A meaningful way we demonstrate our love for someone is through gift-giving, however there is value in considering a “less is more” mindset.
A quick look at nationwide gift-giving spending trends may or may not surprise you, depending on your own family traditions and values. For example, did you know:
- On average, parents in the USA spend $461 on a child every Christmas (over double what was spent in 2000), with Minnesota parents averaging $515/child and Iowa parents spending $335/child. In 2024, 36% of Americans took on “holiday debt”, averaging $1,181 (Source)
- 86% of grandparents in an AARP survey bought an average of $805 in gifts annually for their grandchildren (Source)
- Parent-purchased birthday gifts for a child average $100 (Source)
- A study from a decade ago found that parents will spend $6,500 on toys for their child, with the average home having 71 toys; Joshua Becker, author of Becoming Minimalist, stated that the average British 10-year old has 238 toys! (Source.)
Many parents sacrificially save and spend only to find toys and other gifts collecting dust in the back of a closet or under a bed; cardboard and bubble wrap packaging sometimes fostering more fun than the gifts themselves. One study showed that nearly half of children only play with 7-14% of the toys they own! The remaining 86-93% of toys become clutter filling not just our shelves, closets and under-bed storage bins, but our minds. Researchers think that clutter overloads the brain, slowing down processing. It can also trigger the anxiety and frustration-producing stress hormone cortisol and negatively affect our eating, productivity, parenting decisions, and even our generosity.
Children and adults alike do better when their environments are ordered, clean and uncluttered. (Source) Montessori classrooms and homes emphasize an ordered, clutter free and minimalist environment so that children’s brains receive just the right amount of stimulation to foster, rather than inhibit curiosity, concentration, and creativity. (Source.)
Additionally, the more children are surrounded by toys and other items designed to entertain them, the less likely they are to tap into the benefits of boredom. Unstructured free time helps children develop creativity, in addition to a host of other skills, such as problem-solving, resilience, patience, and planning strategies. Researchers who studied young children actually found that they were happier with fewer toys, and play longer with them, suggesting more enjoyment! (Source.)
When we reflect on our own childhoods, there may be a few fond memories of a special keepsake toy, but more often than not, it is the time spent with loved ones that becomes a treasured memory. A board game around a table, baseball in the backyard after dinner, weeding the garden turned to water fight, decorating cookies to a backdrop of a mountain of dishes in the kitchen sink, snuggles and bedtime stories . . .
This begs a question: do we need to spend as much as we do on our children? Or are there other, more meaningful ways to express our love? Embracing the “less is more” mindset can free up you and your child to make meaningful discoveries and lasting memories!
