Knee Deep in Water Chloe
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Post by Knee Deep in Water Chloe on Nov 28, 2021 19:40:11 GMT -5
We had a Black Friday thread, but here's one for any holiday expenditures you want to share, whine about, brag about, ask about, etc.
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Knee Deep in Water Chloe
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Post by Knee Deep in Water Chloe on Nov 28, 2021 19:42:43 GMT -5
I'm working hard to not hyperventilate. I just ordered four Calphalon pots for DH's Christmas present. We have good pans--Calphalon and All Clad--but I've been miserly and kept the cheap stainless steel sauce and stock pots I bought 20 years ago I got the ones that only Williams Sonoma sells. I may have to sell a kidney to cover the cost.
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giramomma
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Post by giramomma on Nov 28, 2021 20:45:04 GMT -5
I think I've been doing pretty well this year. I don't know how much I've spent. But I've gotten everything on sale and/or used found money to pay for things. I got a $100 GC for getting a covid shot, so I used that to cover some gifts. DH got some kohl's cash, we used that, etc. I also started buying things for DS way back in like April. So, that helps too.
I've had quite a good time picking things out as well. The missy is getting to a fun age. And thankfully, she's different enough from the other kids that I can still buy her new things, rather than duplicates of what we have.
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plugginaway22
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Post by plugginaway22 on Nov 29, 2021 7:21:05 GMT -5
We broke down and got an artificial tree, spent about $200 on it. Various lights and updated decor, maybe another $100. I got a special frasier pine spray scent so we don't miss the real tree aroma.
DH is getting one of those hand-held massage guns you see everywhere, to me it looks like you are getting beat up. It was a black Friday sale. I am having fun picking out a few things for each of the grand babies. We give money to our adult kiddos. So far the spending has not been too bad.
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resolution
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Post by resolution on Nov 29, 2021 8:28:21 GMT -5
We ordered an artificial tree for $200 from wayfair, but its not due to arrive until the 6th. I can't tell from the site if it has even shipped yet, one place says it shipped on the 22nd and another place still says preparing to ship. I hope it shows up on schedule since I can't figure out what is going on with their website.
I spent around $40 on battery operated christmas lights and big red bows. I put our old tree outside on our upstairs porch, using the battery operated lights since we don't have an outlet up there.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Nov 29, 2021 9:30:23 GMT -5
I spent $25 on supplies for an Advent Wreath I made at church. That is all, at least for decorations- I see others are listing gift expenditures.
$120 for a Costco membership for DS and DDIL. (Also gifting them $$ I don't need this year and they want to put it towards their mortgage. What would Phil say?)
$60 to each of the girls- they give some to charity, spend some and save some. I want them to learn how to manage money. Little brother isn't ready for that yet.
Got off easy with BF. He likes electronic stuff and I had an extra WalkMan- I'd bought one, lost it (well, it's black and about half the size of a credit card) and bought iPod Touch (the only thing I could find in-stock in the stores before I was due to leave) because I wanted it for a road trip to SC. Found the initial WalkMan, of course. BF was interested in trying it out and I told him he could have it as an early Christmas present if he promised he wouldn't try and spend the same amount on me. My iPod Touch is now in an ugly green zippered bag in my purse so I can find it!
Will probably get some catnip toys for BF's cats.
ETA: I am SO looking forward to being able to take DS, DDIL and the kids to The Nutcracker some year in the future. The girls love ballet and their brother is 2 1/2 and might be civilized through most of a matinee- but the Ballet is requiring everyone to be vaccinated this year. Perfectly reasonable but not possible for the 2 younger kids. It's just as well- I'm guessing we would have done it next weekend and DS and DGD7 are getting over mild (thank God) cases of COVID. I think they'd be safe to go out but if any of the other family members got it, we'd have had to miss it- and those tickets are pretty expensive.
