Yayyy!! No more christmas shopping!!

[livie1205]

EVER!!! (i HOPE) We have been going on vacation for christmas ever other year (to wdw,big CL trips) every other Christmas...we have decided that from now on we will just vacation for christmas! The kids dont care,the boys 13 have grown out of most toys and if they need something during the year we try to get it and my dd4 LOVES to vacation and her b day is 4 days before christmas so she still gets a toy or two.we can go on great trips with the money it would take to buy christmas stuff.We also take the parents along so we really dont have to buy anyone anything (have small familys)!!
We will still put the tree up and stuff and we try to sneak to buy stuff at gift shops that we can put under the tree and in stockings..we have just really enjoyed the way those vacation christmas's are so layed back.We have a nice breakfast and pull out our trip pics and just hang out.I cant tell you how good it has been this year not having to look at one sales ad or know I wont be fighting the crowds after Thanksgiving!

 

[hentob]

This sounds wonderful!

 

[gator75]

We also do this. We usually don't go right over christmas as we work over the holidays , but we go on vacations very close to the holidays. like this year we are going to disney in feb , well its not christmas , but close enough for us. we are in the same spot as op our son is 13 and not into toys , and birthday is two days before christmas. there is a certain freedom that come with not having to spend money on the hoilday , and we like it. we as op also put our tree up this year however noy going to happen because we have a new kitten and it would come down as fast as it went up

 

[lisaross]

I think its GREAT!! I would love to do vacations over big parties etc as well! Enjoy...

 

[Darcy03231]

We've been doing this for years. We don't travel over the holiday as its prime time prices, but go on a big trip each year.

Every year in the late summer/early fall I give the kids the trip budget. They each pick a vacation spot they want to go to. They research it, why it would be a good family vacation, etc. They have to stay in budget for airfare, hotel, car rental, etc. Its a great learning tool for them. On Christmas Day after we've done stockings and a few small presents they make their presentations and we vote (with mom and dad having the final say!). So far each child has had their trip chosen at least once and we've done some pretty interesting things. After dinner we drag out the photos and videos of previous trips and "relive" them. Its really been a lot of fun. One year I was really sweating it as oldest DS had planned a rafting/camping trip down the Colorado river (I HATE camping). It seemed everything was going his way until I realized he forgot airfare for 6 people, which put him way over budget!

 

[budbeerlady]

I wish I could get Dh to do this. I would love to check into a waterpark hotel or head down to Disney instead of running around to 3 families on Christmas day. So jealous!

I am trying the gift of travel for Christmas. Dd is 10 and the only grandchild on my side, only GD on Dh's side. She needs no gifts! I picked up a couple of small items she wanted, a couple of games Dh wanted and put the rest of the $ down on a Disney cruise for next year. I am trying to think of how to wrap it but the last thing we need is more "Stuff". When I looked at my Christmas spread sheet from last year and my Disney budget for this trip I am saving $ by going this route. LOL!

 

[livie1205]

OH YEH we stay a week at wdw in CL and still save on christmas! lol We are a family of 5 so our last real christmas was a nightmare...

 

[Gr8t Fan]

We've been doing this for years. We don't travel over the holiday as its prime time prices, but go on a big trip each year.

Every year in the late summer/early fall I give the kids the trip budget. They each pick a vacation spot they want to go to. They research it, why it would be a good family vacation, etc. They have to stay in budget for airfare, hotel, car rental, etc. Its a great learning tool for them. On Christmas Day after we've done stockings and a few small presents they make their presentations and we vote (with mom and dad having the final say!). So far each child has had their trip chosen at least once and we've done some pretty interesting things. After dinner we drag out the photos and videos of previous trips and "relive" them. Its really been a lot of fun. One year I was really sweating it as oldest DS had planned a rafting/camping trip down the Colorado river (I HATE camping). It seemed everything was going his way until I realized he forgot airfare for 6 people, which put him way over budget!

This sounds like a great idea!!!

 

[horseshowmom]

We've been doing this the last several years. Of course, our daughter is grown now (and married as of last year). We really like it a lot!

