Thinking about not exchanging gifts this year..

[Grumpy's Gal]

IT WAS A SUCCESS. Everyone agreed that it was time to end it. Some even sighed in relief. We will no longer be exchanging on Christmas Eve. No more stress and money spent on useless gifts! We no wish we should have suggested it years ago lol.

That’s great! Maybe you will even find a new tradition to have every year.

 

[Disney_Alli]

My mother-in-law says she'd love to end ours too but as it's my father-in-law's family... I think we're stuck.

 

[AliceAnn]

MIL/FIL have 9 children & over 40 grand/great grandchildren. Apparently MIL loves buying gifts all year long for every one of them, so no one will approach her about ending this (these gifts mostly end up in donation boxes, BIL says he doesn’t open his so he can sell “new in box” on eBay). My kids always stress over what to get Grandma/pa. One year 12 yr old DS gave them motion detector lights to attach along their dark basement stairs, he saw them for sale at the next Church sale (MIL runs it) at a fraction of the price he paid. He was crushed. When DH’s Grandma died, his entire family went through her house. What they found in the attic was all the gifts they had given her over the years. All unopened “new in box”.

 

[luvsJack]

When my grandmother was still alive she would not stop buying for everyone either.

Some of her gifts were interesting but we all knew to expect it. Some years she would put everyone in age groups and give everyone in an age group the same thing. But she kept forgetting some of the ages so a teen may get a doll or a 9 year old a make up kit. Some years it was obvious she started buying early and bought some nice things and then ran out of steam and just made sure everyone had something to unwrap.

Finally the year came when she forgot one of the kids. Luckily, someone had an extra wrapped toy in their car and fixed the problem. From then on, we let grandma do grandma but everyone brought their child a gift. That way no one was unhappy and honestly I don’t know if grandma ever even realized. We were such a large group and so much activity that she didn’t notice.

 

[pattyw]

We don't exchange gifts anymore with my extended family. I just buy for DH and my sons. My elderly mom doesn't want gifts, either. We take her out to a special dinner- she enjoys that! It's just fun to get together at Christmas without the stress of gift giving!

 

[lifesavacation]

MIL/FIL have 9 children & over 40 grand/great grandchildren. Apparently MIL loves buying gifts all year long for every one of them, so no one will approach her about ending this (these gifts mostly end up in donation boxes, BIL says he doesn’t open his so he can sell “new in box” on eBay). My kids always stress over what to get Grandma/pa. One year 12 yr old DS gave them motion detector lights to attach along their dark basement stairs, he saw them for sale at the next Church sale (MIL runs it) at a fraction of the price he paid. He was crushed. When DH’s Grandma died, his entire family went through her house. What they found in the attic was all the gifts they had given her over the years. All unopened “new in box”.

My MIL once regifted one of her Christmas gifts back to the original gifter, my SIL, the following year. And she returned to us a digital frame with pictures of her grandkids because she didn’t want it. I’ve stopped buying her gifts. It’s a waste of effort & money.

 

[china mom]

My MIL calls me every year to ask me about gift ideas...more like to tell me her ideas for my kids. I have given up trying to give her actual input as I have discovered that she has often already bought the gift or will buy it no matter what I say.

This year, she asked me if a foosball table would be a good idea for my kids. I told he that we don't have room for one. "you can put it on the screened porch". Does she mean the fully furnished porch with no more room? After a few other comments like that, and a few better suggestions from me, I gave up. The very next day, she called DH and asked him to come over and pick up the large present that is taking up FIL's trunk. Who wants to bet its a foosball table?

I wish she would just stop. My kids don't need a gift to feel loved.