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Len Penzo dot Com

The offbeat personal finance blog for responsible people.

A Peek at My Kids’ Christmas Lists

By Len Penzo

Readers: Just for fun, I thought I would repost this article from Christmas Eve 2009

santaWell, according to my friend the Silicon Valley Blogger, Zhu Zhu Pets are the hot Christmas gift item for 2009. Don’t tell my kids that though because those little buggers didn’t make their Christmas lists this year, saving the Honeybee and I the need to battle for scarce supplies.

Today, I thought I would share Matthew (12-years-old) and Nina’s (10) list with you, just to give you an idea what somebody other than your own kids want for Christmas this year.

Maybe their lists will give you some last minute gift ideas as well.

Matthew

Here’s the good news: My son only put one thing on his list this year! Hooray! The last time he had a Christmas wish list of less than 147 items was when he was 3-years-old and he had to dictate his list to the Honeybee. Then again, I believe he still would have reached 147 items that year but the Honeybee cut him off in the middle of our conversation because it was time for his nap.

The Bad News: The one item on his list runs in the neighborhood of $300. So much for Christmas on a budget.

1. XBox 360 Video Game System

My son has always been a risk taker and his “all or nothing strategy” is definitely a risk. If you ask me it’s not the smartest strategy — after all, if it fails he’s left his Christmas gift fate in the hands of his out-of-touch mom and dad.

He was given fair warning.

So, will Matthew get the XBox, or will he be telling his children and grandchildren years from now all about the Terrible Christmas of “aught-nine” where all he got was a bunch of crappy clothes like cheesy Christmas sweaters, underwear, and socks?

Well, that depends on if he has been a good boy this year, doesn’t it?

Nina

Unlike my son, who communicated his list verbally, Nina gets bonus points for putting together a very artistic Christmas list made with red and green construction paper. If she gets everything on her list, the grand total amounts to slightly less than $300.

1. Bop-It Game
2. Webkinz
3. Microphone and Stand
4. Crayola Illumination Station
5. Pocket Tape Recorder
(so she can have “evidence” against Matthew next time they get in an argument)
6. “Jonas stuff”
(i.e., any merchandise from the teen-group The Jonas Brothers)
7. Crayon Maker
8. Watercolor crayons and paper
9. Fun Slides
10. Roller Skates
11. Perler beads
12. Playdough

Ah, Daddy’s little girl! If I could I would give her the world — but I can’t so I’m left trying to satisfy her Christmas list. Why can’t she stay this age forever?

Photo Credit: music2fish2

December 24, 2015

Comments

  1. 1

    SEO consultant David says

    Last year, one of my daughters sent Santa only one item, to be sure she would get it. The strategy worked so well, that she repeated it this year.

  2. 2

    Ashley says

    Awwww, I read your daughters list and thought, that looks like a list I would have had as a kid(replace Jonas with New Kids on The Block, though)!

    With your son, depending on his behavior, a good idea might be to give him most of the money (in cash) and tell him he’s got to save or work his way to the rest (maybe the last $50 bucks or so). That’s a good life lesson for a kid and a chance for them to learn to appreciate the value of dollar.

  3. 3

    Scott Hannah says

    Awww thats so cute, I want kids now! LOL. I remember making Christmas lists as a kid and sending it to santa, lol.

  4. 4

    Tim Moon says

    Looks like it’s make-or-break on your son’s list! Good luck! The tape recorder for your daughter is hilarious!

    Merry Christmas!

  5. 5

    Paul @ FiscalGeek says

    That’s hilarious, I love your daughter’s list so cute. My 6 year old wrote down everything he could think of going for more of a shotgun approach and my 8 year old has never really communicated exactly what he wants. My 6 year old is frantic for him thinking he will be getting nothing, and the 8 year old says it’s too late Santa is packing up so I’ll get what I get. Facebook was then mentioned as a possibility for reaching him. Too much fun.

    I suspect the Xbox 360 might be somewhat easy to swallow for Dad’s use after the kids go to sleep? I hear Modern Warfare is fantastic.

    My boys will be getting some official Red Ryder BB gun’s and I’m terribly excited about that. I love Christmas! Merry Christmas to you and yours!

    • 6

      Len Penzo says

      @David: My son is definitely crazy like a fox sometimes.
      @Tim: I thought the tape recorder was funny too. When Nina told me why she wanted it, I had to do everything in my power not to keep from laughing because she was so serious about it. LOL
      @Ashley: You don’t know my son. If I gave him, say, $150 for Christmas and told him to save or work his way to the rest of it, that money would be gone faster than you could say “ho, ho, ho!” In fact, if I know my son (and I do), Matthew would most likely end up spending the money on pop rocks, paper clips, and rubber bands.
      @Paul: Merry Christmas to you and yours too! Your kids seem to have a well-reasoned approach to the whole Santa thing. It does help that I will be able to take advantage of the XBox thing. I’ll have to make sure Matthew get Modern Warfare for his B-Day – assuming I, I mean, he gets his XBox. Re: The RedRyder BB guns… LOL! You haven’t had to pull your son’s tongues off of any metal poles have you? LOL

  6. 7

    Ina says

    WOW just what I was looking for. Came here by searching for guitar improv scales

    • 8

      Len Penzo says

      Heh. Imagine that.

Trackbacks

  1. Why I Love Christmas: A Guest Post from My Daughter, Nina - Len Penzo dot Com says:
    December 15, 2017 at 4:15 am

    […] course, kids dream about getting all of the things they wanted on their Christmas list. I am one of those […]

  2. Why I Love Christmas: A Guest Post from My Daughter, Nina - The New York Times says:
    December 16, 2017 at 3:04 am

    […] course, kids dream about getting all of the things they wanted on their Christmas list. I am one of those […]

  3. Why I Love Christmas: A Guest Post from My Daughter, Nina – Len Penzo dot Com says:
    December 3, 2018 at 2:33 pm

    […] course, kids dream about getting all of the things they wanted on their Christmas list. I am one of those […]

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