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buystoys
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Post by buystoys on Nov 29, 2021 9:37:02 GMT -5
DH and our families don't "do" Christmas presents. DH and I have our routine and like it, so we tend to do the holidays alone. I have spent more this year on baking supplies because I'm baking cookies and breads for our Toys for Kids party in about three weeks. Other than that, I spent $75 on books for myself. I just couldn't resist getting some new reading material. I've been pretty good about reading my current books again.
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ohmomto2boys
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Post by ohmomto2boys on Nov 29, 2021 9:43:52 GMT -5
Ordered DS#2 an Apple 7 Nike watch. Estimated delivery Dec 15 - 23. I'm a little nervous. Should have ordered it a couple weeks ago knowing it would not be on sale since it is the latest version. Ugh.
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azucena
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Post by azucena on Nov 29, 2021 9:45:12 GMT -5
DD9 wants an ipad. We haven't had a tablet in about 2 yrs and limit screen time. We also tend to buy android items, but she really wants ipad so she can get the same educational games she likes at school. Any tips for getting one slightly cheaper? I'm also confused by all the model numbers. A little worried that if I drop $300-$400 on it, she won't understand why she's getting way fewer gifts. Also kinda tired of having so many toys strewn about anyway. Maybe I'll talk to her directly about that.
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NomoreDramaQ1015
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Post by NomoreDramaQ1015 on Nov 29, 2021 11:21:58 GMT -5
I am pretty proud of getting Abby's LOL doll set when I did. They have freaking JACKED the price up since we bought it. We got it for $99 and it's leapt up to $159 on sale. It has 12 dolls and over 200 surprises.
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raeoflyte
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Post by raeoflyte on Nov 29, 2021 11:31:36 GMT -5
I spent about $150 on lights for outside.
Gifts are about done, but I still need to add it up. I bought early and had bday gifts mixed in.
Nothing for dh yet though. He's so particular, but loves gifts. I guess I got him a t-shirt, but anything else has to be a gift card or cash.
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NomoreDramaQ1015
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Post by NomoreDramaQ1015 on Nov 29, 2021 11:35:36 GMT -5
I got DH the remastered GTA 3 game set for the PS4. Gwen has gotten into playing it and wants to play with him so this is perfect. I also got the selfie we took at the Blue October concert printed through Shutterfly, I am going to frame it really nice. We don't have many photos of just us on the wall.
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bookkeeper
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Post by bookkeeper on Nov 29, 2021 13:20:57 GMT -5
DH and I went shopping for our older son and his wife. We were helping them get ready for the birth of their twins, when we realized their laundry set was junk. We bought them a new Whirlpool set and installed them. Spent about $1400. They are in for more laundry than they realize!
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bookkeeper
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Post by bookkeeper on Nov 29, 2021 13:25:21 GMT -5
I'm working hard to not hyperventilate. I just ordered four Calphalon pots for DH's Christmas present. We have good pans--Calphalon and All Clad--but I've been miserly and kept the cheap stainless steel sauce and stock pots I bought 20 years ago I got the ones that only Williams Sonoma sells. I may have to sell a kidney to cover the cost. I was lucky enough to score All Clad non stick frying pans at TJ Maxx. They are sooooo nice. The pans are very heavy and heat so evenly. I got the 10 inch and 12 inch both for $60 including tax. No lids, but I do have a universal lid that fits the big one. They had an All Clad chicken fryer pan with the lid for $40. I should have bought it. They are nice for frying bacon with the higher sides.
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NomoreDramaQ1015
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Post by NomoreDramaQ1015 on Nov 29, 2021 13:29:59 GMT -5
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giramomma
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Post by giramomma on Nov 29, 2021 14:48:11 GMT -5
DD9 wants an ipad. We haven't had a tablet in about 2 yrs and limit screen time. We also tend to buy android items, but she really wants ipad so she can get the same educational games she likes at school. Any tips for getting one slightly cheaper? I'm also confused by all the model numbers. A little worried that if I drop $300-$400 on it, she won't understand why she's getting way fewer gifts. Also kinda tired of having so many toys strewn about anyway. Maybe I'll talk to her directly about that. This is why we always gave the kids three gifts (or gift bundles) for Christmas starting from birth.
