I understand a budget and doing half an expensive gift for birthday and Christmas. I don’t understand the thought process behind wrapping an empty box. Why not just remind her before Christmas she’ll be getting less, rather than giving her the hope and then the disappointment when she understands she’s unwrapped an empty box
@Confessionsofabagaholic Who said we aren't providing for our kids? When did receiving gifts constitute being a need and not a want? Where does that lie in Maslow's Heirachry of Needs? Just because we prioritize our spending within our family in a different way than others, does not mean it's wrong nor does it mean that we should have less kids just because we CHOOSE not to spend more money on gifts (at no time have I said we couldn't spend more if we chose to prioritize that and that's what you all seem to be implying that's what we're doing.) And, guess what? Even if we couldn't afford to spend more - like many people in the world, including the USA - doesn't mean we shouldn't have kids or that we aren't providing good homes for those kids, regardless of the gifts they receive.
Wow! People are mean! $100 is a reasonable budget for a childs gifts. Its not our budget but everyones budget is different! I have 2 teenagers and a 7 year old. I spent 2x the amount on my teens as I did my little guy. Their wants are more expensive. I'm sure some will think thats isnt fair. Dont let people ruin your joy. You know what best works for your family and children.
As it was the only gift she wanted this year, we came up with a deal that allowed her to get the one thing she really wanted before we agreed to buy it and she thought it was fair (I've even talked to her about it again since receiving all this negativity over it and she told me to say, from her, that she still thinks it's a fair deal and that $100 is a lot off money, which it is). I guess, we could have just given her the money from her budget that was still avaliable and then she could have saved up the rest of the money to purchase it on her own at a later date when she had saved enough. But which do you think she would prefer, come Christmas morning when everyone else is opening up actual items as gifts, a physical present or some money??? She is 12 years old, has the concept that money doesn't grow on trees, that budgets are important, and is capable of making a financial decision that was fair to everyone in the family but still allowed her to get what she wanted. It's not like she's 3 and I'm making her pay for what went over the budget. That would be on me for overspending, not on her.
I took your container idea last year and pre-planned bins to store new toy sets. It works out so well. My 4-year-old gets obsessive if he can't find certain toys, so we keep them sorted by type in bins (like his Jurassic Park Duplo set is separated so he can build the parts). It makes clean up so much easier!
I'm so glad that tip worked so well for you! It takes a bit of pre-planning but totally worth it (I think I still need to get a bin or two for this year - thanks for the reminder!)
I'm not looking at getting into a debate over this but...What would we be teaching our kids if we had a budget that they were aware of (which they are) but didn't stick to it? It may not seem like a big deal, and some may think that kids should just get whatever they want for Christmas, but what you learn as a child is building a foundation for you as you get older. We want our kids to be aware of finances now (in all areas of life, including Christmas presents) and not be blindsided by them when they're older. A budget also tells you when to stop. If you don't stick to it, then where is the stopping line? When is enough enough? Just meant to be food for thought and explain our position. Not trying to attack 🙂
The items she wanted for her gifts went over our budget for her. She is earning money from us doing chores around the house to make up for what she went over. It's not fair to her siblings (or to us, the parents, who budget a certain amount for presents each year) for her to get to go over and not the others. We are not having her pay us back for all of her Christmas presents, just the amount she went over. I explain all this in the video 🙂
So basically its like when you give a child money as the gift and they save it up for something or a gift card and when they shop, they use it and some cash ... I can see both sides here.
Dont feel the need to explain yourself to people. Your family is your family what you feel is right for your family is right for your family. Tyfs this video. ❤
Thank you! I'm trying to get to that point of not feeling a need to explain myself (it's hard but I'm coming to realize that many people won't hear what I'm actually saying; they're stuck on what they wanted to hear). The stupid part is that the only reason I mentioned my daughter paying us back for the part that went over budget is because, in case someone actually looked at the cost of the gifts between my kids, then it would have looked grossly unfair that my other kids were getting so much less (monetarily) than her. I didn't want to come across as unfair amongst my kids. Silly me. Learned my lesson on that one! (Although, if I hadn't said anything, I probably would have been reamed for not being fair - can't win either way 🤷♀️)
Yeah its so sad that people have to have something negative to say regardless thats just how some people are...its nothing you are doing wrong or unfair its just the way some people are unfortunately....girl you couldve done things exactly the same as some people and those same people would come back and find a way to make a negative comment smh. Your doing amazing for your family and im sure they are happy and frankly thats all that matters...the ones who support your channel and videos will be here for the next one and so to hell with the ones who are negative lol. Hope you and your fam enjoy the holidays and stay safe
It's $100 for presents for each kid plus $20-$25 each for Stocking Stuffers (I don't usually include any of the chocolates in this portion; those come out of our monthly grocery budget). Family gifts are also separate. For birthdays, the budget is also $100 each.
