With the holiday season rapidly approaching, many parents are preparing financially for the gifts they’ll put under the Christmas tree for their children.
One mom questioned the appropriate amount of money to spend on a child’s holiday presents after her daughter put a large lump sum of cash at the top of her Christmas list.
“So, my daughter and I are having a discussion because she’s saying it’s all over TikTok that everybody’s getting at least $1,000 or $2,000 for Christmas hauls,” Neysita Ney began in her video.
She explained that her daughter requested money so she could buy her own gifts and participate in the TikTok trend.
She added that the specific name for the haul is a “burr basket” — a winter-themed basket filled with personalized items, including blankets, candles, skincare, and mugs. It’s supposed to be a twist on an Easter basket, but for the holiday season, and according to Ney, her daughter is adamant about participating in the trend.
While her daughter claimed that the baskets are supposed to be worth anywhere between $1,000 and $2,000, they are certainly possible to make on a much lower budget.
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The mom said that she agreed to give her daughter half of the money for the basket, and her dad would give her the other half; however, she is still shocked by the high price tag.
“Does anybody else have money right now to be giving thousands of dollars to their children so they could do a Christmas haul that they’ve seen on TikTok?” she asked viewers. “I just want to know if it’s normal for me to just give her the money, or should I just buy whatever I want?”
In a follow-up video, Ney divulged that she ultimately refused to give in to her daughter’s request and admitted that instead of spending $2,000 on her gifts, she was going to spend $200.
She also revealed where her daughter got the idea for such an expensive gift — “marketing on social media aimed at children.” The mom even noted that one of the hauls her daughter was fed by TikTok’s algorithm began with a Gucci watch, something no child needs.
Luckily, showing her daughter Dollar Tree Christmas hauls on TikTok seemed to fix the problem.
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According to NerdWallet’s 2024 annual holiday spending reportAmericans, particularly parents, are spending quite a bit more on holiday travel and gift shopping than last year.
Parents of minor children who plan to purchase gifts this holiday season say they’ll spend an average of $1,070.
Around 48% of parents with younger children surveyed admitted that guilt is leading them to spend more than they should on gifts, despite 38% saying they’ll go into more debt than usual to buy gifts this year.
Additionally, in NerdWallet’s 2024 Holiday Spending Report, nearly 3 in 10 Americans who used credit cards to pay for holiday gifts last year still haven’t paid off their balances.
There is no reason that a child needs to get upwards of $2,000 for a Christmas gift to participate in an online trend.
Parents shouldn’t put themselves in debt for a single celebration and Christmas gifts shouldn’t have to cost thousands of dollars to have meaning behind them.
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Nia Tipton is a staff writer with a bachelor’s degree in creative writing and journalism who covers news and lifestyle topics that focus on psychology, relationships, and the human experience.
