Keepinglchristmas Even....

You will NEVER keep things even. Life does not work that way. It's impossible.

Just get what you want. I guarantee they will be happy with new things, and "even" won't even be a thought in their minds.

how about you focus on the age appropriate side. like is 200 too much to spend on a 2year old? Is it too much to spend on a 7 year old etc go with an age appropriate amount, each year.

overthinking. Get away with spending less on the little while you can. 2 yr old will be thrilled with any shiny wrapped gifts that make noise. Older kid has specific wants and needs. Concentrate on the big kid, he will have to split Santas resources soon enough. Neither one is counting, btw.

We try to keep the amount of gifts the same. But it might be a little different with them being that far apart. Just make sure that the 7 year old dosn't just have one or two and the little one have like 10. I can see three to 5 maybe. but I would not do too much different than that.

My kids get the same number of gifts. I try to keep it even all the way around, because kids notice those things.

I have a spreadsheet where I keep all of the kids gifts and make sure I keep the amounts and gifts similar...but my daughter is getting older and I've told her that her gifts will get to cost a lot more so she may get fewer things in the future.

I have a 4 year old and an 8 month old. They will each get one gift from Santa-the older child's gift was $60, the younger $25. They will get identical gifts from mom and dad (matching outfits, $25 each) and they will get/give one to/from each other. So we are focusing on the number of gifts rather than the amount each costs.

My children are too small to care about numbers right now, but I remember this issue from when I was a kid. I remember my father was big on making it even to the point where he would wrap a $5 item just to keep everything "fair." My mom had a different approach that worked when she got control of Christmas. She would buy gifts based on what seemed appropriate (so maybe 5 inexpensive gifts for my baby brother and 2 big one for the oldest). She would only put out half the gifts before Christmas, so no one could count and determine who had more. On Christmas day we opened the first gift as a family, then after that kids opened gifts as they were ready. So one kid may open a lego set and put it together before opening gift two. We couldn't keep track of how many gifts everyone opened to know who got "more." There were also three kids in my family, so with two it may be easier to keep track. We also opened extended family gifts at the same time, so that added another 3-5 gifts that would help you to lose of track of who got "more."

My boys are 6.5 years apart. The youngest is 7, and the oldest will be 14 a couple weeks after Christmas. Right now I think you're overthinking it, but as they get older you may want to keep the number of gifts the same. My oldest is very laid-back, and realizes that with their age differences we will spend different amounts on each child based on their interests and needs. He's fine with that. Our youngest would be sad if he had fewer presents than our oldest. We don't worry about the dollar amount at all, but do keep the number of gifts approximately the same. Merry Christmas!

I think it really depends on your 7-year old's personality.

Some moms are saying their kids wouldn't or don't notice if the numbers aren't even. Some are saying their kids got in fights if the numbers aren't even.

If your 7 year old has the personality to count and "make sure it's fair" then I'd stick with # of gifts. If he/she is not as concerned about it, then get what you want to for each of the kids and don't worry about it.

My brother was more the type to worry about fairness in # of gifts (I didn't really think much of it - as long as I can remember I think I realized that some gifts were "bigger" than others, so that made up the difference), but we were only two of nine people total opening gifts Christmas morning, so we rarely were seated next to each other to even notice. When we checked out each other's gifts afterwards, we normally focused on the "big" ones. So, if we had the same number of gifts or not, I wouldn't have ever known.

Like most of parenting, just go with what you thing is right for your kids and your family. If the 7-year old freaks out about something this year, use it as a teaching moment and adjust for next year.

way overthinking. I try to get the same amount of gifts because the kids hand out the presents and yes, they do count them!!

I don't necessarily worry about the money being even, although I do set a max that I am going to spend on each child. I do, however, make the number of gifts even. So, if I spend $75 on two gifts for one child but only $50 on two gifts for the other, that's okay because they both have 2 gifts to open.

Totally over thinking. I would buy what you feel is enough for each child and go from there. A 2 year old isn't going to notice and by the time he does the 7 year old will understand the value of money to understand why he is getting less, but more expensive gifts.

roughly even dollars. Explain, if necessary, to the oldest that their items are pricier (while explaining not nice to keep track and I love you the same , blah, blah, blah :) The youngest will be happy with more presents and will get some hand-me-downs from the older one anyway. Don't go crazy, lower expectations. We all want "wow" them, but I am guilty of over-doing it sometimes :) Merry Christmas!

