Who do you buy Christmas gifts for?

[BeachBum]

Just for fun, I was wondering who you buy Christmas gifts for?

[SueK]

DH and I buy for each other, and also for the girls, of course. We get his parents gifts and my mom as well. Each niece and nephew gets a gift, too, however earlier this year his nephew's wife had a baby and so now we'll probably just get the baby a gift instead.

I have a good friend that I still exchange Christmas gifts with, but she's the only one other than immediate family for me. Jerry does get gifts for the people who work for him and he gets his boss something, too.

I make cookie trays for our friends and mail carrier, paper carrier, etc.

We get gifts (usually gift cards for somewhere) for Sara's teachers and teacher assistants, too.

[Canice]

Just DBF! He's the only one I officially shop for, anyhow. I often pick up a little something for a friend or two if I see something that leaps out at me, but we don't regularly exchange Christmas or birthday gifts anymore. I also shop for children (in shelters or otherwise in need) and like to give food to charity or PJs and toiletries to women's shelters.

[colleency]

Two grandparents. Five parents. Three nephews. One niece. A couple of friends.

DH and I exchange stockings or a gift or sometimes buy something for the house.

And Gamera always gets some fishies for his turtle tank.

[jjsooner73]

My parents, my grandma, DBF, my doggies, my 3 closest girl friends, my coteacher, my former co-worker, my oldest nephew, and I usually try to make food gifts and give to my aunts.
I use to buy for a friend's children, but we no longer speak. I guess this will be the first year in a while that I'm not buying for little ones. My oldest nephew is 14--I'll probably give him money and/or an University of Oklahoma sweatshirt.

[stefania4]

DH and I buy for each other, our parents, one of his grandmothers and one of mine, and our nieces & nephew. There's a dear friend of ours that we exchange with, but that's about it. One of my grandmothers decided a few years ago that we shouldn't exchange gifts anymore (she's on a fixed income, etc.). I still renew her Southern Living subscription, anyway - I've gotten it for her for years, she loves it, and at this point I think she has forgotten where it came from. If $30/year (or whatever) makes her happy, I'm glad to do it.

[Molli526]

DH and I exchange gifts

Charlie
My parents
His Dad and Step-Mom
His Mom
Two of my siblings/spouses (we do secret santa, each of us drawing a name)
Two of his siblings/spouses (we do secret santa, each of us drawing a name)
Two Nieces

[AmyO26]

It seems as if we buy for so many people...actually thinking of neat/creative ideas is the hardest part!

DH and I buy for each other :)
We buy for:
My parents
DH's mom
My brother
My sister/BIL and their kids (ages 2 and 4)
DH's grandparents
My Grandma (We do a "house" gift basket since two adult aunts and an uncle still live with her! :eek: )
My aunt and uncle
DH's best friend
My best friend
My "Secret Santa" at work

I sometimes feel guilty because we buy so much for my family (collectively) vs. DH's, but then he's an only child, his father passed away, his family has never bought for "extended family" (aunts, uncles, etc). My family has always bought for everybody. He never complains, though, and I think he enjoys the process of buying presents as much as I do! (Thank goodness!)

[Blissful_in_TX]

DH
Our son
6 brothers and sisters
1 BIL
3 nieces and nephews
1 aunt & uncle
My mom
My mom's boyfriend
DH's "mom"
Our pug
2 secret santa type exchanges

Not really any friends unless I make a liqueur or sweets.

[AmyO26]

Oh...and the pets! We have a dog and two cats...how could I forget them? We also include dog/cat treats with others' gifts, where applicable.

[Kayaksoup]

I buy for my parents and sister. Everyone else gets homemade treats in handpainted boxes.
Rob and I do not exchange gifts, just cards. We will buy one big gift for us. One year it was the computer, one year the KithenAid and CuisineArt... This year, its cooking school:D

[gertdog]

DH
My parents
His parents (divorced and re-married, so two sets)
My grandmothers
His grandparents
My sister
His stepbrother, sister-in-law, and nephew (he has two other stepbrothers but they don't exchange gifts)
One of my aunts
Gertie the dog :)

[HejazSunKat]

Aside from DH, his Mom and one of his siblings (the couples draw a name apiece so each couple only buys 2 gifts) most of the people on my Christmas list are little people and I'm getting to the point where I wish my family would stop having kids or that they would at least please grow up because I HATE going to toy stores! :D I just can't stand all the sensory overload, it makes me queasy to go into those places where there are 5 billion brightly colored boxes to look at.

