I really don't mean to spoil my kids... I don't, I don't, I don't!

Am I the only one out there who feels the pressure of giving all my kids an “equal” Christmas. And what I mean by that is that at Christmas, this crazy, shopping snow-ball effect can happen unless I’m really careful. I’m always good at the beginning. I make up a list of what I’m getting for the kids and a set budget. But then, as I’m out and about I see something that I just “have” to get for one of the kids. Or one of the kids just has to “have” something. Now, I don’t get my kids everything they ask for, (good heavens I would buy all of Wal-Mart for Sarah if I did) I think I’m reasonable. But I admit that there are a few occasions that I will buy them that extra gift.

That’s when the trouble begins.

Suddenly I feel like—well I bought Sarah this, I really should buy Janae something.

But the something for Janae is so much, that then I feel I need to spend the same amount on Sarah, but to spend that same amount I end up buying Sarah three extra gifts and then I’m feeling that poor Janae won’t have nearly as much to open on Christmas morning as Sarah will because Janae doesn’t understand that her gifts cost more, so I really should get her that necklace, but Sarah will want that necklace too, so I’ll buy it for both of them and then get Janae another something else….

You see!! It’s a huge snowball effect. I’m trying to dramatize it a bit, but as crazy as it sounds it really does happen to me. It’s almost as if my sense of budget goes completely out the window at the holidays, and the million commercials on TV and the way all the presents are displayed at Wal-Mart and the mall doesn’t help!

So then I get home, realize what I’ve done, that my budget has tripled, that my kids have way toooo many gifts and I start going through them to try to figure out what I can give to them for their birthday, or take back and then I discover a whole new set of gifts that I had bought two months earlier that I had forgotten about… and everything starts all over again.

I might be alone in this mental balancing act. I hope not, but anyone else suffering from the same holiday mental craziness, these are some things I have found that help a little.

1)Set a budget and stick to it. (Oh, I can set a budget. No problem. It’s the sticking to it that gets me every time.)

2)Before I buy a gift I ask myself, will they love this, or in one week after Christmas—after that excited look on their face fades away—will it be wonderful or will it be junk. It’s amazing how much stuff is really just “junk” disguised as a cool gift.

3)Um, ok, so two is all I’ve got. Maybe that’s why I still struggle with it. Any other ideas on how to control over shopping for kids would be greatly appreciated.

Tonight I’ll be sorting the “junk” from the gifts, trying to integrate what I’ve spent into money, and stressing over how much wrapping I still have to do. Hey that’s number three! Before I buy a gift I need to ask myself.. is it worth having to wrap another gift?

Now I need to balance the whole spouse gift giving thoughts. You know. The, well if I spent this much on my husband for Christmas, and he won’t spend that much on me, it’s ok for me to buy this for me for Christmas. Right?