I try to keep the number of gifts approximately the same, so they have the same amount to open. I don't worry about dollar amounts at all (except to try to keep my total as low as possible lol!). I figure some years one kid might get something more expensive and another year vice versa. For young kids I think having things to open is way more important than how expensive the gifts are.

I would try to keep the amount of toys even. But, as they get older it will change. My hubby has two kids from his first marriage and all the kids (including our daughter) are about 7.5 years apart. We try and do our best. My stepson does not get as much anymore since he is 20 and his girlfriend lives with us. They both get presents just not as much as the younger two. My step daughter will not ask for much, she splits her list between us and her mom. The adult kids understand that the girl’s gifts are usually cheaper so they get a little more. Plus Santa stops bringing gifts to kids once they are about 16, at least in our house.

My children are 6 (almost 7) and 19 months and I asked a similar question not that long ago...but mine is more along the lines of...my 6 year old is getting a lot of things, and my 19 month old is getting, in comparison, not much...because we already have everything. I've just had to get over my guilt and believe my youngest certainly won't notice or care.

Being fair doesn't mean everyone gets the same amount of money spent OR the same number of gifts. Think more about providing them with specific, special gifts they want and/or need.

I'm struggling with this myself too. I say, you're never going to get it perfect, so don't stress out TOO much about it.... but try to get it to "seem" even if you can. But they're also going to know that there's a big difference in their ages, so I don't think they'd expect their piles to look identical.

Your 7-year-old will understand more about the value of money than the 2-year-old, so just explain if you have to... My just-turned-8-year-old tends to ask for expensive things, so I just TELL her... like when she asked for a 2nd American Girl doll for her birthday last year, I showed her how much they cost & explained that if that was really what she wanted, she was going to get very little else. She knows that the same applies for Christmas!

I have the same split as you and find the 2 year old ends up with more quantity while the 7 year old has higher quality - I'm trying to make the number even and it's tough. :-)

It's not about the money! It's about thoughtfulness, about choosing gifts the kids need or want and will enjoy! If you focus on the money now, the kids will learn to focus on dollar values instead of family values. And overall budget is one thing - there are things you cannot afford and that they will not be able to afford. But if you find something new or like-new in a resale or consignment shop (often with tags still attached), who's to say that you should spend $10 instead of $3? Being a smart shopper and a caring giver are what count.

Later on you will have an upper price limit when the kids start going to birthday parties - your 7 year old may already be there. So you don't want the kids to think that they are going to spend $50 per friend just because it's a nice and thoughtful gift - you'll have an upper figure. That doesn't mean you need to spend all of that figure! You can spend less.

Just get the best buys you can and make the best choices you can. My grandmother had me do her shopping for her, and it always had to be the same $ amount AND the same quantity per person. It got to be ridiculous. She was just as happy thinking something cost a certain amount, even if it didn't. I made her happier and myself happier, and the recipients happier, but just doing my best and billing her the correct total amount.

I suggest you do the same! It will take the focus on $$ for the holidays, which is what we all want, right?

I think at this age you are over thinking it. When they get older and are both more aware I would (and do at my house) keep the amount of gifts even, not the dollar amount spent.

~ I think it is more important that they have equal amount of gifts to open, not how much $ was spent on said gifts.

I would keep the number of gifts even. You know children and how they get if things aren't "fair". I doubt they care about how much it costs. I remember when I was little, there would be huge arguments with my brother if he felt I got more than him (and vice versa).

Overthinking :)

Go with equal number of gifts. Most families do 3 gifts per child.

There is no way you can compare price of toys for each age group, nor if higher priced toys will satisfy and older/younger child.

My girls are 14, 6, and baby. My 14 yr old wants a Northface jacket - I'll get her that and a few small things and a stocking. I will not be spending that much on my 6 year old - but I don't have to - she has no idea on the value of a dollar - but I can make her just as happy as her old sister for a fraction of that cost.