Guest Post: What Should You Get Your Kids for the Holidays?

What Should You Get Your Kids for the Holidays? 

There seems to be a fine line between what is and isn’t appropriate for kids to be receiving as gifts for the holidays. While we all want to spoil our kids and give them anything they want, our budgets and consciences can’t always allow us to.  And quite honestly, there are just some toys that shouldn’t even be allowed to be on the market. 

My kids are still young. However, that didn’t stop my oldest, who is only 8, from demanding one of the dozens of new cell phones for Christmas. I was a little shocked by the request. Normally, I have to worry about a doll that is a little too scantily clad or a loud toy that I know will drive me nuts. But considering when and when not to give my kid a cell phone was a whole other ball game. I figured we wouldn’t be having this conversation until she was at least 13. 

After I responded with, “maybe in a few years,” I was instantly rebutted. 

“So-and-so in my class got an iPhone for her birthday.” 

Parents are allowed to give their kids whatever they see fit, and choosing when to give your kid a cell phone is entirely a decision up to you. But all I could wonder was, how do they keep that cell phone bill down? 

My children definitely don’t understand the value of the dollar yet, and I really don’t see why they would even need a cell phone yet. If they are not at school, then they are with me or a friends house. If they aren’t leaving my sight, I really don’t think they need a phone. The last thing I want is a letter home from a teacher saying that my child disrupted class by texting or streaming videos in the middle of a lesson. 

But I am glad my daughter did bring up the request for a cell phone. It made me think a little bit more in-depth about the entire situation, and better prepared me for the smart phone request to come up again and again. Now, I’ll just be lucky to see if I can’t convince her to really want some Monster High dolls instead.