Do you buy yourself a Christmas/Holiday present?

[street]

Not typically but as I was shopping for a present for my wife I saw a hat I liked. Price was right but I never buy much for myself but I thought I'm buying this hat for me for xmas.

 

[athena53]

I'm debating about a platinum chain. Right now I have a sterling silver chain holding my late mother's HS class ring, late DH's wedding band, a silver charm with an image of his fingerprint, and a few other baubles with a little less sentimental value. I live in dread of that chain breaking. I was looking at platinum on e-Bay and the prices looked manageable- till I realized that I was looking at 18" chains and the one I have now is 30", which I like because I can actually hold it out and look at the items. And last week I did a projection of my 2016 taxes. LOTS more than last year, due mainly to capital gains.

It's going to take me awhile to talk myself into it but I know I will.

 

[RockyMtn]

this year we bought ourselves a Google Home device and an IRobot vacuum cleaner. Love them both!

 

[tmm99]

I loosen the purse strings a bit during the holiday season. I used to get extra cash at the end of the year when I was w*king since FICA tax usually got paid up in October. Although I no longer w*rk, I still spend more during the holiday seasons - It somehow makes me feel more festive to splurge on food (good imported cheeses and more expensive seafood).

Meadbh, new pajamas sound good. Instead of my usual cheap stuff, I should get nicer PJ's.

 

[outdoorgirl02]

Santa gives us all scratch off lottery tickets in our stocking.

Yes! I always get these for our parents but will pick up some for DH and I too. Thanks for the suggestion.

 

[FiveDriver]

I used to love to go shopping for clothes for myself the week after Christmas. When I was still w*rking, that was always a slow week. I would take a long leisurely lunch and hit the Polo or LL Bean Outlet stores. With almost Military Precision I could swoop in before they knew what hit them !! The stores were not that crowded the week after, and clothes were on deep sale. I still have some high quality shirts hanging in my closet.

My Dear Wife gets carte blanche to pick her own gift, and she never overspends because she is value-minded just like me. We've been putting money into our retirement home all year long....so I just remind her about the Granite Countertops or the Bathroom Makeover.

 

[Milton]

Bought 4 NHL tickets Rangers Vs [-]Canadians[/-] Canadiens on March 4th.

Fixed!

 

[exnavynuke]

If I want something for myself, I'll evaluate the price/value and get it if it seems worthwhile, regardless of the time of year. I suppose I might be a little more likely to decide in favor of buying around Christmas or my birthday as a treat, but I don't specifically think about getting myself something just because it's the holidays.

Pretty much this for me as well.

 

[ShortInSeattle]

Normally, no. But this year I was feeling nostalgic for an old fashioned Christmas ,so I ordered a few gifts for DH and a few for me. It feels like we could use a little extra cheer this year.

[emoji4]

SIS

 

[Dog]

We pick up a couple of inexpensive things to put under the tree as we enjoy having gifts under the tree. This year we decided to purchase an iPad Pro for the two of us (our first such toy). It will be a gift from Santa. I still fill stockings on Christmas Eve since DD (33 yo) still enjoys being a kid again when she comes home for Christmas ;-)

 

[eyeonFI]

I buy myself something, wrap it, and label it from "santa" because I have young kids. But this may be the last year that they have even a glimmer of doubt about the non-existence of santa, so not sure if I'll do it next year.

I do tend to be more likely to indulge in small splurge purchases this time of year. Just bought a cheap projector to host a movie night for my son's friends.

 

[ElizabethT]

Not since ER'ing in that we really don't want for much. We do often go on a little buying binge in December, however, if our yearly budget is not yet depleted. This year that meant matching Fitbits, an upgraded Kindle Fire, and almost-front-row seats to a holiday production we both wanted to see.

 

[Bestwifeever]

I would definitely buy myself a little (or big) splurge gift for the holidays. I would love to time a new car purchase to fall just before Christmas.