 

[Maddle]

Every year in the late summer/early fall I give the kids the trip budget. They each pick a vacation spot they want to go to. They research it, why it would be a good family vacation, etc. They have to stay in budget for airfare, hotel, car rental, etc. Its a great learning tool for them. On Christmas Day after we've done stockings and a few small presents they make their presentations and we vote (with mom and dad having the final say!). So far each child has had their trip chosen at least once and we've done some pretty interesting things.

What places have they planned? What places has your family chosen? Do they lobby for their ideas? Were there hard feelings? Do vacation ideas resurface the next year? I think this is pretty remarkable!

Maddle

 

[MasonDuo]

Darcy - I would love to know what they've picked before too. This has got to be one of the best ideas I've ever heard. It really gives the children a gift as they get to pick the place plus I firmly believe the experience are worth far more than some plastic junk that is broken/misplaced/unused w/in a month.

Let us know where you've gone. Oh and I would have been sweating too over the camping trip - not my cup of tea either.

 

[indimom]

We've vacationed at Christmas three times over the years and did really love it. My hubby is NOT a fan of all the wasteful gift buying for the various parties we are invited to. And I'm not a fan of all the junk that ends up in our house. It really is a big savings when you can avoid the "gift racket."

Darcy, I LOVE the way your family does this. It gives the kids something to look forward to at Christmas instead of the gifts. Do they keep their destinations secret until then?? I think that would make it even more fun.
This is a great learning experience as well since they need to come up with something that is appealing to the majority of the family in order to "win the vote" and they learn alot about budgeting and the value of a dollar. Really fun.

I'm going to suggest this to my hubby. Since we're a smaller family, he & I might have to participate by coming up with vacation destinations of our own, but I bet he would get a real kick out of it! (Of course, I just know he'll be lobbying for fishing trips and the like. ) My kids are becoming computer savy enough, they could even do a powerpoint type presentation or video clip to "sell" their trip idea.

We would be okay just doing a secret ballot because dad and I are a power of "two" so we could pretty much vote down any vacation plans! I'm going to pitch this idea tonight. I think it's awesome!

 

[Darcy03231]

What places have they planned? What places has your family chosen? Do they lobby for their ideas? Were there hard feelings? Do vacation ideas resurface the next year? I think this is pretty remarkable!

Maddle

We've done cruises, all inclusive resorts, dude ranch, Washington DC, Viriginia Beach/Busch Gardens, Orlando area for 2 weeks (US/IOA, Seaworld, BG, Wet N' Wild, Kennedy Space Center, etc.), Toronto, and, of course, WDW to name a few.

Some years we are able to do 2 trips as we may have had some unexpected financial windfalls and/or the picked trip ended up costing less by the time we booked it. We did a cruise and Toronto one year, an all inclusive resort and Washington DC another and another cruise and Viriginia Beach/Busch Gardens another.

Each child pitches his or her presentation. When they were younger it was mostly posters but in later years we've had some excellent power point presentatations! Some years the kids even abandon their own ideas if something else sounds better! The year the oldest planned the rafting/camping trip everything was going his way!!

So far there haven't been any hard feelings. Once a trip has been chosen everyone gets involved in the planning and all of the children get to pick things they would like to do/see.

Ideas do resurface from year to year. Cruises and all inclusive resorts come up every year. Its always interesting to see what the kids pick. Some ideas that have been pitched and not picked yet, but are still in the running are renting a houseboat and cruising on one of the Great Lakes, Costa Rica, Branson, MO, and a driving trip with a tour of national parks.

With the economy tightening up (and three kids in college) this year the budget's been cut and we've limited the kids to something within driving distance from our home (no more than 14 hours). It will be interesting to see what they come up with.

 

[TandLMommy28]

I firmly believe that making a memory is a better gift than an object that is going to break and end up in the trash... I love to give tickets to plays or concerts as a combo birthday/Christmas to my mom, dad and siblings. The memory lasts a lifetime!

