I haven’t done much Christmas shopping yet. In our early years of marriage Adam and I may have gone slightly overboard giving each other gifts but in recent years we have adopted a less extreme approach to the holidays. I guess there are two main reasons for this. One is economical. According to a recent Gallup poll, Americans will spend about $900 on gifts this year. Adam and I refuse to go into debt over Christmas gifts. I could list numerous reasons why this would be foolish including the argument that God expects us to be good stewards of our finances. The rule here is “don’t spend what you don’t have.”
We currently have a three gift per child rule. I’ve heard that some people give three gifts based on the baby Jesus receiving three gifts. We don’t use that reasoning. We simply picked a number that we thought would be manageable. The three gifts do not include gifts our children may receive from grandparents or relatives. Our children receive plenty of gifts. The kids seem to embrace the rule. Paul regularly reminds of us the three gifts that he wants (two Power Ranger toys and the board game, Trouble). Letting the kids know ahead of time helps them develop realistic expectations for Christmas morning. It also helps Adam and I to know what the kids really want.
The second main reason for not going overboard with Christmas is to focus more on Christ. In the past I’ve been sucked into the “I deserve this because it is Christmastime” marketing schemes. I am especially concerned for my children…have you ever noticed how channels like Nick Jr. get are bombarded with toy commercials between Thanksgiving and Christmas (the same goes for Easter). I hate the whiny “I want…” spouting out of my kid’s mouths. I do what I can to control the amount of direct marketing to my children. This includes limiting the amount of television and what channels they are allowed to watch. This also includes less trips to the stores between Thanksgiving and Christmas.
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
I love the three gift rule – that definitely sets realistic expectations…I will have to start enacting that with our little one. She’s not yet one, so we haven’t had to cross that road just yet, but it’s a great way to start out!
Amen, sister.
Giving 3 gifts to each child came from a need for simplicity – helping them to really appreciate what they have and what they recieve, and as our kids get older I want them to understand the joy of giving too.
Good reminder for me! I definitely went overboard this year. We have been living in a tiny 2 bedroom home for the past 6 months, so half of the kids toys are in storage. I think I forgot about how much they actually have (and I forgot about relatives buying toys for them!). We actually got to Christmas Eve and my husband wouldn’t let me give all of the gifts that I had purchased to them!
So, birthdays are already covered.
I think part of the problem for me is that I love getting gifts, therefore, I love giving gifts! But, the important thing to remember is that all that we do is teaching our kids something and we need to consider the ramifications of all that we do.
So, thanks for the good idea. Remind me next Fall, okay?!!!