, and gifts are not required for adults in the same way that they are on my side. If anything, it's usually a restaurant gift card or cash.

My son has been saying for the last month what he wants from Santa this year so I will get him that for sure. He's only 4 but he has a great memory and a good awareness of what he likes & doesn't so he won't be too hard to shop for. My son can tell you what he received for his birthday and Christmas for the last 2 years.

My daughter is all over the place (generally and about Christmas) so she won't decide what she wants to ask for from Santa until she's standing in line to get her picture taken with him. Even then it may or may not be something she actually wants. Sometimes it's just something she remembers in the moment. She doesn't usually ask for specific things so I buy her whatever strikes my fancy, and she's happy with just about anything (until she forgets about it 2 days later). I try not to buy her anything too expensive as she doesn't use or play with 90% of the things she receives for her birthday or Christmas and hasn't in years. Now that she's 9, I am going to head more in the direction of experiences vs. things.

DH is a bad gift giver so I have stressed that we don't need to exchange gifts but he does need to take the kids out to buy me a present (and I do the same for him). It's usually from 5 Below or another cheapie store so it's the principle of buying people we love a gift vs. receiving something that we like or can use.

[aussiegirl]

We don't buy for fully extended family (my husband's extended family draws names, but we chose not to participate). We'll get a gift for his parents and my dad, and then each other and our kids. But that is it. Money is tight, so we do what we can.

Last year, my mom was sick, and I didn't want her to stress over getting my girls something, so she chose an amount she was comfortable with, and sent that in the mail to us. Each of the girls got their amount and then were able to shop for something they wanted or needed. We did the shopping after Christmas, so that if they didn't get something they REALLY wanted, they could use their money from their grandparents to get it.

In the past, we have chose a family we knew was struggling, and given them a basket of food. I know families who will buy/get a membership to a museum, the zoo, etc for Christmas too.

It is hard as kids are at certain ages too. I know my teenagers (all girls) are easier to shop for than my 12 year old. She's in that somewhat inbetween age and it's hard. She doesn't play with toys much, but she still enjoys them and there are a few she wants for Christmas.

Another idea, maybe a couple board games for the family (ies). Maybe a DVD, some popcorn or tickets to a movie for a family "game" night.

I'm sure you'll come up with a great idea! Good luck!

[Kiana]

Have not started. ROFL.
Don't want to think about it.
Christmas will not be here soon.....

(denial 101)

[Leablahblah]

ha yes... gift giving... for my oldest (4) I can always think of something she needs. For the youngest (2) I can never think of anything because she has everything from her sister.

Hubby is so hard to shop for. He always gets himself whatever he needs right away... I bought the game of Clue for him as something we can do together but it's kind of a meh gift. I'll have to think of something more personable.

[JennNtheBoys]

I figured it out the other day, I have 28 to buy for... 14 of them being kids (which all come first if I end up having to make cuts).... my 3 boys (11, 13, &16) are all the same way.... I asked them to give me their top 3 items on their wishlist (only one item could be a video game), and only one kid could name a game..... everything else has been 'I dunno"..... For the most part I know what they would like, I just need to get in my own head and remind myself they don't have to have everything. As for everyone else, I have my list and budget made, I am just waiting on some MAJOR sales so I can really cut the Budget down as much as possible.

I was all excited for the season.... I even wanted to dig out the decorations the other day (not to put up, but to prepare them to be ready to put up closer to time), but after sitting down with the budget the other day, I am now in Bah Humbug Mode.

[craftytam]

I am not an early Christmas shopper... I have always put it off until at least early December, because my kids' wish list would change daily. My kids are all older now, and what they want for Christmas starts getting more expensive (computer parts, video games, etc). We have 2 grandbabies now, but I don't know if we'll be with them for Christmas, so it may be Amazon to the rescue.

One year I was laid up in bed because of blood clots, and couldn't go out to shop, so all of my shopping was done with Amazon.

I have a small extended family and we don't really exchange gifts, but last year I bought them all a small tree ornament.

My hubby's extended family is huge and has a big get-together on Christmas Eve. One year we bought movie gift certificates for everyone (a time when we could afford it). That was a big hit!

I know someone who buys a book for each family member. I've always thought that was a great idea.

[LJSDesigns]

I haven't started. Frankly, since we are all adults in our family who can buy what we want when we want, I just can't get into Christmas shopping for them. I do have a list that I have been jotting down all year though, so I at least have some ideas.

We adopt a family every year at Christmas, usually a single mom with kids, through the Salvation Army and I do enjoy shopping for them. It makes me happy to give to others, especially a family that actually needs things and will likely appreciate them. We usually get the information around Thanksgiving, so I hit the stores on Black Friday. The more I can save, the more of the list I can complete. LOL

[3BluEyedBabi]

My husband put a couple of things for our boys {11 & 8} on layaway...but that's it so far. We usually buy a little something for our parents and then our 3 kids and each other. Money is always tight for us this time year, too (thanks to high oil prices). Something new we started doing for our kids a few years ago was going to see a movie together as a family....usually a Disney movie that comes out around Christmas time. The kids love it! We don't usually go to the movies too much with all 5 of us so it's a special treat. Maybe movie tickets would be something you could give your grands, Debbie. Another little thing we do every year is buy the kids a new ornament..usually a Disney one. This year, though, they asked if they could pick out their own ornament, so maybe that would be another idea if you are stumped for a little gift. I always say I'm not gonna stress over the holidays...but it's inevitable with a tight budget that it will happen anyway....which is another reason I decorate early...to take my time and not stress about it.

[lovely1m]

I always want to do experience gifts, but most of my nieces and nephews live in tiny towns with nothing to do. I think that would be great for them

[kelley]

I'm always buying things last minute. I don't have many gifts to buy outside of my own 5 children, but that's quite a task in and of itself. The kids are good at making me a little list of what they'd like. The only other people I buy for are my sister and my 5 nieces and nephews. Those are very small gifts though - only 5 or 10 dollars each. Every year I say I'm going to start early, but it's pretty impossible because I have kids with birthdays in October, November, December, and January!