We have not yet done a vacation instead of Christmas but once the kids are older, we will (although I hate crowds so we will plan to get there on Jan 3!).

 

[Darcy03231]

We've vacationed at Christmas three times over the years and did really love it. My hubby is NOT a fan of all the wasteful gift buying for the various parties we are invited to. And I'm not a fan of all the junk that ends up in our house. It really is a big savings when you can avoid the "gift racket."

Darcy, I LOVE the way your family does this. It gives the kids something to look forward to at Christmas instead of the gifts. Do they keep their destinations secret until then?? I think that would make it even more fun.
This is a great learning experience as well since they need to come up with something that is appealing to the majority of the family in order to "win the vote" and they learn alot about budgeting and the value of a dollar. Really fun.

I'm going to suggest this to my hubby. Since we're a smaller family, he & I might have to participate by coming up with vacation destinations of our own, but I bet he would get a real kick out of it! (Of course, I just know he'll be lobbying for fishing trips and the like. ) My kids are becoming computer savy enough, they could even do a powerpoint type presentation or video clip to "sell" their trip idea.

We would be okay just doing a secret ballot because dad and I are a power of "two" so we could pretty much vote down any vacation plans! I'm going to pitch this idea tonight. I think it's awesome!

There's no requirement that the kids keep their ideas a secret, but they usually do. Also, two out of the four are away at college so they work on theirs while not at home.

One year all four pitched cruises, 2 were pretty much the same itinerary, just different cruise lines (western carribean), 1 was eastern carribean and the other was southern. We ended up going with the majority that year!

 

[EPCOT is a verb]

We decided quite a few years ago that our teenage girls had enough "stuff". We don't consider our family vacation as a Christmas gift as we don't usually go in that season. But what we have done is to offer each one a gift of tickets, to a concert, to a Broadway play, or something else we don't normally consider in our budget. We have built wonderful memories together. And I don't have to shop for stuff they don't need.

 

[livie1205]

I am glad to hear others do this as well..some friends have tried this but have not been able to resist the shopping all together...by bff just said she has no will power! lol I have not had a issue with it, I am just happy to not fight the crowds at the stores.I love a sale but I have found I buy the most useless stuff during the holidays! on the years we do wdw I let the kids pick the resort and the extra things (other then parks) for our trip...the kids love the CL (think they are getting away with something haha) and stuff like sunrise safari.

 

[Darcy03231]

I am glad to hear others do this as well..some friends have tried this but have not been able to resist the shopping all together...by bff just said she has no will power! lol I have not had a issue with it, I am just happy to not fight the crowds at the stores.I love a sale but I have found I buy the most useless stuff during the holidays! on the years we do wdw I let the kids pick the resort and the extra things (other then parks) for our trip...the kids love the CL (think they are getting away with something haha) and stuff like sunrise safari.

Oh, I still shop. Each of the kids still gets a stocking- usually loaded with stuff like new toothbrushes, razors, shaving cream, some candy, a dvd, itunes card, etc. Stockings usually run me around $50/child.

They also get presents under the tree. I collect reward points all year on my credit card and transfer them onto gift cards (unless they already come that way, like Amazon, Best Buy and Disney) and use them for the bulk of my christmas shopping. I'm out bright and early every Black Friday getting deals. Last Christmas the girls got Coach bags and matching wallets, DS # 2 got an Ipod Touch and DS#1 a GPS, all paid for with reward points.

My actual out of pocket spending for Christmas last year (this includes buying for my parents, DH's mother, our four children, our two foster children, 5 nieces and 1 nephew) was about $125. I got all of the toiletries for the stocking for free (CVS). I will say it was a bit of an out of the ordinary year because I bought a new car and the dealership let me charge $5,000 of it, which is something I don't do every year. Most years I stay within what I have for reward points and the kids don't get such big ticket items, but it was worth it to see their faces on Christmas morning as they really didn't expect it!

 

[Mrs. Charming]

Sounds like a plan to me!

 

[brooklynnbaby]

Totally awesome! This is something I hope we can do as our kids get older.