One of their gifts is an ornament that they will take to put on their own trees.
We found that the bigger iPads were a better deal than the iPad minis. We also don't get internet with ours.
Also, we're fans of buying refurbished on groupon. I think that's where my iPhone 6 came from, and I'm still using it. I think DH bought it in 2017 from Groupon. I inherited it when he bought a 7 off ebay. The only repair we've made is a screen replacement.
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susana1954
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Post by susana1954 on Nov 29, 2021 17:17:31 GMT -5
I have spent slightly over $1400 so far. Adults don't get presents (except calendars for my sister and cousin), but there are a lot of kids to buy for . . . thirteen in all. Nine of them are my grandchildren, and four of them are my sister's grandchildren. Included in that total are gifts to charity, two birthday presents (one at Thanksgiving and one the first week in January), and a couple of house presents like the $350 I give my daughter once a year to cover my share of the cell phone bill. I don't think it's bad. I save $165 a month in a Christmas Club account and have enough left to pay my car insurance bill for six months in January.
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Post by minnesotapaintlady on Nov 29, 2021 20:49:18 GMT -5
Well, I've spent about $1000 just on PS5s. 🤣
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TheOtherMe
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Post by TheOtherMe on Nov 29, 2021 21:31:16 GMT -5
I only buy gifts for two little kids. My charity is spread throughout the year.
I spent about $75 on those kids.
My sister will make they they get $1000's of dollars in presents because that what Christmas is to her.
I've spent more on Christmas presents for the cats.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Nov 29, 2021 22:12:17 GMT -5
I haven’t spent a dime on Christmas yet.
I went back to my old tradition of buying a live tree last year. So far, this year, I don’t care if we just put up Mister’s artificial tree.
Now, I only buy gifts for my Grandbabies for Christmas. I’d buy for Kiddo, but Mister has him covered. Some years I’ve bought Mister gifts, some years I haven’t. I don’t expect him to buy me gifts either. He thought it was weird at first, but he’s gotten use to me and some of my strange ideas now.
I got over the commercial aspect of Christmas and spending a lot of money on gifts when my children were teenagers. I bought them gifts because they were still kids, even though they were teenagers, but that was it. I no longer buy gifts just to be able to say I gave someone something for Christmas. The spirit of Christmas to me now, is more about being with my loved ones, than spending a lot of money.
But I buy random stuff that I know someone I care about would love or use, all throughout the year, so it’s not about me just refusing to spend money on other people. Last night, while she was here, Mister’s Mom iced a cake she’d made and brought over. She said something about how much she liked the spatula I gave her to use and I made a mental note to try to find another set like mine and give it to her. Not for Christmas, just because. That’s the kind of thing I do year round whenever somebody says they like or want something I can afford to buy for them, so I don’t really feel bad about not buying random gifts that people may or may not like just because it’s Christmas.
And I’m not knocking people that go all out and buy lots of gifts for Christmas, I’m just saying what I do. I know other people get a kick out of buying gifts. I’m not really good at choosing good gifts when left to my own devices, so I prefer my way….. buying people things I know they’ll like, regardless of the time of year.
But since I do still buy Christmas gifts for my Grandbabies, I guess I better get busy.
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Knee Deep in Water Chloe
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Post by Knee Deep in Water Chloe on Nov 29, 2021 22:51:12 GMT -5
DD9 wants an ipad. We haven't had a tablet in about 2 yrs and limit screen time. We also tend to buy android items, but she really wants ipad so she can get the same educational games she likes at school. Any tips for getting one slightly cheaper? I'm also confused by all the model numbers. A little worried that if I drop $300-$400 on it, she won't understand why she's getting way fewer gifts. Also kinda tired of having so many toys strewn about anyway. Maybe I'll talk to her directly about that. Costco has them discounted right now.