I always like seeing non electronic gift ideas for tweens/teens. I feel like we’ve gotten into a trap of always getting a new electronic item and it takes up so much of our budget and is so boring to buy 😆
New subscriber, and I haven’t finished watching the video yet, but wanted to say sorry for the rude comments you’re getting. We have 4 kids and have had to be creative with gift budgets at times too. Last year two of my kids desperately wanted an Oculus which was way over our budget, so we waited until my husband had to upgrade his phone on Black Friday which gave us a $200 Best Buy gift card, and we used that for the oculus and split the gift between them as their big gift so it was $100 a kid. I had sooo many hate comments on my video saying I was stingy, couldn’t afford my kids, etc. my kids however, were thrilled and that’s all that mattered.
Wait, wait, wait…..so not only are you making your child pay you back for a Christmas/birthday gift…..but if one is purchased through your link you make money off that too?? Lol…..pathetic.
I'll just repost what another viewer kindly said about this..."Setting up Amazon links to the items you purchased helps us out, and if you make a little bit of money off of that, then there is nothing wrong with that. Most content creators do that." - Heather Rowe on 11/11/2023 No one has to click on the links - they can search for the item themselves. But if they do click on it and purchase the item through the link, it doesn't cost them anything extra to do so. All it does is make it really easy for someone to quickly find a gift I shared. I can get compensated if they actually purchase an item on the list, but just barely - and you would probably laugh if you saw how little it truly was, for me, at least. And, again, we are not making our child pay us back for their gift. They are paying us only for the amount that went over their budget. This is fair for everyone in the family, and our daughter agreed to the terms of this "deal" before the item was ever purchased.
@@SaraWestoni think the issue she is pointing at is you are going to make money off the links so even if your kids exceed the budget it would be covered by those commissions so no issues there and no need to make anyone pay anything back its my understanding at least and i do tend to agree with that. Btw just really curious as why would a 10 y o ask for a tea set like that ???
@Confessionsofabagaholic Maybe there is a misunderstanding, then, of how much money I make through Amazon affiliate links. That's making assumptions without all the facts. Also, it defeats the whole purpose of a budget and being fair to the rest of the family to allow one to go over and not the rest, regardless of if what I made through the links covered the overage. For the tea set, my daughter is really into fancy things, especially things related to food/the kitchen. She loves to bake and cook and have picnics with tea. So it is right up her alley 😁
I don’t understand why everyone is bashing you….you aren’t making her pay for the gift, she is saving for an upgrade in the future, one that she will actually be able to use as a true phone, correct? My first cellphone was a prepaid card phone and if I wanted minutes I had to pay for my own card 🤷🏻♀️ People are so quick to be nasty it’s ridiculous!
I think they're more upset about my 12 year old daughter who went over budget with her gifts. She got the Bocatan Star Wars Helmet (also part of her birthday gift this year because it was over $100 on its own, but she really wanted it) and a mermaid tail and fin. Combined, she went over the $100 budget we have set for each child for Christmas. She's aware of the budget, and we only purchased the mermaid tail after my daughter's agreement that she would make up the cost that went over budget. This was fair to us & her siblings, and she agreed to it. It was the only gift she really wanted this year, and so she was able to get it with a little contribution on her part. Her taste was just expensive this year 🤷♀️ Thank you for the support, though!
@@SaraWestonlike why have so many kids if you can afford them. Like 100 dollar per kid is ridiculous now a day 100 don't buy nothing.makung a child pay is ridiculous. It's just SAD
You've brought up a great point. Unfortunately, we've talked to the stores and they simply have a no returns policy on kids 🤷♀️ So since that won't work, and since inflation is rampant, I guess our next option is just to decrease their budget to $50 for next year.