My kids and their kids need to give us gifts (we tell them no but they insist, and I suppose it is important for the grandkids to learn about generosity, giving better than receiving, etc., etc.) so we give them ideas when asked. Some of them are small things I'd otherwise treat myself to.

Unrelated: I think the retailers in recent years have marked down everything so much before Christmas that the post-Christmas sales aren't that impressive any more.

 

[wmc1000]

Usually no but I couldn't resist ordering 2 pair of firehose pants today and one pair is fleece lined for winter weather! Or at least I used Christmas as the excuse to buy them

 

[Helen]

We way underspend our budget since retiring so if we want something we just buy it. Other than travelling and donating to charity there isn't much we want.

I did get my spouse a couple of small items so she'll have something to open on Christmas. I think she'll like them too. One is a book on the rules of football. She watches a lot of football but when I ask her questions about a play she often isn't too sure about the rules. She is flying to Texas to meet up with a brother and sister at the end of December for some bowl game, so maybe she'll read up on it first. The second gift is a pair of really light weight slipper/shoes that will be good for our trip to Australia and for backpacking this summer. I got myself a pair too.

 

[Just_Steve]

Fixed!

Merci beaucoup.
veuillez pardonner mon ignorance?

 

[MissMolly]

Not usually, but after hearing you all talk about the Amazon Echo I ordered one last week when it was on sale. But they were out of stock and it wouldn't be shipped until 12/27. So that gave me time to talk myself out of spending the money and cancelled the order last night.

 

[RobbieB]

One of mine arrived today -

 

[Scuba]

+1 This sums it up pretty well for me too.

+1
Me too

 

[bradaz2488]

Quick answer to OP question is no. I'll buy myself gifts all year round and the best price possible.


We have not formally exchange gifts for Xmas, birthdays or anniversaries for a long time. We do make special plans to do things (dinners, vacations) during these times to mark the occasion. We both came to the realization that trying to find that "perfect" gift for each other usually resulted undo "stress" some level disappointment on both sides because they did not get the reaction they were expecting. We have no kids, so maybe this is why we do not do the "gift" exchanging thing.


However, we do make a point each year to do support our local Xmas Angel program. This year we bought toys and cloths for 6 kids that would not have Xmas gifts to open on Xmas. It is a fun shopping experience for us and makes us feel good as well.

 

[Islandtraveler]

I bought DW an 18" Smokey Mountain Cooker Smoker. I know, I know, I shouldn't have.

 

[Meadbh]

Thanks very I hope everyone. Like most questions posed on the forum, the answers are all over the place. Many people described buying gifts for partners or spouses, which was not my question. Let's close this thread now. Again, thank you, and Merry Christmas or Happy Hanukkah to you all.

 

[Bamaman]

There are some people that really don't need or require much. My wife and I do no longer shop, but we'll buy online when something's absolutely required.

I usually buy some kind of tool. This year, she gets a electric pressure cooker--after reading all about them on this website. I'm not so sure we'll be getting the gift of travel in the near future.

 

[devans0]

DW and I have an agreement, she shows me what I bought her and I do the same.

We tried out a voice operated internet device from Amazon and installed it two days ago. It was the $40 Dot, and hooked the output to an old stereo. It is well worth it to us. We're playing musical 'stump the Dot' and having it play everything from classical, jazz, instrumentals, Christmas music, or anything else that comes to mind. Quick news briefs, weather briefs, and timers have been all that we've used so far, but even that is handy. While getting dressed and washed, getting a temperature check is nice. Timer and alarm is useful in cooking.

All those fun questions that come up are answered before I could retrieve a device, much less type a Google query has been fun, too. Those debates with DW that are mis-membered are quickly brought to a conclusion, and the pay up if I was silly enough to bet on the outcome.

This is only day three. I imagine it will only become more useful as we learn more on how to use it.

 

[Mango1956]

Our electric dryer just died so I know what we are getting for Christmas. Ugh! Shopping for appliances is awful[emoji46]