Balancing Christmas and Kid's Wants
by Dave Ramsey

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Dear Dave,

How do you balance a Christmas budget with all the stuff your kids want? Should you give them everything they want even if it means going beyond your pre-planned Christmas spending? This issue is causing some problems with my wife.

Jim

Dear Jim,

I think the first thing you have to do is stop and ask yourself one important question – what is Christmas? If your definition is lots of stuff under the tree, then I think you’ve got a pretty bad definition of the day and the entire Christmas season!

It sounds like you guys laid out a Christmas budget – that’s a good thing – and now one of you wants to change all that because the kids have got the “gimmes.” That’s not a good thing. There are two possibilities. Either someone’s spoiling the kids and needs to learn how to tell them no, or the budget was too small because one of you has the spirit of a tightwad. It could even be a little of both.

It’s not a good thing for couples to fight over things like this – especially at this time of year. Sit down together and take another look at your budget. Compare the cost of what you’ve already planned to give them with the cost of the other stuff they want. If you’ve got the money and you’re not robbing Peter to pay Paul, you might consider increasing the budget a little bit. Just don’t jack it up so much that your kids start thinking there are money trees growing in the back yard.

But always remember this, Jim. Saying no may be the best gift you could give your kids. That word has started to disappear in our culture, but it’s one that can keep kids safe when they’re small, and can be part of a teachable moment when they’re older!

– Dave

Comments on this article	ADD COMMENT
Christmas spending Posted by Mary from Wyoming We've always had a Christmas budget. When our kids were old enough to understand the value of money we told them the amount that we would spend on them, and always told them to bring in their wants within the amount. No one was sad because they knew what mom and dad (Santa) could afford.
Good for you Dave Posted by Lee from England I really enjoy Dave's common sense advice. A breath of fresh air! Keep it going Dave!
Christmas Giving Posted by Tammy from Olympic Peninsula, WA I understand that parents want to give their children everything. Being a single parent to a four year old son is tough, especially during Christmas and his birthday. I feel that parents need to be upront about how much things cost, and that some things take a lot more money than others. Let your children "work" for the big things they really want. I'm not talking about slave labor here, but let them know that they do need to work for things in life. Sometimes the bigger things that we "want" take a new meaning when you have to "earn" them. Spoiling your children will not help them in the long run. It will just set them up for many more dissapointments in life, including debt which can lead to other problems. Teach your child/ren the real meaning of Christmas. That giving is the most important thing they can do. Donate time at a soup kitchen or visit an old folks home. Show them that there are others in this world that are far worse off then we are. Merry Christmas too All! Peace be with you!