What do people do when the nieces/nephews etc get pretty long in the tooth? I think we stopped buying a gift for my oldest nephew when he turned 18. It's kind of ridiculous when they're almost adults and working.

[SamanthaD]

My 2 children
My DH
My parents
His parents
My Grandparents
His grandmothers
His brother
His other brother, wife and 4 children
My aunt, her husband, their 3 children
My friend, her husband and their 2 girls
My son's best friend, the little boy next door
5 teachers, 2 for one DS and 3 for the other
My secret pal
Yikes... I better get started and look for some bargains!!!

[JanetJ]

DH
3 parents
1 grandmother
1 aunt and uncle
3 friends
DH's best friend and his wife
2 sets of longtime family friends
3 secret santa type exchanges

We give cookies to our neighbors, DH's employees, and my employees as well.

[stefania4]

Originally posted by HejazSunKat
What do people do when the nieces/nephews etc get pretty long in the tooth? I think we stopped buying a gift for my oldest nephew when he turned 18. It's kind of ridiculous when they're almost adults and working. I think it's fine to stop giving gifts at 18, or to make a donation in their honor to a cause they value instead. Unfortunately in my family the parents' & grandparents' generations don't consider anyone an adult until they're married, and I got married at 33. I mentioned to my grandparents and aunt several times that, at 24/27/30 years old, a card would be just fine, but they wouldn't hear of it.

[Beth]

I have

2 boys
DH
My parents
DH's brother and SIL
DH's sister and BIL
DH's niece
2 nieces and 1 nephew on my side under 18
a delayed baby gift to DH's nephew
my sister and BIL
my brother and SIL (they like to draw names, but everyone else wind up buying a gift for everyone :rolleyes: )

20 teachers and several more school staff (when you're on both PTO boards and a grade level coordinator, and your boys have always given gifts to all their teachers, it's not the year to change traditions -- I've been knitting scarves and we'll make rubs, cookies and wassail for most of the rest)

making rubs for about 20 of DH's coworkers

book swaps at school

haven't thought about neighbors yet, but will have a few things to make or get for them

and sometimes, myslef (DH had to travel out of the country and was working on several deals with no time to shop -- I bought my own birthday and Christmas gifts and it carried over to the next year. Not sure about this year, but I found a pair of cashmere lined leather gloves under $20 and I have wanted a pair that fit my long hands for many years -- I picked them up just in case ;) )

We also both come from families with a lot of birthdays in Dec and January, so I'll be buying birthday gifts for my mom, SIL, brother, Dad, SIL, DH (and possibly ME! :D).

Surely I've forgotten something. ;) :p

[Wendy w]

Lots.

Sister #1 & her DH and 15 year old nephew
Mom
Aunt
Sister #2 and her DH (I do not with her son, wife, and 3 kids)
oldest nephew, wife, their son

Boss & coworker
I am giving homemade jelly to some coworkers and a few friends
4 good friends & roomie
2 DH's of friends (they will be getting spiced nuts, fudge, almond roca this year)
Cordel, the cockatiel
Timmy, the parakeet
Kaiser and Brody (my friend's dogs)

Whew.

Editing to add that my school takes up a cause every year. Last year, it was gifts for a local shelter for abused children. Another was a canned good drive.

[ellen6242]

I buy Chanukah presents for:

DBF
Mom
Sister and her DH and their 3 kids


I buy Christmas gifts for:

My boss
My bookkeeper
Each year my company works with a local Catholic organization to get the names of children who otherwise would have no Christmas. I pick a few children and buy gifts for them.

Ellen

[eas11]

Originally posted by HejazSunKat

What do people do when the nieces/nephews etc get pretty long in the tooth? I think we stopped buying a gift for my oldest nephew when he turned 18. It's kind of ridiculous when they're almost adults and working.

Actually, since this is college time, we give our nieces/nephews gifts (Chanukah) of money. Along with the check we give a GC to a local/close to campus eatery, or even Staples, Target, or anything close to campus that is useful for a college student.

Other than immediate family, we both bring fun food/snack baskets to work to share with all. Included are mini individual tea or spice packs. There are a few kids I buy for- friends' children. I do several charity gift programs, although my major giving times are April and Sept.