I also struggle with the "we're spending $X, so you really did get the same though not the same quantity" theory. However, the kids haven't struggled with it (too) much.
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finnime
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Post by finnime on Nov 30, 2021 6:54:19 GMT -5
For DH I'm getting a felted portrait of Franklin the Dog from a woman in the neighborhood who does an astounding job of these. He'll love it. Also, he gets a University of Glasgow Tshirt (he's a graduate student there) and a die-cast model red Camaro since he keeps talking about getting a red car.
DD35 is getting a Costco membership ($60) and dental insurance through Costco. She's also getting some inexpensive earrings and a set of artist materials. DS27 is getting Bombas socks, and the pleasure of our company at Christmas when we'll spend the night in NYC at a nice hotel and see him. He's making an amazing salary and buys what he needs and wants pretty much.
My brothers are each getting LLBean chamois shirts. My sister is getting some left-handed tools and pens, and Bombas socks. My nieces, nephews and brother's girlfriend are all getting Bombas socks. My 2yo grand niece is getting a set of books (she loves books); 7yo grand nephew is getting a Lego set; 6mo grand nephew is getting an Amazon gift card for $25.
I think that's it. We're not putting up a tree this year. Family is coming down from Mass. to visit New Year's; this will be the last holiday at this house, and it should be in good shape by then. I feel nostalgic already.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Nov 30, 2021 8:49:55 GMT -5
DD9 wants an ipad. We haven't had a tablet in about 2 yrs and limit screen time. We also tend to buy android items, but she really wants ipad so she can get the same educational games she likes at school. Any tips for getting one slightly cheaper? I'm also confused by all the model numbers. A little worried that if I drop $300-$400 on it, she won't understand why she's getting way fewer gifts. Also kinda tired of having so many toys strewn about anyway. Maybe I'll talk to her directly about that. Yes, you should. It's never too early to learn that there are trade-offs. We all have to learn that! She can make a decision between a lot of toys or an iPad and only one or two toys.
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TheOtherMe
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Post by TheOtherMe on Nov 30, 2021 8:58:08 GMT -5
We stopped exchanging gifts with my niece and nephews and sister and BIL when we all realized all we were doing was exchanging gift cards and sometimes receiving the same ones we had given to each other.
That was just silly and we all realized. The "kids" were well in to adulthood by then.
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Post by minnesotapaintlady on Nov 30, 2021 9:18:57 GMT -5
I'm HOPING the "scaled back" my stepmom said means that my siblings aren't buying me gifts this year. Every single year I do not get them anything and every single year they buy me things. My brother and his wife go all out. Like, when they ask for ideas and l say "fine, if you have to get me something, then I could use a pair of gloves", they give me a huge bag with like 40 pair (I'm not kidding...work gloves, leather gloves, insulated gloves, driving gloves). I feel so bad, but I suck at buying gifts for adults that have everything they want/need. I seriously have no clue and hate buying something just to have a gift. I guess I could do alcohol. My sister has been unemployed since covid started and recently her husband was injured when he fell down the steps and wasn't able to work for several weeks so I'm hoping there was a conversation that it's just the kids (my two and my sister's one).
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Nov 30, 2021 13:29:22 GMT -5
I'm HOPING the "scaled back" my stepmom said means that my siblings aren't buying me gifts this year. Every single year I do not get them anything and every single year they buy me things. My brother and his wife go all out. Like, when they ask for ideas and l say "fine, if you have to get me something, then I could use a pair of gloves", they give me a huge bag with like 40 pair (I'm not kidding...work gloves, leather gloves, insulated gloves, driving gloves). I feel so bad, but I suck at buying gifts for adults that have everything they want/need. I seriously have no clue and hate buying something just to have a gift. I guess I could do alcohol. My sister has been unemployed since covid started and recently her husband was injured when he fell down the steps and wasn't able to work for several weeks so I'm hoping there was a conversation that it's just the kids (my two and my sister's one).
