Mom explains why she's refusing to buy any Christmas presents this year
A mom has revealed that she's not buying presents for her children this year, but they won't go completely gift-less.
As Christmas very quickly approaches, some parents may be frantically buying last minute stocking fillers for their children, or might still be tallying up the huge amounts they've already spent in recent weeks.
But this isn't the case for Dinah van Tulleken and her husband Chris, as they agreed that they wouldn't buy their two youngsters anything new this year.
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Dinah and Chris are the parents to their two daughters: Lyra, six, and three-year-old Sasha.
While they've vowed not to buy gifts, Lyra and Sasha will still be waking up to presents under the tree as Dinah has a clever hack that will see their daughters wake up to gifts on Christmas morning without them having to spend any extra cash.
The mom revealed her idea was inspired by Boxing Day last year, with her explaining in an op-ed for the Daily Mail: "My plan for this year's Christmas started on Boxing Day last year.
"Surrounded by wrapping paper and abandoned gifts, I suggested to my husband Chris that next time we shouldn't buy anything — for each other or the children."
Instead, Dinah has decided to do a little bit of recycling.
"This year we're updating Lyra's bike rental," Dinah explained.
"She has had the same bike from bikeclub.com for a year and it is now so miniature she has started to look like she's performing a circus act when she rides it."
Dinah will return the bike to the company so that it can be refurbished and go to another child, while Lyra will get a new, suitably sized second-hand bike.
As for Sasha, she'll get Lyra's old doll house that's been up in the family's loft for two years.
"We'll get that down and wrap it up, and she'll be over the moon and will play with it enthusiastically for a full ten minutes - exactly the same amount of time as she would a new gift - before she moves onto smashing Christmas tree ornaments and demanding another mince pie," wrote Dinah.
In regards to stocking-fillers, Dinah said she's had a 'long-term strategy' and, over the last six months, has been 'quietly confiscating toys and teddies and any hand-me-downs from cousins'.
Noting that the toys are probably 'long-forgotten' by her daughters, they'll appear as brand new on Christmas day.
This way, the girls will still think that Santa Claus has been without Dinah and Chris having to spend ridiculous amounts of money on presents.
Dinah also explained that she and her husband are not exchanging gifts this year either. Instead, they've committed to spending more time together as a couple - as well as a family.
They've even booked a date night for the New Year and are off to the theatre.
Not a bad idea at all, if you ask me!
Niamh Shackleton