@@marylaboy8855you are ridiculous one. Stay in your own lane. Sara's kids are going to be fiscally responsible and know how to budget for the needs and wants. Christmas is NOT about how much you spend per child. Like the Grinch said...maybe it means just a little bit more. You could take a page from the Grinch's book.
Make that make sense....why not teach her don't have a lot of kids if you cannot afford them. Cause let's be realistic 100 dollar per kid is a joke now a days....I have 4 kids and 1 grandbaby and I save the whole year for christmas
@@marylaboy8855 yes 100 isn’t much but then again we don’t know if she uses other money to give them vacations etc everyone spends their money on different things so I don’t wanna judge someone on how much they are willing to spend on their kid you know :/ we don’t know her earnings either.
You've brought up a great point. Unfortunately, we've talked to the stores and they simply have a no returns policy on kids 🤷♀️ So since that won't work, and since inflation is rampant, I guess our next option is just to decrease their budget to $50 for next year.
You are spot on! We do prioritize vacations and experiences with our kids over gifts. (We're very excited for next year because we're taking them on their first cruise!) We also try to have an annual pass to an amusement park/zoo each year. We love to create memories with them and spend time together as a family. We also prioritize home education and living off a single income makes it possible for me to stay home and homeschool our kids (which is a challenge since we do live in a very expensive area - Southern California - but we wouldn't change that as it allows us to remain close to both sides of our families and our kids get to have in-person relationships with their grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins who also live here.) Thanks for your insight!
@@marylaboy8855Christmas is not a basic necessity. Just because she budgets $100 a kid for gifts doesn’t mean she can’t afford to have them. Such entitlement these days.
Not sure yet. Ideally, I would love to get out another wrapping video this year but my youngest was just diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes so we are still in the midst of navigating this new normal for our family and we have a big trip coming up. I am being cautious of not overwhelming myself with tasks and creating more stress. So, we'll see how things play out in the next few weeks.
@@SaraWeston thank you for replying. Your Christmas videos calm me down when my anxiety is high so it means a lot. I hope your family has some blessings coming your way, I’ll keep an eye out for the video incase you have time to film it :)
It's $100 for presents for each kid plus $20-$25 each for Stocking Stuffers (I don't usually include any of the chocolates in this portion; those come out of our monthly grocery budget). Family gifts are also separate.
Axolotls are not really a “Minecraft” thing. While they are in Minecraft, they are real living creatures. Amphibians native to Mexico, currently facing extinction. They are related to salamanders. I have 2 pet axolotls, and I have never played Minecraft.
I understand a budget and doing half an expensive gift for birthday and Christmas. I don’t understand the thought process behind wrapping an empty box. Why not just remind her before Christmas she’ll be getting less, rather than giving her the hope and then the disappointment when she understands she’s unwrapped an empty box
Totally agree! It’s horrible to wrap an empty box
You should title the video what my kids had to buy themselves for Christmas!
You're so right! I'll get right on that...
@Confessionsofabagaholic
Who said we aren't providing for our kids? When did receiving gifts constitute being a need and not a want? Where does that lie in Maslow's Heirachry of Needs? Just because we prioritize our spending within our family in a different way than others, does not mean it's wrong nor does it mean that we should have less kids just because we CHOOSE not to spend more money on gifts (at no time have I said we couldn't spend more if we chose to prioritize that and that's what you all seem to be implying that's what we're doing.) And, guess what? Even if we couldn't afford to spend more - like many people in the world, including the USA - doesn't mean we shouldn't have kids or that we aren't providing good homes for those kids, regardless of the gifts they receive.
@@SaraWeston that’s really a fair point and I do apologize for what I said.
@@Confessionsofabagaholic 👍😁
Seriously. Too many kids , I think their definitely teaching their children a valuable life lesson just not the one she hopes to.
Wow! People are mean! $100 is a reasonable budget for a childs gifts. Its not our budget but everyones budget is different! I have 2 teenagers and a 7 year old. I spent 2x the amount on my teens as I did my little guy. Their wants are more expensive. I'm sure some will think thats isnt fair. Dont let people ruin your joy. You know what best works for your family and children.
