Guys!!! Hope you all had a super merry Christmas! We are in the veg-out stage where you feel the super-hype slow down and everyone sort of goes into hibernation mode. We spread out the christmas presents this year because we knew the kids would appreciate the little mountain top experiences a little more and play with the smaller presents (like the ones from their brothers) a little longer if we spread out the ‘openings’. That meant that on Christmas eve’s eve, we did a gift exchange with cousins and Nana & Pappap. On Christmas eve, the boys exchanged their gifts. On Christmas morning, they opened Santa’s presents and Gramps & Grammy gifts. And on Christmas evening, we gave the boys their big presents from Mommy & Daddy. Thankfully we didn’t have any real breakdowns (there was one incident with taking turns that was a little exhausting though!) and the boys still got everything on their list.
I don’t know about anyone else out there, but I know I always feel like Christmas can be a balancing act…even as a parent, the feeling of “Did I do enough?” or “Did I give them too much?” or “Was that a waste?” can pop up. I try to figure out how we can get them excited without making them adopt the attitude of entitlement. How to balance the natural inclination of children and their desire for receiving with the idea that giving is just as fun and generous serving is what Christmas is all about.
So in the spirit of “parents unite!”, I thought it would be super helpful to share what exactly we bought the kids this year as Christmas presents and their prices. We know that every family is different and every family’s budget is different but this can kind of give you a general idea of what we do. Basically, we LOVE spoiling our kids on this special holiday…and we do believe that all kids deserve to be spoiled because they are kids. This might not be helpful right now…it might be one of those things that you need to bookmark for next Christmas or for birthday gift ideas. Just keep that in mind. Before we get to the breakdown of exactly how much we spent on the kiddos and what they got from us, here are some answers to basic questions.
So how do we decide? Well, along with getting them stuff on their Santa’s wish list (We tell them that they should narrow it down to a top three on their wish list!), we also try really hard to abide by that whole “something you want, something you need, something to wear, something to read” mantra. We figure that between 5-10 gifts to open is pretty darn exciting. Also, it gives us a chance to write that 3 of the gifts are from Santa and some are from mommy/daddy. Thankfully our kids are of the age that they are asking for things that don’t need to be top of the line or brand specific…that means we can save a lot 🙂
Do we buy a family gift? Yes. On top of individual gifts, we also try to get a family gift or gifts. In the past, we have done a bouncy house, a trampoline, etc. This year, Jeremy got to decide that our big gift was an xbox. That’s right folks. We are entering gaming territory! My reaction as a parent is “Darn it!” and my reaction as a person who actually loves video games is “Finally!” (it’s true. We hosted a Halo tournament before kids and as an adult homeowner, I painted a giant Halo symbol on our wall! ha!) so I am thinking that we will be needing lots of advice on how the boys can earn screen time 🙂 That being said – this was the #1 gift that Will wanted. BUT we decided to make it a family gift so that no single kid thinks they get to call the shots on it. #foresight
So where do we shop? Well, we like certain brands…they are a good fit for the boys and us as a family. All the boys love the same kind of toys….vehicles, superhero stuff, sports stuff, and so we do take into account that the toys will be passed around the house and everyone will play with everything. Our shopping is generally done during sales with coupon codes at stores that cost more (especially for clothing and shoes) and at stores like Five Below (anything listed below as $5 was bought there this year) or the Dollar Tree and then we do spend more for Green Toys and books. We like TJMaxx for clothing or ThredUp but we also shop the sales at our favorite sports stores and clothing retailers. Every year the boys also get costumes….I snag those during the after-Halloween sales and they generally are 90% off. Also Will always has something random that he REALLY wants. This year it is bags of rocks. Last year it was a reindeer bell from Santa’s sleigh. It’s hilarious and fun and we always try really hard to make it happen 🙂
Is there something we don’t buy? Well, it seems like every year we have a friend who gives us something we had on the list. This year, our friend Betsey gave us a TON of clothing and shoes from her son that literally looked brand spanking new. That means that Weston, LJ & Max all had Christmas a little early. It also means we didn’t buy them as many clothes this year and so we did grab one shirt for each of them that we knew they would wear. We also don’t buy the boys anything expensive for their stocking. Our goal with the stocking is generally candy, toiletries, socks/underwear, or dollar items like those grow washcloths, glow sticks or gag gifts 🙂
Lastly – I know that ANY time I talk about money, it comes with lots of judgement. Jeremy asked me why I’m even sharing this. Because sharing this info will come with criticism. Dude….I know that. Some of you are already probably ready to throw me into the fire for even buying presents. THE SHAME 🙂 Some will say I spend too much, some will say I don’t spend enough. Some will criticize the types of toys, or the number of toys or the fact that the toys are plastic vs ethically sourced recycled wood from non endangered species. So with all that judgement, why would I share this? The answer is….I like it when other people share this kind of thing with me. Plain and simple. I always get something out of it. And I hope you do too. Also – it is very clear that we don’t do gifts based on a budget for each person. We also don’t do it so that every gets the same number of presents. We just end up going with our gut on it…and we fully realize that they will probably get presents from Grandparents and each other too!
