Do you already envision the non stop wrapping paper mess and endless gifts from relatives?
Of course within a week everything is neglected and stacked in piles in the dark corners of your kid's bedroom?
Yeah, it sounds pretty wasteful doesn't it. So many parents seem to be embracing the idea of a more organized Christmas when it comes to the gifts their children receive from Santa, their parents, and extended family members.
It doesn't have to be so chaotic, though.
In fact, with a few of these tips, you can ensure you child will get useful and meaningful gifts for Christmas and you won't have all the guilt and debt over it.
Limit the Number and Types of Gifts
Too often, we allow kids to dictate their own lives, which is a great thing when it comes to independence, but not so much when it comes to how much "stuff" they accrue. It's our job as adults to make sure they understand the whole idea of quality over quantity.
Give your children guidance when they make their gift list this year. Tell them to limit their list to a certain number of BIG items and small items. Don't assume every child will throw a temper tantrum though. I've heard from a lot of parents that say when they told their kids, they noticed they sat and really really thought about what they wanted to put on that list.
Think about it. If you tell a kid to write 30 things on a piece of paper, they'll easily do it because they can just think of all the items that are "cool". But if you ask them to pick their absolute favorites, they're going to put a lot more consideration into what gets on the list and what doesn't.
I always get sad when a parent gives a Christmas list out to relatives and it's all these really specific items and there's an endless amount of them. I highly doubt the kid will play with each and every toy and remember who got it for them. The key is to make every gift from every person memorable.
Assign Gifts to Relatives
Aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents always want to spoil the kids in their lives but how far do we let that go? Sometimes I think people just get caught up in the act of purchasing, wrapping, and shoving new gifts to open into a kid's face that they don't realize it's not making good memories.
This is especially great for the gift of experience. If a kid really wants to go somewhere, and you really want them to bond with a relative, consider telling them that can be their gift.
Explain that your extended family that you want to cut back on the number of gifts that your home is bombarded with every year and instead get only meaningful items for our children.
Use a Christmas List Worksheet
A Christmas worksheet for kids and parents is a great way to get organized! To use it, simply have your child put their name at the top and brain storm some "bigger gift" items and some smaller items. The FREE printable Christmas List worksheet has a lot of blanks and if you want to limit your children, simply write numbers in the amount of blocks you want them to use and tell them only to fill up those numbers.
When the list is complete, you can divvy it up at the bottom with what family member will be assigned which gift. If a family member wants to do something on their own and not use the list, that's fine, just make a note of it.
This is also a great tool because it prevents duplicates of toys and gifts.
Gift Cards
Gift cards make such great gifts because they allow your child to make a careful spending decision with what they REALLY want to give their gift card up on. Gift cards can also be an experience gift in a way because it means a shopping trip out with mom and dad, or maybe even the gift giver. Make a whole day out of it by grabbing lunch along the way. Some people say gift cards are boring, but I disagree. Shopping is ALWAYS fun especially when you get to spend someone else's money.
How are you going to change the way your kid's Christmas List is used this year?
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I really like this idea!!!
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