Christmas Surprises vs. Giving Your Child What They Want

Letters to Santa can be very useful things. Although some of the items listed on them might be slightly out of reach, they can ensure you get at least some of the requested items ticked off your too-buy list. But let’s face it, Christmas wish-lists can take a lot of fun out of the whole present-buying process. There’s nothing quite like the look joyous and genuine surprise when your children unwrap some unexpected presents at Christmas time, but on the other hand, you don’t want to risk disappointing them. So how do we get the balance right?

Talk About the Less Materialistic Side of Christmas

There’s no getting away from the commercial aspects of Christmas and there’s nothing wrong with this at all – it’s a chance for us to treat our kids after all. But if Christmas becomes ALL about the presents and everyone is expecting everything they’ve requested, then you’re moving away from the kinder aspects of Christmas. Talk to your family about the positivity you can get from giving presents to others as well as receiving your own and they might not be quite so focused on what’s under the tree for them. Perhaps discuss sacrificing one or two presents for a charitable donation too and you might just kick start a new family Christmas tradition.

Stocking Fillers

If they’ve got their heart set on a certain present and it’s within your budget, then understandably you won’t want to disappoint them. For example, Argos are offering a huge discount on the Amazon Fire 7 Inch 8GB Tablet (was £49.99, now £29.99) for Black Friday weekend – an ideal introductory tablet for kids. But if you do choose to spend on this item or similar, perhaps politely refuse requests for some of the smaller things and tell them to wait for the surprise. Even though a lot of Christmas shopping can be a bit of a chore, choosing stocking fillers is definitely one of the more enjoyable aspects, and House of Fraser have plenty of discounted toys available that are perfect for stockings as well as filling any gaps under the Christmas tree, including the Spinmaster Knit’s Cool Knitting Studio (was £20, now £6.66) and the Hasbro Monopoly Here and Now Game (was £25, now £15).

Treat Them to an Extra Special Surprise

Maybe there’s something that’s caught you’re eye and you just know they’re going to love it, something they’re not even aware of. Lego have a special Black Friday (or ‘Brick Friday’ as they like to call it) offer on right now with 20% off selected sets as well as hard to find items, so if you’re got a Lego mad kid on your hands, this is the perfect opportunity to gift them something very surprising indeed. You can also try looking at second hand or auction sites to see if you can secure at hidden gems at a bargain price. Just make sure you keep the secrets until Christmas Day – difficult we know but if you want to create a genuine Christmas surprise then you must resist the temptation…

When it comes to any sort of Christmas shopping, just remember to budget accordingly or you might be facing some terrifying credit card bills and bank statements come January and those are exactly the sort of surprises we don’t want. In an ideal world, we’d love to buy our kids everything they wish for and need, but hopefully we’ve given you a few ideas as to how you can keep them happy as well as give some extra surprises this Christmas.

By Anna Scott, Writer at My Favourite Voucher Codes, 25th November 2016