Now let’s get to that breakdown…(the items that were on the Christmas list are in bold. I tried hard to find and link similar items…obviously the prices might be different as we got them on sale/deals but the item is similar!)….
Family Gifts –
- 2 Basketballs and 2 four square balls – $20
- xbox & Fifa – $190 + $20
- Marble Run – $38
- Wiggle Car – $29
Will –
- Fishing pliers – $8
- 3 bags of rocks – $36
- Sperry Boots – $40
- Drone – $5
- Braves Sweatshirt – $18
- Harry Potter book – $19
- Boxing Gloves – $5
- Virtual Reality headset – $5
- Gorilla costume – $4
- Comic books – saved from me!
Weston –
- RC Boxing men – $20
- Dinosaur sound book – $12
- Zooming motorcycle – $5
- Drone – $5
- Boxing Gloves – $5
- Paw Patrol puzzle – $5
- Spiderman shirt – $7
- Star Wars costume – $2
LJ –
- Zooming motorcycle – $5
- Green Toys airplane – $9
- Tennessee Shirt – $4
- Fishing pole – $18
- Paw Patrol book – $5
- Nerf gun – $18
- Bath toys – $7
- Hulk costume – $2
Max –
- Green Toys Wagon – $14
- Green Toys airplane – $7
- Green Toys boat – $12
- RC Monster Truck – $5
- Bath Toys – $7
- Number book – $4
- Tennessee Shirt – $4
Ella –
- Restoration Hardware Unicorn – $20
- Bows – $22
- Clothing from Gymboree – $73
- High Chair – $141
- Building blocks – $13
- 2 pairs of shoes – $6
After all the Christmas was to be had, the boys ended up playing with Grammy, pulling out the Legos (yes they didn’t receive any for Christmas but this is a crowd favorite if an adult will sit with them!)….and I think in the end, we would say that the Xbox was a winner for everyone (namely because anything the big boys like, the little boys will sit in there and watch)….but then we would say that the other big family gifts (the marble run and the wiggle car) are both clear wins. ALL the boys love ALL of them. I would say that the fighting robots were fun until the head got lost from one. And the little boys were completely infatuated with the bath toys….they played with them for about an hour….not even in the bath tub. Lastly the costumes…always a big hit with the kids but that might be just because my kids are obsessed with dressing up. Who can blame them?!
Also my mom got LJ one of these water appearing books and it has been a HUGE hit. I already have a few more in my bag for Easter baskets!!! Bonus points…no paint, no mess!
So that is a round up of all the things we got the boys! I honestly felt great about the budgeting we did for this year. In the end, we spent $297 for the family gifts, $275 for Ella items, $53 on Max, $68 on LJ, $61 on Weston, and $140 on Will….for a grand total of $894. So I’d love to hear how you guys budget for Christmas or if you do a certain number or a certain kind of gift?! Also…was there anything Santa brought your kids that was a clear favorite? I need to know!!! Birthdays are right around the bend!