Grandparents. . .how much do you spend on each grandchild at Christmas?

[Vijoge]

And how many do you buy for?

I have 16 grandchildren to buy for. I just can't justify going in debt for Christmas so I've decided $50 each is all I can comfortably afford (I also have other people i need to buy for). Some of the kids will be happy with anything I give them. Two of the girls are never happy and DH has threatened to not get them anything.

Just wondering what other grandparents do and for how many.

 

[tarheel618]

I am not at the grandparent stage yet but I think that your amount is quite generous.

 

[100AcreWood]

I'll throw in my 2 cents since my 3 are the only grandkids on both sides (dh and I are only children). Our parents have gone way overboard in the past. I think $50 is a wonderful amount. I would definitely not do more.
Honestly I feel that doing much more than that dilutes what Santa brings and creates for spoiled children. Just my opinion and I have seen it with my 3. They stop appreciating things when they get so much.

 

[~~Darci~~]

I'm not a grandparent yet but my Mom spends $50 on my kids and I think that's generous.

As a parent it's my responsibility to be the main grifter to my children. Anything anyone else is willing to spend on my children is a bonus!

 

[QueenIsabella]

I'm not a grandparent yet but my Mom spends $50 on my kids and I think that's generous.

As a parent it's my responsibility to be the main grifter to my children. Anything anyone else is willing to spend on my children is a bonus!

Cute typo!

You should spend what you feel comfortable spending. When my mom was alive, she always felt bad that she couldn't afford to spend what the other grandmother could. But, my mom always gave thoughtful, well-chosen gifts--frequently books from a second-hand bookstore--and they were always much appreciated.

Just a thought--for the ungrateful grandchldren, you could always give them a savings bond.

 

[nerdydisneygirl90]

I am my grandmother's only grandchild, when I was younger it was about $50 worth of gifts. I am happy with whatever she wants to give me.

 

[Canooknic]

We have a $50 for our parents to spend on grand babies. A couple of times it may have been around $54.99 etc for something specific but it's always $50 as a rule

 

[Teresa Pitman]

I only have eight grandchildren, but I aim for between $40 and $50.

 

[shoney]

My kids get $100 each from dH's parents. They have 4 grandchildren total
My kids get around $600 to $800 worth of stuff each from my parents...they just have the 2. They always spend a lot on gifts. I am an only child and my tree was very full as a child!

 

[scrapquitler]

And how many do you buy for?

I have 16 grandchildren to buy for. I just can't justify going in debt for Christmas so I've decided $50 each is all I can comfortably afford (I also have other people i need to buy for). Some of the kids will be happy with anything I give them. Two of the girls are never happy and DH has threatened to not get them anything.

Just wondering what other grandparents do and for how many.

I think $50 is a great amount for you to spend for each grandchild. Generous but not overdone. My parents and my in Laws both spend (or spent) about that much each year on each of our children. For the two that are never happy, I suggest gift cards, then they can purchase what they want.

 

[disneychrista]

I have 16 grandchildren to buy for. I just can't justify going in debt for Christmas so I've decided $50 each is all I can comfortably afford

That alone is $800 if you can afford that, that is great. To me that is an extreme amount. How many "families" is that? I would buy a family gift and spend maybe $50 - $100 per family.

As a parent I put a limit of about $100 +$25 (stocking stuffers) each for my 2 kids.

 

[dreamin_disney]

I'm not a grandparent yet, and probably not for a few more years (DD is only a high School Senior) She an only child. When my daughter was little money was tight but I always made sure she had stuff under the tree . Now that we are financially better off I do plan on spoiling my grandkids if I'm blessed to have any but if I had 16 theres no way I could afford to. I think $50 is more than enough. My MIL only has 6 grand kids and she spends $15 and a lil more on certain ones. Great grandma spends around $5-$10 and I told hubby she shouldn't be buying anyone anything because she's on a tight budget and she makes tamales and menudo for xmas. Growing up money was super tight for my mom and she had a lot of grandkids. At one point it was to expensive for her to buy for all kids, grandkids and great grandkids. we told her all the food she made for the holidays tamles, posole, homemade cookies and bread were the greatest gifts. We all loved her cooking because it came from the heart. I sure do miss her.

I think its great that you give what you can and keep it fair. When it becomes to difficult to give to all just remember theres other gifts like love, homemade goodies , even a special note. Merry Christmas!

 

[Vijoge]

That alone is $800 if you can afford that, that is great. To me that is an extreme amount. How many "families" is that? I would buy a family gift and spend maybe $50 - $100 per family.