But it is a gift if it was to much then you could have told her no but she shouldnot have to pay for a gift
As it was the only gift she wanted this year, we came up with a deal that allowed her to get the one thing she really wanted before we agreed to buy it and she thought it was fair (I've even talked to her about it again since receiving all this negativity over it and she told me to say, from her, that she still thinks it's a fair deal and that $100 is a lot off money, which it is).
I guess, we could have just given her the money from her budget that was still avaliable and then she could have saved up the rest of the money to purchase it on her own at a later date when she had saved enough. But which do you think she would prefer, come Christmas morning when everyone else is opening up actual items as gifts, a physical present or some money???
She is 12 years old, has the concept that money doesn't grow on trees, that budgets are important, and is capable of making a financial decision that was fair to everyone in the family but still allowed her to get what she wanted. It's not like she's 3 and I'm making her pay for what went over the budget. That would be on me for overspending, not on her.
So the gifts your daughter had for her birthday are being wrapped again for Christmas 😮
Sure, why not? If the gift was a part birthday, part Christmas present, then why shouldn't she get to unwrap it twice?
I took your container idea last year and pre-planned bins to store new toy sets. It works out so well. My 4-year-old gets obsessive if he can't find certain toys, so we keep them sorted by type in bins (like his Jurassic Park Duplo set is separated so he can build the parts). It makes clean up so much easier!
I'm so glad that tip worked so well for you! It takes a bit of pre-planning but totally worth it (I think I still need to get a bin or two for this year - thanks for the reminder!)
Child should not have to pay you back for Christmas gifts. Wow. I feel badly for them.
She makes her kids pay her back??
I'm not looking at getting into a debate over this but...What would we be teaching our kids if we had a budget that they were aware of (which they are) but didn't stick to it? It may not seem like a big deal, and some may think that kids should just get whatever they want for Christmas, but what you learn as a child is building a foundation for you as you get older. We want our kids to be aware of finances now (in all areas of life, including Christmas presents) and not be blindsided by them when they're older. A budget also tells you when to stop. If you don't stick to it, then where is the stopping line? When is enough enough? Just meant to be food for thought and explain our position. Not trying to attack 🙂
The items she wanted for her gifts went over our budget for her. She is earning money from us doing chores around the house to make up for what she went over. It's not fair to her siblings (or to us, the parents, who budget a certain amount for presents each year) for her to get to go over and not the others. We are not having her pay us back for all of her Christmas presents, just the amount she went over. I explain all this in the video 🙂
Sad
So basically its like when you give a child money as the gift and they save it up for something or a gift card and when they shop, they use it and some cash ... I can see both sides here.
Dont feel the need to explain yourself to people. Your family is your family what you feel is right for your family is right for your family. Tyfs this video. ❤
Thank you! I'm trying to get to that point of not feeling a need to explain myself (it's hard but I'm coming to realize that many people won't hear what I'm actually saying; they're stuck on what they wanted to hear). The stupid part is that the only reason I mentioned my daughter paying us back for the part that went over budget is because, in case someone actually looked at the cost of the gifts between my kids, then it would have looked grossly unfair that my other kids were getting so much less (monetarily) than her. I didn't want to come across as unfair amongst my kids. Silly me. Learned my lesson on that one! (Although, if I hadn't said anything, I probably would have been reamed for not being fair - can't win either way 🤷♀️)
Yeah its so sad that people have to have something negative to say regardless thats just how some people are...its nothing you are doing wrong or unfair its just the way some people are unfortunately....girl you couldve done things exactly the same as some people and those same people would come back and find a way to make a negative comment smh. Your doing amazing for your family and im sure they are happy and frankly thats all that matters...the ones who support your channel and videos will be here for the next one and so to hell with the ones who are negative lol. Hope you and your fam enjoy the holidays and stay safe
@@chelsearollins3709 Thank you! I hope you have a great Christmas as well!
These gift videos are also helpful to us Grandparents! Thank you.
Wonderful!
What was the budget for Christmas for each kid? Also do you have a certain budget for their birthday also?
It's $100 for presents for each kid plus $20-$25 each for Stocking Stuffers (I don't usually include any of the chocolates in this portion; those come out of our monthly grocery budget). Family gifts are also separate. For birthdays, the budget is also $100 each.
