Christmas presents

My boys like the same things. There's really nothing that ONE wants more than the other. So, unless I'm getting 2 of one item, I just put both their names on the gift tag. However, I'm realizing there's really nothing that I've bought that is JUST for one or the other. Last year they each got Glodoodles & remote control cars, but this year, it's all bigger toys that they can share.

So, how do you handle stuff like this? Do you just do joint gifts & allow each kid to open a few or have them open them together? I'm going to try to find some smaller items to give them each individually, but I know I don't have much.

Any advice? My boys are only 3, so it's not like they're counting presents to see who is getting more than who or anything. I just want to make Christmas special for both of them....

 

I think it's totally fine! We were in the same position last year. Almost everything was joint so I just made sure I had an even number of presents and we had one girl open a present, and then the other one open a present. It ended up that one opened them up in record time and the other one took her time so Emma might have opened 4-5 in the time that Lauren opened up 1. :lol:

This year I think it will be more individual as they are starting to claim toys as their own. I totally respect that they need some individuality when it comes to their personal belongings so I've even given them their own bucket to store their non-joint toys. We do have a few joint things this year too.

 

Almost all presents til now have been for both to share, and we'll probably do that this Christmas. They are happy to have joint custody of most things, and if there's something they want to lay claim to, they sort it out on their own. (They've divvied up the stuffed animals this way.) I don't think there's anything less special or magical about joint gifts - it's just a preconceived notion us grownups have in our heads.

 

We did joint presents as well as put one name on some presents knowing they will share. I don't know if that will work this year as they might remember who got it and who it belongs to. But except for a couple of exceptions all toys are for everyone. I know that will change but for now it is nice.

 

Oh man. I must be tired. I thought you were asking if a "joint" was okay! And I was wondering "for whom?"

LOL!

I get all of their own gifts unless they need something big like a kitchen or whatever and then I don't think twice about it! Just go with the flow! They surely don't mind

 

My girls are sharing all of the big presents. Even the smaller ones - like I got 1 pair of Buzz pjs and 1 pair of Woody pjs - I'm not putting a name on the tag b/c I'm sure they will both wear both pairs. I think it's fine! :good:

 

I think joint presents are fine...last year my kids got a play kitchen and art easel to share and they wound up sharing all of their gifts anyway.

 

Except for clothes (my girls are different sizes), they share most things. For Christmas last year, they did get different building sets, but then they all got put in one box together. Those are the "Santa blocks." If they're getting a couple of the same things, I put one name on each one. That way they get to each open a present. But we don't worry later about which belongs to whom. If it's one gift to share, they open it together. My older kids sometimes get gifts to share, too, like a family board game or something. It works the same way. They just open it together.

 

I did a double take myself! :rofl:

Joint presents are fine at that age, imo.

 

We have joint gifts this year but obviously some separate ones too as I have b/g... For the join ones I will put both names and just spread them between them to open, my kids share everything still anyway (even the boy or girl toys, even if they show a preference to one kind or another). I realize that 6 months might make a difference about how they react to it though.

 

My girls are getting a joint gift this year which is a dollhouse. No way I'm buying two of those things. They will get separate people to go in them so they can have some sort of ownership of something, but the house will be shared, and they are good at that. If it's a shared gift, then they get to either open it first, together, or last..again, together. I think some gifts are just too cumbersome, or too expensive, to buy two.