Exactly! Which is why I stopped. Even when I would go all out for my kids to make sure they had a lot of stuff under the tree, a lot of it was a waste of money, stuff they didn’t really want or use. My family has a running joke about my Uncle that he’s tired of by now, because it happened over 20 years ago. One Christmas morning, he’d had too much to drink the night before and was still feeling it. The whole family is together when we open presents. After opening several presents from various family members, he opened one and said “Some more DAMN socks”. That was what was in almost every gift he opened lol. Every year since then, somebody always says that everybody made sure not to buy him any socks. He wishes people would just leave it alone by now, poor guy.
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daisylu
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Post by daisylu on Nov 30, 2021 14:51:32 GMT -5
On actual gifts I am at $495. To that I will be adding @ $600 in gift cards/cash. This is for 2 small kids and 11 adults/teenagers.
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NomoreDramaQ1015
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Post by NomoreDramaQ1015 on Nov 30, 2021 16:44:35 GMT -5
The only adults I do are my parents, brother and DH. My mom and brother are pretty easy. Dad can be a challenge but I am always able to figure something out. I am still pissed the Alice Cooper concert fell through and then he didn't reschedule through here. My dad NEVER does anything for himself, I was so excited to present him with those tickets. I don't touch DH's family. The first year I was with him they still did Secret Santa and as a courtesy for me being a poor college student they set the budget at a "reasonable" $50. Yeah that's not reasonable for a college student! I am so glad we stopped doing that because the need to compete is fierce in his family. I stopped doing the kids too because they would just toss whatever I got aside, I can't compete with their parents buying them individual 4x4s. It left a bad taste in my mouth because to me gift giving is about showing you care and putting thought into it, not how big the price tag is. I do stuff for his parents from time to time. I embroidered pillow cases for my FIL last year. He called DH afterwards to tell him it was his favorite present. His other kids get him a lot of expensive stuff that ends up as clutter, he was really touched that I took the time to do something by hand. I've done a set for MIL as well. His are fishing themed and hers have hummingbirds on them.
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wvugurl26
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Post by wvugurl26 on Nov 30, 2021 20:11:31 GMT -5
Adults who get gifts are my parents, my in laws and my grandmas. And my brother.
I think I'm doing pretty well so far. I just finished my MIL. Her birthday is right after Christmas so I need both at once. I try to pay attention and come up with things they'll like. It is hard though. They have everything they need.
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Happy prose
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Post by Happy prose on Nov 30, 2021 20:23:55 GMT -5
For DH I'm getting a felted portrait of Franklin the Dog from a woman in the neighborhood who does an astounding job of these. He'll love it. Also, he gets a University of Glasgow Tshirt (he's a graduate student there) and a die-cast model red Camaro since he keeps talking about getting a red car. DD35 is getting a Costco membership ($60) and dental insurance through Costco. She's also getting some inexpensive earrings and a set of artist materials. DS27 is getting Bombas socks, and the pleasure of our company at Christmas when we'll spend the night in NYC at a nice hotel and see him. He's making an amazing salary and buys what he needs and wants pretty much. My brothers are each getting LLBean chamois shirts. My sister is getting some left-handed tools and pens, and Bombas socks. My nieces, nephews and brother's girlfriend are all getting Bombas socks. My 2yo grand niece is getting a set of books (she loves books); 7yo grand nephew is getting a Lego set; 6mo grand nephew is getting an Amazon gift card for $25. I think that's it. We're not putting up a tree this year. Family is coming down from Mass. to visit New Year's; this will be the last holiday at this house, and it should be in good shape by then. I feel nostalgic already. I got Bombas last year and love them. I won't buy them for myself though!
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