birthday presents for kids

yes...mine are getting an ipad 4 this xmas.  My 8yr old asked for one but i said no and she started saving her money up herself and is doing chores around the house/grandparents house to help buy it herself.  she has no idea how long it will take but says it is worth it.

I think the above idea works. If you can afford to buy them what they want then do so, but find a way to make them appreciate the value? I think my most expensive present was part of the cost of a bass guitar for Christmas at 16. I knew it was expensive, and took up weekend work, saving every penny for a year towards it, and my parents paid the rest. I also spent ages ringing around and searching for the model I wanted to make sure we got the best price around. I forget how much we each ended up spending but at the end of the day, I appreciated the value of it and took especially good care of it because of that. I appreciate it's slightly different for such a young child, but the idea of making them work around the home towards it is a good one if it can be enforced.

Other than that I'd say a substantial present is definitely better than something they'll just play with a few times, but then I wonder what counts as substantial these days - I'd say a bike was, but a tablet isn't really. I mean, I'm a tablet user and a bit of a tech geek but even I wouldn't have bothered with one if I hadn't have got it seriously cheap; especially for a younger child, given that my younger cousin has such things, and subsequently his parents never really know what he's doing online.

On the stupid advert note, Apple are the worst - I get e-mails around every possible day - Father's day "give them what they really want - the new iPad", Christmas - "It's the season! give them the new [£1800] macbook with blah blah" - I only once brought an accessory from them - how rich do they think I am?!?

i find the problem with grandparents is they pay too uch for a simple task therefore giving the child an realistic idea of work.............do the dishes and pay £2 for a 5 mins job.........therefore effectively paying them £24 an hour when the nimimum wage for even a 17 yr old is only around £4 an hour

I don't really have an issue with the price, if they can afford it then why not? But I do think the gift itself is an odd choice for a 9 year old. Why do they need a tablet? Will the parents be keeping an eye on what they get up to on it?

Its all about what we priortise, isn't it?  I can't understand how people will happily spend £100+ a week on booze but maybe someone who drinks a lot would think its ridiculous that I'll spend £40 on a race entry.

If its something that he's going to get a lot of use out of then I have no problem with spending a bit more money on my son's presents, just as long as I can afford it which I've been fortunate to be able to do.
Year before last it was a new laptop, his previous one was a gift when he became seriously ill and was the result of the nurse that was looking after his putting him forward to a Make A Wish type charity. He's still got thatlaptop and uses it from time to time but needed a newer one for school.
Last year we got him an Ipod Touch which covered both Christmas and his birthday (he was born early January). Again its something he uses quite a bit.
We spent a fair bit on his bike when he needed a new one and he uses it around home and has taken it to the in-laws where they live in the Cotswolds so he can go for rides with his cousin.
This year he's got a Blackberry Playbook, for Christmas and his birthday, so that he doesn't have to take his laptop with him when he goes to my in-laws and can still access the Internet when he's there. I'm hoping that I can install Skype on it so that he can chat to his grampa using it when he wants to.
His cupboard, however, is full of things that family asked him what he'd like for Christmas and birthdays when he was younger which  he has used a couple of times and have then got put away and not used again.

Some of the other things that he uses a lot are actually quite cheap. One of the things he uses a lot is a £10 cup cake maker from Tesco because he's into cooking, especially cupcakes which he can do without our help.

That's a good point JvR - I'd rather spend a lot on something that will be used than a lesser amount on a load of crap that will be shoved in the cupboard on Boxing Day and only come out when its going in the recycling bin!

I do worry that as kids get so much and so soon when they want it....when they leave home and set up home they will get into massive debt because they are so used to having everything new and straight away....they get new furniture and new bigger tvs and new everything

Seren - I believe the government scrapped the EMA last year, unless they've reinstated it?

And there is nothing wrong with lego, I agree. It's quite expensive though

I partly agree Seren - I think that's more to do with the frequency with which kids get their own way though rather than total spend on them that can spoil them.   

So agree with you Jindalee! well apart from the kids bit... I have two! my five year old loves his lego, in fact built fire truck tonight, but even that is expensive! my 9 year old has asked for  DS for a number of years but has never had one, and has never remembered she asked for it in the first place! Both of my children can work smart phones, and the lap top but I want to stay away from electronic games consoles as long as possible as I know my 5 year old would get hooked!

Its a hardship but some one has to help him build them!!

Lego is not cheap thesedays!    The Death Star lego kit is about £300....   

I don't think the cost of the gift is the issue..    whatever it is, if its something that the child will actually use and benefit from then it has a value...   if its just a vanity item and will be discarded in a matter of days then the same argument applies whether it cost £1 or £100...

And..  as others have said, birthdays are far more important than Christmas.   

running_chemist wrote (see)

Seren - I believe the government scrapped the EMA last year, unless they've reinstated it?

And there is nothing wrong with lego, I agree. It's quite expensive though

No we still have EMA in wales.........they changed the scheme so that they only have the £30 payment instead of the three different layers so only those on lower incomes get it............but they did change the limits slightly.......My eldest and middle son are in receipt of it.

I do not believe there is a right or wrong amount to spend on presents.

I think the biggest problem is parents who regularly spend way outside their means - I regularly hear in the school playground parents on very low income/benefits talking about spending £400+ on each child's Christmas presents. Then for the first few months of the new year, they constantly complain how little money they have and are still trying to pay off Christmas on their credit cards. In this scenario not only are the kids being aught they can get whatever they want, but that there is also no need to budget as long as they have a credit card.

Well guys you have spurred me on! just purchased 5 Christmas presents! cant wait to whack on a spot of buble!!

G&W..you might just have lost yourself a few votes with that one sentence...

celtic runner....how ever much the parents have.....it can't be a good thing for kids to get so much so soon.............

and also how on earth can parents monitor their kids internet habits when they have wifi access anywhere an everywhere................at 8 or 9...............or even younger

My kids have grown up and left home but from when they were little they were encouraged to only ask father christmas for a nice surprise, that way there was no lists and no expectations, therefore anything they got was more than they expected.   Bikes were bought as they grew out of them and the old ones passed down, they were considered practical items and weren't given as presents.  Computers were bought for family use and kept in family areas.  Later they had computers in their rooms and that was a mistake.

I think sometimes giving expensive items isn't really giving anything at all.