Sooo who's got sucked in

[darksideofthemoon]

and spending megga bucks on their kids?

You know, it's a real off put thing isn't it or am I wrong?

I was born before WWII and so Christmas was a bit on the lean side, although my mother made beautiful presents for me.  One year I found Father Christmas had left me a pink Tutu with a wand that had a sparkly star and a crown with a sparkly star.... I was about 5.

Another year when I was older I received a watch.  'Santa' (my mother) had to laybuy it so it would be paid off for Christmas.. I was about twelve and even today it happily keeps time

Now Christmas for me is waiting for my family to finally sell their property in Queensland and move down here to Tasmania.  We have waited three years, and since I have not seen my son more than three times in the last 18 years you can imagine how much I want to share a Christmas with him and his family....

So have you been sucked in to believing you have to buy up big for the kids or do you keep within your means?

[daydream**believer]

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@izabsmiling wrote:

I'm not even going to say what we do and don't do,how much or how little we spend

and have what  Christmas means to my family judged,weighed up and possibly cheapened by other people who can do Christmas (or not) as pleases them.

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great post

[purple_haize]

I posted ealier on this thread, saying between my grandies parents, hubby and me, we got a trampoline, it cost a bit, but I dont believe we were sucked in with buying it.

It was recommended by my granddaughter's specialist at the hospital that having one would help develop her leg muscles & help her hip as she was born with hip dyslpasia and at nearly 4yrs. of age, her hip is still not where it should be, but using the trampoline will defnitely help her and save her from having another operation..........so to me that is not being sucked in.

[ashjoma]

Yes

that is Monika's Doggie Rescue

I make a monthly donation as well   and have given her bags of Basmati rice in the past.

I have met Monika on a few occassions and she is lovely 

So much more needsto be done to stop the senseless loss of life in pounds

[kengillard]

my goodness Monika must be getting on.....when I lived in Sydney I picked up chicken nex from where I lived (special price) and took them to her in Turramurra....or wherever.  I fostered at least 40 dogs over the years and ended up with Oscar (who's 15 now? who can tell..don't know how old he was when we adopted him)  darling old maltese cross. When I went to choose a dog, he chose me....put his paws up on my leg, looked up at me and "said"...please take me home?  how could I resist! he's been a delight for 12 or more years.   Sad to think he's on the downward slope...as we all are.

[bluecat*dancing]

No, not sucked in. I love choosing the presents and giving them.

[green.fields]

I don't think anyone needs to justify what they do or don't do, each to their own.

[***super_nova***]

Of-course, some of the most precious things do not need to cost a lot.  One of the treasured items I still have some 35 years after it was made for me is a little cement duck.  My daughter used bit of concrete we had left over, pulled out the aggregate and made a duck for me.  I kept the little duck even as we moved around the world, and it is still here somewhere. 

But buying cheap (or expensive) items at Xmas just because that is what is expected is being sucked in, however you try to justify it.  If I kept every item given to me over the years when we still gave each other presents, I would need house twice the size I have now.  Why do you think that op-shops & eBay are full of unwanted presents? 

[darksideofthemoon]

What a great way to spend Christmas with your family when you can bring home an orange or some other food treasure from the Big House.

[imastawka]

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@darksideofthemoon wrote:

What a great way to spend Christmas with your family when you can bring home an orange or some other food treasure from the Big House.

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[newstart2380]

My grandson wants an xbox one but we have bought him tha latest ipod sooooooo, for his birthday he will get an xbox when they are not so new and you can maybe get a bundle. very clever marketing because any old games cannot be played on the new xbox and visa versa.