My little girl turns 9 very soon. To e perfectly honest, we don't have her party even planned yet. We are trying to juggle family from all over the state, accommodate everyone, and do it all in an "in the process of being remodeled" house with no oven. Joy! I am actually very anxious about how this is going to turn out.
Anyway, I do have her gifts nailed down. We decided this year to not go all out for birthdays, thinking we'd be able to do a little more than normal for Christmas. So, I did some creative thinking and shopping. I picked up a great child's charm bracelet at a local antique store. Once I take some silver polish to it I think she'll love it. Then, I used my last Paperback Swap credit to order a book she's wanted for months. I love it when you can get a child that "one thing" they've been hoping for! Lastly, I picked up a bottle of girly tween body wash and matching body spray at Family Dollar on clearance. She loves that kind of stuff! So, Ashley's gifts are bought and we spent about $5.
Is that awful of me? I actually was told by a friend today that this was too little and I'm just cheap. I do not agree! I think buying her things we can't afford, that she doesn't need is just wrong. The child does not need another toy. Spending money on toys for her just seems so wasteful. Sure we didn't buy her 15 different gifts, but will she really care after it's all said and done? Between us and all her grandparents, she will get a lot and be tickled pink. But, I have been thinking ever since that phone call, am I too cheap?
So, my question to you is, how do you handle birthdays and Christmas too? Do you have a set amount of money you spend on your kids for these occasions? Do you do a set number of gifts? I am very curious as to how other moms handle these questions.
8 comments:
My sister gave Mel a birthday party once, but that was it. That was his only party. I've never done it. I buy him gifts or take him someplace. I'm not really a party person.
In all honesty, she's going to love it, and it doesn't matter to her what it costs. Sometimes just having a friend sleep over is the best kind of party. Just think of all the times a kid has gotten an expensive toy, and sat and played in the box.
It's not about how big the gift is. We really like planning parties... so we tend to go all out on them, so far. Our daughter just turned 2. We get noses turned up at us for that, so I think people just like to give their mind no matter how big or how small you go for a birthday. That being said, we didn't really buy our daughter a gift. We just planned a really big party. We have so many family members and friends that she received more gifts than she could handle and everyone had fun. That's just us though, it's an excuse every year to throw a party and have everyone over :) Do what feels right to you!!
PS, I like your blog style, so cute.
Oh yeah, you could totally start photographing the fall with me!! I'm only a few days into it... and I probably won't go exactly 30 straight days in a row. Just make sure I get in 30 days during the fall season. It has been so much fun so far!!
Those sound like fabulous gifts! The amount you spend absolutely should not matter. I certainly don't want my kids to grow up materialistic and thinking that how much I spend on them = how much I love them. Good for you!
Your b-day plan sounds GREAT and not cheap at all. She will love the girly things! My kids love making their own cake when their b-day's come around.....much more than picking out a store bought cake. She'll remember the time you spend with her much more than what you bought her. :) :)
Nessa, Don't let others influence you in what you know is right. Your aware of your budget. And that your daughter is not looking at what you spend but how you spend time with her. You are the all in all in her eyes. Your on the right track and she will appreciate all you do. Your well aware of this if you just think of the value of your coupon book to the kids.
I always go all out on the party... let the kids pick the theme...but skip the big gifts... it ends up being junk in the end... too many toys... that they never play with, We try to buy our kids things they need. i don't think it is about the gifts as it is about the time... we always have a birthday breakfast to get the day started right,,, & special dinner,,,, then the party...
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