As a parent I put a limit of about $100 +$25 (stocking stuffers) each for my 2 kids.

My middle son had five daughters. Then he married a woman who had five sons. Then they had a baby boy. That's where 11 of the kids come from.
My oldest son has two daughters and is married to a woman who has a son from a previous marriage. This makes 3 more.
Then, there are 2 who are technically not our grandchildren but they think they are and I don't have the heart to tell them otherwise. They are the younger children of my middle son's ex and because they always heard their older sisters calling us Grandma and Grandpa they have grown up calling us that, too. We figure there are so many kids in this mix two more aren't going to make a big difference.

So I guess, essentially three families.

 

[dreamin_disney]

My middle son had five daughters. Then he married a woman who had five sons. Then they had a baby boy. That's where 11 of the kids come from.
My oldest son has two daughters and is married to a woman who has a son from a previous marriage. This makes 3 more.
Then, there are 2 who are technically not our grandchildren but they think they are and I don't have the heart to tell them otherwise. They are the younger children of my middle son's ex and because they always heard their older sisters calling us Grandma and Grandpa they have grown up calling us that, too. We figure there are so many kids in this mix two more aren't going to make a big difference.

So I guess, essentially three families.

Now that's what I call a true Grandma! I wish my MIL was like you. She doesn't have bonds with her grandkids even through we spend every holiday over there :/ I feel so bad when people that know my MIL go up to my daughter and say what a wonderful grandma she has. it kills my daughter because in public my MIL is wonderful and outgoing but in reality she doesn't even spend time with her grandkids and she's with in 20 mins driving distance. Accepting those grandkids that aren't blood you will never know how much it means to them. Sending you blessings

 

[fortwildernessishome]

My in laws spent around $50 on both of our kids when they were working. Now that they are retired they spend around $20-$25. My parents have always spent around $200 per child both while working and now retired. My kids are now 20 and 23 and have never said anything about the difference and are always happy with Mother-in-laws gift which now is usually cash.

My own Grandmother lived to be 96. In her mid 80's she had to stop giving gifts for financial reasons. While it bothered her, none of us cared. We just loved her and wanted to spend time with her like we always had.

 

[TwoMisfits]

I am not a grandparent, but I can share what the 2 grandparent sets do.
My mom spends $30-$40 on a single gift/kid - she has 12 grandkids.
My husband's parents send a check for $100/kid. I take this money and buy a $30-$40/gift per kid and put the rest in their college fund. They have 6 grandkids.
My kids have always felt spoiled by these items and have never felt "gipped" b/c they didn't get good stuff. Now to be fair, I make sure to give my mom the "highlight" gift in this price range and the 2nd highlight gift to my husband's parents. Thus, I focus on the $100/gift/kid (aka the big one) and then a bunch of $10-$15 items (books/movies/games/video games/pajamas, tech accessories, collectible cards, toys) to fit my $200 budget per child. It works really well to have a nice Christmas without a stupid present orgy one...

 

[cvjw]

I have 2 boys. My parents give them $500+ each Christmas. They have 3 grandkids. DH's parents give them $150 each. They have 6 grandkids.

 

[kymom99]

I don't have a definite amount but try to stay around $30. We have 4 and they get a lot.

 

[Southernmiss]

OP, I think you are a very generous grandma and your grandkids will remember you as such. My mom gives $25 gifts and all the kids think that's wonderful. DHs mom gives a $50 check per kid and my kids love that. It goes into their savings account. DHs dad and step mom give $50 bills and a shirt or other gift. My kids are delighted to get both the cash and $. DH grew up in a wonderful, accepting and loving blended family. His step grandmother made pajamas for all of the great grands at Christmas and some of our best Christmas photos are of the kids in their "mawmaw" pajamas.

As I've gotten older (and now that we are better able to afford it) I have come not to dread and try to get the most inexpensive things for Christmas gifts, but to try to give thoughtful gifts even if I am spending a little more than I used to.

 

[Shughart]

My Mom is the Queen of Christmas in our family. She drops about 300 per grand kid and they have 6. They aren't getting anymore either. We each had 2 and we're all permanently and irreversibly done lol. My inlaws usually do $50 per kid. I've taught my kids that everyone does what they can. Some can do differently than others. I might have a problem with it if my Mom wasn't super involved in their lives and did it to show off, but she just really loves Christmas, and shopping and going crazy. I was basically an only child, so.....I had LOTS of gifts.