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A mother has defended her decision to spend \u00a3100 on each of her children for Christmas, insisting that she does not want to “spoil” them.<\/p>\n
Samantha Mary, 35, from Shoreham-by-Sea, West Sussex, was criticised by some parents on social media for her frugal festive spending, with some labelling her presents as “essentials” rather than gifts.<\/p>\n
However, Samantha hit back at the criticism, saying that she knows her children will love the presents she has chosen and that she does not want to overindulge them.<\/p>\n
She said: “We thought about how much we wanted to spend. I felt \u00a3100 was a realistic figure. Christmas is getting out of control. There is pressure to do Christmas Eve boxes and elves on the shelf. It gets bigger and bigger.<\/p>\n
READ MORE: I visited a cosy European city with a \u2018magical\u2019 Christmas market<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n “We want the children to be grateful for what they have. Less is more. We don’t want to overspoil the children.”<\/p>\n Samantha spent \u00a320 on stocking fillers – stuffing them with items like scrunchies, car toys, and shower gel – and \u00a380 on main presents.<\/p>\n She bought her son a railway set and toys for his kitchen set and found her step-daughter an art set and a Lilo and Stitch vest and pants.<\/p>\n This year, Samantha and her husband Richard, 40, who works in local government, decided to be more budget-conscious.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n “We’re in a living cost crisis. Things cost more. We’re being conscious of what we spent,” she shared. She spent September and October shopping for presents from supermarkets, Primark and Amazon.<\/p>\n Samantha filled her son’s stocking with biscuits, a water bottle, chalks, a bouncy ball, a book, a puzzle, and a vehicle set.<\/p>\n For her step-daughter, she picked out scrunchies, biscuits, shower gel, a Christmas cup, sweets, a stamper set, hair clips, and a Lilo and Stich brush.<\/p>\n For their main gifts, Samantha bought an art set for her step-daughter for \u00a330, a body warmer, some Lilo and Stitch pants and vests, a Disney bag, fluffy leggings and a hat. Her son got a railway set, kitchen set toys, a book, animal puzzles, bouncing bunnies, Play-Doh and blocks.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Despite being happy with her purchases, Samantha faced criticism from other parents on TikTok.<\/p>\n She responded: “There were a lot of people against it. I have put essential items like shower gel in the stockings. Christmas is about so much more. It’s about what the children want as well.”<\/p>\n Samantha wouldn’t choose to splurge on something like an iPad for Christmas or have a high budget for their gifts, even if she could afford to.<\/p>\n She explained: “If you spend a lot of money that becomes an expectation. But it’s up to parents what they spend on their children.”<\/p>\n Follow our social media accounts here on facebook.com\/ExpressUSNews\u00a0