Christmas Consumerism Concerns
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Anonymous
| Is anyone else concerned that we are training our kids to practice unfettered consumerism aka 'Christmas shopping'. Other countries manage to have a meaningful Christmas season without buying tons of gifts that no one really needs or even worse going into credit card debt. How do you have a low gift Christmas without your children feeling deprived? How do you break the cycle of consumerism? |
Anonymous
| wow. what a novel topic. Thanks AI |
Anonymous
| If you are going into credit card debt at Christmas, don't complain that you can't afford necessities - like buying a house. Your house down payment got blown at the mall. |
Anonymous
You are having an AI hallucination. |
Anonymous
| Sounds like a you problem. Not worried at all. |
Anonymous
|
We don’t go overboard.
We do experience gifts/activities. We buy gifts for people, or make cookies/fudge for people too who we do together. We don’t buy new decor or Christmas only clothing that we never wear again |
Anonymous
| Don't buy a thing. Problem solved. |
Anonymous
| Dont spend beyond your means, OP. Try it sometime |
Anonymous
What other countries are you referring to? I think you have a fantasy in your head. |
Anonymous
| Just reduce your spending or make gifts / create experiences. No one is forcing you into a level of consumerism beyond what you're up for. |
Anonymous
| We solved it by announcing Xmas is cancelled. |
Anonymous
| Xmas is the worst time of year. Absolutely hate the constant buy buy buy |
Anonymous
|
It's a choice to do this. A very conscious choice. Just because your kid wants 14 things for Christmas doesn't mean they have to be given all of them. It's okay to just give six.
I actually just saw an ad for Christmas decorations at an art supply chain and wondered "are there people who really buy new Christmas decorations EVERY year?" I never have. So maybe you are training your kids to buy and expect to get , but that's a choice you make by the actions you take. I have never done that. |
Anonymous
+1 it’s so annoying when people who clearly have a shallow understanding of other countries/cultures use their misunderstandings to criticize American culture. |
Anonymous
|
I've never gone into credit card debt to buy Christmas gifts for my child. I've only gone into credit card debt once and I was 23, had no savings, and used my credit card to buy a plane ticket to visit my parents because my mom had fallen and needed surgery. It took me 6 months to pay off that debt and I swore I'd never do that again and immediately started aggressively saving for an emergency fund for expenses like that.
I avoid making Christmas too commercial by not buying too much stuff and focusing on things that are meaningful and not consumerist (time together as a family, traditions, spending time outdoors, making decor and crafts ourselves, listening to or playing music, going to free museums and holiday concerts, etc.). I buy my DD a small collection of gifts and avoid buying thing that are just novelties or will get played with once or are just buying into trends (no labubus, for instance). I don't know, it doesn't seem that hard to do? Our Christmas Day doesn't even revolve around gifts. It's something we do but we also really look forward to making a delicious breakfast, going for a hike or walk if the weather permits, and then piling onto the couch to watch one of several Christmas favorites in the evening. |