Wow that’s so horrible make your kids buy there own Christmas presents gross
I know, right?
I have seen the gummy meals at Hobby Lobby also in the party section mixed in with the themed decorations.
Thanks for the tip!
I always like seeing non electronic gift ideas for tweens/teens. I feel like we’ve gotten into a trap of always getting a new electronic item and it takes up so much of our budget and is so boring to buy 😆
I prefer the junior version of games as well. Thanks for sharing. This was great.
Glad you enjoyed it!
New subscriber, and I haven’t finished watching the video yet, but wanted to say sorry for the rude comments you’re getting. We have 4 kids and have had to be creative with gift budgets at times too. Last year two of my kids desperately wanted an Oculus which was way over our budget, so we waited until my husband had to upgrade his phone on Black Friday which gave us a $200 Best Buy gift card, and we used that for the oculus and split the gift between them as their big gift so it was $100 a kid. I had sooo many hate comments on my video saying I was stingy, couldn’t afford my kids, etc. my kids however, were thrilled and that’s all that mattered.
That was a great way to be creative with your budget! Thank you for the kind words 🙂
Girl I was waiting for this video.
Glad I could deliver 😁 Hope you enjoyed it!
Looking forward to the wrapping video!:)
Coming soon!
If all goes well tonight with uploading, it should be up tomorrow morning!
The eraser idea is so cute 🥰
Thanks! My kids all love playing with them.
Wait, wait, wait…..so not only are you making your child pay you back for a Christmas/birthday gift…..but if one is purchased through your link you make money off that too?? Lol…..pathetic.
I'll just repost what another viewer kindly said about this..."Setting up Amazon links to the items you purchased helps us out, and if you make a little bit of money off of that, then there is nothing wrong with that. Most content creators do that." - Heather Rowe on 11/11/2023
No one has to click on the links - they can search for the item themselves. But if they do click on it and purchase the item through the link, it doesn't cost them anything extra to do so. All it does is make it really easy for someone to quickly find a gift I shared. I can get compensated if they actually purchase an item on the list, but just barely - and you would probably laugh if you saw how little it truly was, for me, at least.
And, again, we are not making our child pay us back for their gift. They are paying us only for the amount that went over their budget. This is fair for everyone in the family, and our daughter agreed to the terms of this "deal" before the item was ever purchased.
@@SaraWestoni think the issue she is pointing at is you are going to make money off the links so even if your kids exceed the budget it would be covered by those commissions so no issues there and no need to make anyone pay anything back its my understanding at least and i do tend to agree with that.
Btw just really curious as why would a 10 y o ask for a tea set like that ???
@Confessionsofabagaholic Maybe there is a misunderstanding, then, of how much money I make through Amazon affiliate links. That's making assumptions without all the facts. Also, it defeats the whole purpose of a budget and being fair to the rest of the family to allow one to go over and not the rest, regardless of if what I made through the links covered the overage.
For the tea set, my daughter is really into fancy things, especially things related to food/the kitchen. She loves to bake and cook and have picnics with tea. So it is right up her alley 😁
Erases aren’t toys their stationary but they do look cool I like the koala
My kids have never used them as actual erasers - they use them as little figurines to do make-believe with.
Im playing the game all day
I don’t understand why everyone is bashing you….you aren’t making her pay for the gift, she is saving for an upgrade in the future, one that she will actually be able to use as a true phone, correct? My first cellphone was a prepaid card phone and if I wanted minutes I had to pay for my own card 🤷🏻♀️ People are so quick to be nasty it’s ridiculous!
I think they're more upset about my 12 year old daughter who went over budget with her gifts. She got the Bocatan Star Wars Helmet (also part of her birthday gift this year because it was over $100 on its own, but she really wanted it) and a mermaid tail and fin. Combined, she went over the $100 budget we have set for each child for Christmas. She's aware of the budget, and we only purchased the mermaid tail after my daughter's agreement that she would make up the cost that went over budget. This was fair to us & her siblings, and she agreed to it. It was the only gift she really wanted this year, and so she was able to get it with a little contribution on her part. Her taste was just expensive this year 🤷♀️ Thank you for the support, though!
