Christmas gifts: How do you manage your child's expectations?
Children have their own notions of Christmas; especially when it comes to gifts. Parents have the responsibility to manage those expectations carefully without breaking any hearts. But how does one go about doing that? Jane has decided to share her own experience in this regard.
Mr T and I don’t shoot the lights out when it comes to Christmas gifts for our kids.
We have tried the over-the-top gift giving route, and it’s not the way we like to go. For me, it fuels the desire to have stuff, and, as parents, we try and teach our kids that the joy of giving is so much more rewarding than receiving.
READ: 7 great DIY Christmas gifts
My kids are still young, and although there is a lot of conspiracy theories around Father Christmas, at this stage of the game they have their Christmas letter request, and we're expected to get a few of those, but not all of them.
I think parents need to be transparent with their kids and manage their expectations so that they don't wind up breaking the bank and land up with 'JanuWorry'.
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How do you go about managing your child’s expectations regarding Christmas gifts? Do you keep it real with them, or turn to make-believe stories when you can't get them what they want?