How much is your limit for gift for child friend b-d present

yo'ma ↓

Wed, Apr 09 2008, 9:05 pm

So far, with a little over a month of school, my daughter (4th grade) had 5 b-d parties of her classmates. One son (5 yrs) had one in school and one elsewhere. Another son (3yrs) had one. And the other son just (so far) had one in school.
I don't give presents when they have a party in school, but when they have one in their home or something, I have to. It wouldn't be fair to the b-d kid. But this is crazy! Usually my limit is $20 pesos (divide by 3 and you get dollars), but there have been so many, I've been giving less than $15.
Also what's your age limit for making a b-d party with the classmates?

RachelEve14

Thu, Apr 10 2008, 4:22 am

We're in Israel so I'm sure the local standards are different, but people who I am friends with, who give my kids gifts on b-day and gave me baby presents, etc, I usually give somewhere about $10 - 15 (US). They give my kids about the same.

My girls had a birthday party when they turned 4, most of their friends from gan gave them small presents: a coloring book & markers, a little stamp kit, stickers, a book of mazes, etc. I'm thinking most of them were in teh $2 - $5 range, which seems to be the norm around here for regular birthday parties.

Tamiri ↓

Thu, Apr 10 2008, 5:25 am

Raisin wrote:

you really have ask one of the local mothers what is acceptable.

I spend about €10-€15. If I see nice toys on sale I stock up for the future.

Wow, Raisin, I would have gone broke on that in the U.S. Fifteen dollars for a birthday present for someone else's kid? That's too much. I thought ten dollars was too much as well, but that was the "minimum acceptable" five years ago, unless you found a great sale and the item looked as if you had spent on it.
In Israel, the little kids get the junkiest gifts and it's wonderful all around: doesn't cost a lot, kids are thrilled with whatever they get, the junk breaks soon so you can throw it out and not have more "stuff" in the house. This type of gift giving has really taken a lot of pressure off me. I try and spend under 15 nis which is like $4 or 2.5 Euro (how do you make that Euro sign?). Smarter people than me spend even less!

↑ Raisin ↓

Thu, Apr 10 2008, 5:34 am

Tamiri wrote:

Raisin wrote:

you really have ask one of the local mothers what is acceptable.

I spend about €10-€15. If I see nice toys on sale I stock up for the future.

tamiri I also think it is too much. If my kids went to more bday parties I would spend less. My kids only go to 3 or 4 parties a year, if that. But the minimum I could spend is probably €6 or so, for some crayons or pencils.

Stuff is expensive here. Sad

on my keyboard you press alt gr and 4/$ together and you get €.

↑ Tamiri

Thu, Apr 10 2008, 5:49 am

I got alt
gr (what is that?)
and shift 4 ($ sign)

Can you please tell me what the second step is?

Oy, thing are very expensive over there. 6 Euros for crayons?
In the States, cheaper things were available, as there are lots of sales and discount stores, but people did not want to look cheap. It's a standard.

↑ Raisin

Thu, Apr 10 2008, 8:00 am

€6 is for a nice set of crayola twistables or markers. You can get for much much less unbranded pencils or markers (50c - €2) but I wouldn't give that as a present, unless it was with something else.

to the right of my space bar is a button marked Alt Gr. Press that at the same time as pressing the button at the top marked 4 and $. (mine has 4, $, and € on one button) 2 buttons, pressed silmutaneiously.

Maybe this only works on european keyboards.

Clarissa ↓

Thu, Apr 10 2008, 8:10 am

I spend anywhere between $17 and $25, depending on several factors, including our relationship with the kid and his/her family. I usually try not to go over $22 or so, but sometimes there's something that we really think the particular kid will like.

When our son was in pre-school, one of the moms in the class organized class gifts for every kid. We all chipped in and she bought a bunch of things. That way every kid got something from the class for his/her birthday, and no parents were expected to get anything extra for the party. People were still allowed to get things, but they didn't feel an obligation. That way kids who didn't have parties still got something from the class. I posted about this before, I really felt it was a great idea, and a way to avoid the craziness. It works best for little kids who don't have strong preferences or interests yet.

↑ yo'ma ↓

Thu, Apr 10 2008, 8:13 am

Quote:

When our son was in pre-school, one of the moms in the class organized class gifts for every kid. We all chipped in and she bought a bunch of things. That way every kid got something from the class for his/her birthday, and no parents were expected to get anything extra for the party. People were still allowed to get things, but they didn't feel an obligation. That way kids who didn't have parties still got something from the class. I posted about this before, I really felt it was a great idea, and a way to avoid the craziness. It works best for little kids who don't have strong preferences or interests yet.

That is brilliant. I know that my sister and my mother do it on their block, but I never thought about it for a class. Very smart!!

↑ Clarissa

Thu, Apr 10 2008, 8:22 am

One thing I mentioned in my other post about this. The mother who organized this, a friend of mine, was probably the wealthiest mother in the class, a woman who could certainly afford any gift for any kid. But she did it out of concern for those who would feel overwhelmed with the expense and effort involved in dealing with all of those gifts, and also to make sure that kids whose families didn't have parties (maybe because of the expense) didn't feel excluded. She's a really thoughtful person.

tovarena

Mon, May 19 2008, 2:27 pm

My twins just got invited to their first children's birthday party. For now, since they're babies attending a one year old's party, I'm just giving one ~$15 gift. But it started me thinking about later years. What do y'all think is appropriate if they're both attending a child's birthday party? Can I give just one gift from both of them? If so, should it be a bit more expensive gift? Since I've never done the kids' birthday thing (except close family - and that's really different, IMO), I've been figuring maybe $10 or so per birthday gift. But can I get away with one gift from both at that level?

↑ yo'ma

Mon, May 19 2008, 2:33 pm

tovarena wrote:

Yes, 1 gift for both of them. I had twins in my class and that's what they did. A bit more expensive is nice, but it really depends on the friend, how many they're invited to. Can't say how much it should be because who knows what will happen with inflation and all Confused

Twoisacharm

Thu, May 21 2009, 12:38 pm

I go to the dollar store.....a balloon with a small 'shmontze' always goes down well with little kids - they like the balloon of course!!!

for older kids/adults - well I own a spa so I give a soap/beauty set etc
stationary is also cool - although its prob outdated - I used to love getting those sets as presents....but I stil write letters...... embarrassed