:laugh2: bloody food blender for a 10 year old ???? Omg don't be ridiculous :facepalm: .

When I say practical I mean something they can use over and over again like a laptop that's what I meant by practical !!:laugh3: . Omg I can't believe you thought I meant food appliances .

Plus I never said theres anything wrong with getting a PS4 but that's an expensive treat and that should be the main gift , rather than going over board with other expensive stuff . There's nice stocking fillers that kids will enjoy to add to the PS4 .

A laptop and a PS4 are pretty much the same price tbh. Infact for a half decent laptop the laptop will likely be more expensive.

I tend to get a couple of big presents and then some littler things. Just so they have a bit to open tbh otherwise its all done in a few seconds :laugh: But even without electronics, christmas is pretty expensive when you have young kids. Evey year I say I will buy presents earlier or start saving, every year I fail and start getting stressed by about now

"When I say practical I mean something they can use over and over again like a laptop"

what unlike a PS4 that will be cheaper and they will.. play with over and over again?

I dont think you have thought this through biff?

It's a bit difficult to buy presents earlier with young kids as they change their minds and the "must have" present doesn't make itself known until about October time

Biff??? Ehh :conf: .

I don't have anything against getting a PS4 as they can keep playing games on it, but what I find ridiculous is when kids not only have a PS4 but also a Wii , Xbox , ps3 and whatever other games console is out :facepalm: .

If they have a laptop that works and is brand new why wouldn't they be able to use it over and over?? I know they don't always last forever but if you look after it you should get a good few years out of it :nono: .

I just think parents are encouraging kids to be spoilt if they buy them too many expensive gadgets all at once :shrug: .

Sometimes cute little gifts are better with 2 big presents.

If I know I can't afford Christmas presents, then I won't buy any or I'll just buy smaller presents.

I'm sure my family would understand and I would too if somebody else I knew was in that position. If they simply don't care and want you to go into debt just so they have something flashy to open for themselves, they're not worth a dime as far as I'm concerned.

Obviously it's different when you're a parent and you want to please the kids, but then that should be an all year-round thing. I think children would understand too when they're a bit older.

**** no.

Exactly :clap1:

That's a really nice idea :love: Once for my mom I got a photo frame and put in pictures of her with me, my dad, her parents and some of her friends/family and I think it was legit one of her favourite gifts ever.

Nah, dealt with debt at home first hand and it isn’t pretty

depends on the situation really

if it's for family and friends then no but for kids then yes

So basically buying yourself a debt for Christmas? A very... festive way of doing wrong.
People will survive without ANOTHER gift.

I've never bought my kids much for Xmas because my parents and in-laws compete in the present buying. When they were little, we did car boot sales and charity shops and they were just as delighted... played with the toy for five minutes and never really looked at it again.

I'm a firm believer that Christmas is not all about presents. Don't get me wrong, presents are nice but we don't need twenty or thirty things or things that cost hundreds of pounds to make our children happy. My eldest son told me recently that his childhood Christmases were really special, so we must have been doing something right.

My parents have bought each of our children a half gold sovereign every birthday which wasn't appreciated by them when they were little but once they were old enough to understand its accumulating worth, they were very happy. If they wanted a PlayStation or a xbox, they came to us and discussed selling a coin or two. They had to take some responsibility for owning expensive things.

As Livia says, doing a secret santa is fun and meaningful. We do this with the adults in our family. We all know who we are buying for and we all have a set amount. I think its the thought that counts.