@@SaraWeston ohhh ok, I must have missed that part. I really don’t see a problem with that either 🤷🏻♀️
@@SaraWestonlike why have so many kids if you can afford them. Like 100 dollar per kid is ridiculous now a day 100 don't buy nothing.makung a child pay is ridiculous. It's just SAD
You've brought up a great point. Unfortunately, we've talked to the stores and they simply have a no returns policy on kids 🤷♀️ So since that won't work, and since inflation is rampant, I guess our next option is just to decrease their budget to $50 for next year.
@@marylaboy8855you are ridiculous one. Stay in your own lane. Sara's kids are going to be fiscally responsible and know how to budget for the needs and wants. Christmas is NOT about how much you spend per child. Like the Grinch said...maybe it means just a little bit more. You could take a page from the Grinch's book.
Everything was great! Although getting a video camera would of been cool too :3 ❤ it’s good they are learning about money while young
Make that make sense....why not teach her don't have a lot of kids if you cannot afford them. Cause let's be realistic 100 dollar per kid is a joke now a days....I have 4 kids and 1 grandbaby and I save the whole year for christmas
@@marylaboy8855 yes 100 isn’t much but then again we don’t know if she uses other money to give them vacations etc everyone spends their money on different things so I don’t wanna judge someone on how much they are willing to spend on their kid you know :/ we don’t know her earnings either.
You've brought up a great point. Unfortunately, we've talked to the stores and they simply have a no returns policy on kids 🤷♀️ So since that won't work, and since inflation is rampant, I guess our next option is just to decrease their budget to $50 for next year.
You are spot on! We do prioritize vacations and experiences with our kids over gifts. (We're very excited for next year because we're taking them on their first cruise!) We also try to have an annual pass to an amusement park/zoo each year. We love to create memories with them and spend time together as a family. We also prioritize home education and living off a single income makes it possible for me to stay home and homeschool our kids (which is a challenge since we do live in a very expensive area - Southern California - but we wouldn't change that as it allows us to remain close to both sides of our families and our kids get to have in-person relationships with their grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins who also live here.) Thanks for your insight!
@@marylaboy8855Christmas is not a basic necessity. Just because she budgets $100 a kid for gifts doesn’t mean she can’t afford to have them. Such entitlement these days.
My boyfriend love that soap
That's good to hear! I just saw an ad for a Harry Potter set from this company and was curious if it was any good...
Will you be filming wrapping this year?
Not sure yet. Ideally, I would love to get out another wrapping video this year but my youngest was just diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes so we are still in the midst of navigating this new normal for our family and we have a big trip coming up. I am being cautious of not overwhelming myself with tasks and creating more stress. So, we'll see how things play out in the next few weeks.
@@SaraWeston thank you for replying. Your Christmas videos calm me down when my anxiety is high so it means a lot. I hope your family has some blessings coming your way, I’ll keep an eye out for the video incase you have time to film it :)
That is a huge compliment. Thank you! ❤️
I did it! I just finished editing the Wrap With Me video. If all goes well tonight with uploading, it should be up tomorrow morning 😀
What’s the budget
It's $100 for presents for each kid plus $20-$25 each for Stocking Stuffers (I don't usually include any of the chocolates in this portion; those come out of our monthly grocery budget). Family gifts are also separate.
Over an hour of talking and barely any gifts to show.. Worst “what I got my kids for Christmas” video I ever seen.. sad..
What can I say, I like to talk 😁
And yet you still stayed smh lol
@@chelsearollins3709 and yet I didn’t.. lol after 15 minutes for one item I was gone.. carry on..
I agree it was terrible. I didn't even watch it all just came to the comments.
2020 not 2019
???
It’s axolotl not oxoltl 😂
I don't claim to be an expert on anything minecraft, as my kids well know (I've only mastered chopping wood 🤣)
Axolotls are not really a “Minecraft” thing. While they are in Minecraft, they are real living creatures. Amphibians native to Mexico, currently facing extinction. They are related to salamanders. I have 2 pet axolotls, and I have never played Minecraft.
@@lalamar1 That's so awesome. We actually got to see a live one in person at our zoo earlier this year for the first time - my kids were SO excited!
Girl I was waiting for this video.
Yay!