How much is too much to spend on christmas?

I have every sympathy for parents today,the peer pressure is horrendous these days,and the parents are expected to provide very expensive gifts.If we took it all back in time to where the children all got just one larger present and then a stocking it would be much easier for parents to cope with it all.I have heard many people saying that they are already starting to become stressed over the thought of having to provide for christmas.I would think that each family should have a limit that is spent on each child an then stick to that limit,especially if there are three or four children in the family.But I have noticed that many families do not stop there,they seem to give gifts to each and every family member,so the burden is even greater then.We have a no adult presents policy in our family,a token gift yes,maybe a bar of chocolate or a little something smelly,talcum or soap,but it must stop there,it is not done for any other reason than to save anyone struggling,and no one has to feel pressured into providing something that they cannot afford to provide ,and often the credit cards come out and take a battering,which is senseless,the money spent with the interest added takes years to repay.After christmas there are many families that end up in debt and choose to consolidate,so their debt is going to remain there for many years,and for what,a lot of toys and gifts that are played with for such a short time,and then shelved.We recently bought our grandson a new bicycle,it was a suprose ,we wanted to buy him sometihng we felt that he may enjoy,well suprise suprise,as yet he has only been on it once or twice,so again a present that has been put away in the garage..hopefully he may come to use it in time

Between my boyfriend and I, we have 4 children(14,13,6,5). Christmas is my favorite time of year but very stressful in deed because of the cost. The last couple of years I have tried to get away from the commercialism and focus more on the traditions. That's not saying that my kids don't receive gifts. They do and I always try to get at least a couple of the items on their list. Normally, I set a budget and start early so that I'm not feeling the pinch come December. I generally spend $125-$150 per child. For family members we often give framed photos of the children,a mug full of homemade candies, hand crafted pillows, candles and magnets(all can be made for little cost) as gifts. It's less expensive and more meaningful. Plus, it gives the kids a way to get involved which is always a good thing lol.

Right now, I only have one child. My daughter is 4 ½ years old. So, I only have one child to buy for, but so I do spend more money. If I had two children, I would definitely have to cut back on how much I spend. Also, since my daughter is four, she doesn’t ask for the expensive stuff. Instead, I buy a lot of stuff, but stuff that is affordably priced and on sale. When she gets older, she may get one large expensive toy, but a lot less.

If you're spending more than you can afford - then you're spending too much! If you're finding yourself using credit cards to pay for Christmas and can't pay the full bill when it comes in January - you're spending too much. On the relatives, maybe something homemade or a just an inexpensive item. I'm sure they'll understand? Seriously, Christmas should not be about how much you much you spend and how expensive the gifts are. We only spend what we can buy for cash. I set a budget on how much to spend per person and that is it. Period. We don't go over. Hope this helps.....

I have 4 children. I agree that it is crazy the amount of money that is spent at Christmas. I wouldn't buy a Wii for one child. If I did buy it, it would be for all of them together....but I am not buying one! Every year I say that I will be spending $100 per child, but then when it comes down to it, $100 doesn't buy much. Especially when you have teenagers. Just for an outfit you will be spending close to $100. With all the presents I buy for Christmas, I usually end up spending about $1200 total. Wow! that is alot of money.

we dont have limit as to how much we'll spend as gift for our kids. my husband and i plan to buy our 5 year old daughter an ATV. it's a 4-wheel drive motor thing. we've been looking around lately. we saw one at Bass Pro but we're still looking since we still have a lot of time

Im going to do christmas shopping for my son, husband and in-laws. I going to get two presents for my son as it will be his birthday too on december, two presents for my husband as i never give any presents to him on our anniversary,one present for my bro-inlaw and one each for mum and dad. I decided to send money to my family and relatives in Philippines coz it's expnsive to send them a parcel. And i got only small budget for it. Happy posting.

I've decided to buy only for my two kids this year, my husband and a few other kids. I lost my job three weeks ago so I'm not going over board this year. My son never asks for much so I know it's not going to be expensive!

My kids are still little so I guess I am lucky, they don't ask for the expensive stuff yet. I will probably spend a couple hundred a piece and luckily my family is small so I do not have too many people to shop for. My kids take priority.