Reptile & Amphibian Forums

okay, flip side of the regifting question -

Do you return gifts?

Only once ever in my life, and that was back in high school.

I'm lucky, my family tends to give very practical (socks, underwear) and very individual gifts - one year everyone but the kids got gifts from garage sales and it was one of the best years ever. But how many people would be excited to get a 1920's bread board radio table that needed repair and refinished? (Its now in use in Punky's room)

I can't remember ever returning a gift...

My cousin on the other hand... She has four small children (ages 2-10). I spend Christmas Day with them in Philly. Before the opening of piles upon piles upon piles of gifts for the kids commences, she always announces, the such-and-such location is the return pile (a piece of furniture). As the kids open the gifts, at least a quarter are put in the return pile by her... It is so awful it makes me nauseus. The oldest daughter (10) now just walks over quietly and puts a stack of gifts she doesn't want on the pile. She returns more than she keeps. My cousin returns almost every gift someone other than she gives to the kids... Hers are the only ones she keeps... It is to the point that family gives her money to buy the kids gifts herself. I call her in October and say keep on DVD in mind for me to buy for the "family" gift... She buys thousands of dollars in gifts for the kids and not much else for anyone else to get... I have to have her not buy all the DVDs released that year and save one for me.

It is gross gluttony. She wasn't raised that way. Her sister (my other cousin) visited last year and was stunned. She passed a couple home-made pajama type gifts out to all the kids and one main, nice gift to her two boys and we spent the next 3 hours watching my other cousin's kids open their gifts... and put stuff in the return pile...

The year her Mom and Dad visited just after Christmas, they hid most of the gifts for the kids so Mom and Dad didn't know how much they gave the kids...

I go because it is family and you can bite your tongue for 24 hours. The sad thing is, these gift frenzies and stacks of returns are recorded on video every year...
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Tammy
Stanley and Pookey

Those folks need to be given a good can of whoop-ass for a gift! People (at least I do)spend time and money trying to come up with something special for everyone. If gifts are required in your family, remember railroad salvage or the dollar store for those folks. Reminds me of my brother, geeky-boy. He is the one who got us the coconut windchimes (tacky-tacky) in another post. Every year it is a joke what he will buy from salvage. Last year it was an outdated cheap ornament. Mind you, the kids get nice stuff, and we have them (along with the rest of the family) over for dinner. Start with smoked turkey, shrimp, roast beef (last year it was a 22 lb one), ice cream roll, etc. The meal is not cheap,and he always grabs the best bottle of wine we have out for himself. Plus, he invited HIS friend to dinner! At OUR house!
grrr bah humbug

I don't remember ever returning a gift. Our family always gave nice presents at holidays. They couldn't afford expensive things, but the presents were always given a lot of thought and in good taste. I can understand if a gift is really bad, but it doesn't seem right to return something for any reason. I guess I wasn't raised that way. I was always taught to appreciate whatever I was given. If I ever received anything I didn't like (which I don't remember happening), I should just accept it and then do whatever I wished with it later on.

Ellen

The meal is not cheap,and he always grabs the best bottle of wine we have out for himself. Plus, he invited HIS friend to dinner! At OUR house!
grrr bah humbug

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Ahhh, the holidays. I wouldn't miss them for the world... Ours makes Reality TV look like it should be on the Hallmark Channel.
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Tammy
Stanley and Pookey

I must say that I have never returned a single gift in my life.
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Tessa Onyx, Foudini, Charlee, Spottie, ShyRaven, Buddy, Tuxie, Widdle Attila Sipowitz, Lizzie, Minnie, ET, Mylo, Penny (We be house cats at last), and Salem, Wicca and Marmalade (We iz also house cats, we guess)and the 5 porch kits also Riley da goggie and Buddha da baby hamster too
Tabitha and Samantha..always in our hearts
A house without cats is like a garden without flowers

nope, for the same reason as above
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PHTessie

No, I've never returned a gift. If I don't like it or it's not my style, it will be moved down to the storage room in the basement where Pam has a large selection of my rejections to choose from when she regifts. HA!
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Ruby and the Kitties
Simba, Samantha, Katrina & KatyKatt
Meow!! Meow!! Meow!! Meow!!

How wonderful to do nothing and then rest afterwards. Meow!