Finance Gets Personal

While I feel like I had a frugal Valentine’s Day and birthday season, I estimate that we spend about $3,500 per year on gifts. That’s almost $300 per month! ($140 if you don’t count Christmas, which we pay for out of one of our two extra paychecks) This includes gifts, dining out on special occasions, birthday parties, holiday expenses, cards, etc.

I’m not really sure how it got so out of control, or if it is really all that unusual. I try to stick to the following gift limits based on the receipient’s relationship to me:

Birthdays:
$70 Child
$60 Spouse
$30 Parent
$20 Other Relatives and Friends (no party, no present - unless it’s a nephew/niece)
$10-$15 Child’s Friends (no party, no present)

Christmas:
$350 Spouse, $50 Spouse’s Stocking (yes, I realize that’s a lot, but we don’t get much throughout the year)
$300 Child, $30 Child’s Stocking (kids get presents from everyone!)
$50 Parent
$20 Sibling or Niece/Nephew

Weddings:
$50 Good Friends/Relatives
$25 Everyone Else
$30-$35 Shower Gift
$20 Bachelorette/Bachelor Gift

Other Stuff:
$30-$35 Baby Shower Gift
$30 Mother’s/Father’s Day Gift
$170 Child’s Birthday Party/Cake
$25 Anniversary Gift for Spouse
$100 Anniversary Dinner/Entertainment
$130 Hotel for Anniversary
$50 4th of July Entertainment (i.e., Fireworks)
$100 Christmas Entertainment (i.e., Symphony)

Tags: Spending