Your Family Christmas Gifts

Wren

Wren

Well-known Member
Location
Europe
One of my friends is struggling financially and dreads Christmas, as the years have passed her family of four children has increased with spouses, partners, grand children and now, great grandchildren, each one adding another name to the Christmas shopping list

Where do you stop ? In her position, I would just buy for the children but she dosn’t want to seem like a Scrooge

How do you and your family deal with Christmas gifts ?
 

I've been blessed, and frankly have wanted for little. As such, Christmas presents didn't really make any sense. My partner and I decided many years ago that giving gifts at Christmas was rather forced, and silly. Instead, if I wanted to give a gift, I'd simply do it. The insane pressure on families in a concentrated time frame to hand over gifts isn't good.
 

We do gifts for our adult kids and spouse. We also do our Grandkids until they leave home and live on their own (while in college we continue gift giving to them). They we stop gifting them... That is it...! We do not gift Great Grand kids or any one else. Both of us have lost our parents, we gifted them until they past away.
 
We "modified" our Christmas gift process, about 10 years ago. Instead of buying gifts for everyone, we make a note of something we would like, for about $25, then put the notes in a hat, and everyone draws One note, when we get together on Thanksgiving. That way, the adults only buy/receive one small gift. We do buy some items for the great grandkids, but that's about it.
 
The problem with mandatory Xmas gifts is you spend way too much on something they really don't want, or they get things like the old Ronco tie sorter. I think there is a time when adults put away the notion of Christmas as only Santa's presents, and learn to enjoy each other's company.
 
Decades ago the adults started drawing names. Each adult received and gave one gift. We continued to buy for the grandchildren.

Now the grandchildren are adults. They and their parents like to buy for each other, but I can't afford to purchase gifts for all of them. I give a small gift to each of the great-grandchildren that are in my life and wish everyone else a very merry Christmas.
 
My brother& sister and I decided couple yrs ago to no longer buy Xmas gifts, instead give to a favorite charity in their name
As for my close friends Marcia&hubby Dave,son Alexei{they are my Buffalo family} I give Marcia&Dave a Yankee magazine subscription every yr, & gift card to local business. I give Alexei a Kohl's gift card
 
We are all adults, so it's just a stocking stuffer. We have a big dinner and get together which is sufficient for us and watch the Yule Log on TV.
 

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