Ellyn

[Alethea]

Fun thread! I buy gifts for:
DBF
My parents
My grandparents
Close college friends (there are 5 of us, but we draw names from a hat)
1 cousin

I do a small gift and/or baked goodies for:
DBF's parents
4 coworkers
trainer
vet
farrier

And then I break the bank on the assortment of my and my parents' pets.:o :o

[funnybone]

We basically only buy for the kids now. Since all our family lives far away, we get our parents gifts when we visit them. When we lived closer to family, we used to buy gifts for the nieces and nephews, and we continued to send Christmas and birthday gifts for a year or two after. However, we stopped since we never got a thank you in return. Also, my kids never received a card, let alone gifts, so it was beginning to be one sided. Money was not an issue either.

[GalNC]

I buy for:

DH
my parents
in-laws
my sister and brother
DH's brother and his girlfriend
my 3 grandparents
DH's grandmother
my god parents
1 of my uncles
a friend and her daughter

a couple of close friends

secret santa at work
co-teacher
aide
4 office staff at school

[mbrogier]

Rob and I "exchange" gifts. :D We normally buy something for the house/kitchen and buy each other clothes, etc. (it's more of an excuse to buy the stuff we need but normally don't spend money on...sometimes we don't actually buy all the gifts AT Christmas but the other person knows they're getting more after we recover from all the other gifts we have to buy)

My family:
Mom
Dad--this year he has a girlfriend. I think I'll get something they can enjoy together. My mom would go ballistic if she knew I was acknowledging "her" :rolleyes: She's nice and she saved my Dad's life this year. What mom doesn't know won't hurt her.
My niece--my brother and I don't really exchange gifts--he can't afford it. I make sure that I help him give his daughter a good Christmas.
My aunt
My mom's best friend--she gives me a gift, so I get something for her, too.

Rob's Family:
Mom and Dad
SIL--I already have her gift
BIL/SIL--we don't exchange gifts, but I bought MIL and other SIL a neat kitchen gadget, so I got one for SIL, too. I also got one for a friend of mine that lives in Detroit. We'll see her and go out to eat when we visit.

Our cats. My mom gets them presents, too. :D

I'll make cookies for Rob's coworkers.
I'll also have little gifts for anyone else that comes to mind.

[imloulou]

Good question:

1. DH and I usually decide on a power tool or cooking tool...lol! Or nothing at all this year since all our extra $ has been spent on Hurricane Ivan!!!

2. My Mom has 7 brothers an sisters...and most have kids and grandkids so we take the whole lot (aroud 45+ of first cousins, aunts, uncles, etc) and trade names so our immediate family buys 4 gifts under a 10 buck (+ or - a few bucks)per gift limit.

3. 2 kids (7 and 8)

4. A few friends that I just want to get something little for (usually a mag subscription or a family game)

That is it! And i am proud to say I am about finished buying!!

[imloulou]

And I have to add baked goods that I make for my husbands side of the family. I love this part!!!!

[Meganator]

DH and I buy for each other and we buy for our 15-year old son. We do a name exchange in my family, so we buy for 2 people and then DH and I each receive a gift from one of them. My siblings and I take turns filling my parents stockings, so I only do that every 4 years. Other than that, we don't give any gifts except home-baked cookies - the number of people who receive those varies from year to year, depending on how much baking I get done.

[MiMo]

My boyfriend
My parents (and their dog)
My brother
My boyfriend's sister and parents
My four best friends
Two co-workers

All other friends get a card with a picture of me and DBF or a plate of homemade cookies.

And Mamasue gets an ornament in the ornament exchange, but that was purchased months ago. :D

That's it. I'm making it simple this year...just the way it should be.

[tamawrite]

Each other
Our parents (3 sets since mine are divorced & remarried)
My brother
DH's sister
My grandparents (always a photo)

This year, we'll aslo bring a hostess gift since Christmas is at my aunt's house.

[HDgirl]

We normally don't exchange gifts at xmas but do something at vday instead.

My DS and DD
My mom
His mom
4 nieces
3 nephews
His grandmother
my god daughter who is not related

Homemade gifts go to,

three neighbors
my sister and brother
his two brothers
6 friends

I think that's about it.

[clairea]

I buy Chanukah gifts for:

FIL and S-MIL
2 SIL and their husbands
1 BIL and his wife
3 nephews
1 niece

I buy Christmas gifts for:
DH
DS
DD
DH's secretary
my assistant teacher
the current year's teachers (3)
3 "secret santa" exchanges
1 nephew
several "angel tree" children

My parents, my brother and SIl, and DH and I do not exchange gifts among adults. Instead we all make a donation to a charity we all support.

Homemade goodies go to:
several neighbors and friends
the kids' former teachers and specials teachers
DH's co-workers and support staff (other than his secretary)
the office staff at both kids' schools
mailman, garbagemen, etc.

Claire