Dear boomer grandparents, please chill with the Xmas presents

"Maybe I’ll just “forget” some of the gifts at their house, which conveniently happens to be four hours away."

Ah, grandparents – the unsung (anti)heroes of gift-giving.

When it comes to spoiling their grandkids, forget Santa; my parents are on a mission to turn my living room into a miniature toy store. 

It's as if they have a secret competition to see who can cram the most gifts under their tree, and frankly, I’m already terrified.

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“We wrapped the baby’s presents and…”

On a recent call to my mum, she informed me that after wrapping all my daughter’s Christmas presents to place under the tree, she felt there wasn’t enough.

This would have been fine had I not seen the enormous box of toys, books, and musical instruments (and I’m pretty sure I saw a Dalmatian dog, three parrots and a satellite in) to know her comment was ridiculously under-exaggerated. 

Being one of the thousands of young families doing their best to survive with a baby in a small apartment, I reminded her that a few small things were enough and not to buy gifts for the sake of it.

It was at that moment that my dad came onto the screen and advised that I had no say in the matter and they were heading to the shops the following day to buy more.

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So. Many. Presents. Source: iStock

We don’t need more STUFF

Despite my best efforts of gently asking, followed by pleading and begging, I waved my white flag and decided I’d just move into the garage to accommodate what I can only imagine would be the largest, loudest and brightest toys my parents could find.

My mantra this year, coming into the giving season, is DIY. Not just because my mortgage repayments are increasing by $1000 a month early next year but because I like the idea of gifting my time to create something personal.

This gentle suggestion of less is more was met with a "pfft as if we're not going to spoil our grandkids!"

Grandparents around the world unite

When I came across a hilarious video by Millenial Mum, callmekristenmarie, I couldn’t help by laugh at how accurate her latest TikTok was.

"I only got the grandkids one gift this year," she starts the video with what I assume is an impersonation of her mum.

"Or more like one big gift and then lots of little-ish gifts," she continues to say.

The video then rolls out the ridiculous gifts her mum informed her she had purchased for the grandkids, including a six-foot Paw Patrol tower, 24 outfits, a firetruck with what seems like an accurate volume siren and a bike, among other items.

I understand grandparents get excited, but as I write this, I’m looking around my living room and have no idea how I could fit one more item in here.

As the pile of gifts grows, so does the challenge of finding space to store them.

Forget about that midcentury modern vibe I was aiming for – my home will soon transform into a shrine to the generosity of my parents.

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An accurate representation of my parents in the lead-up to Christmas. Source: TikTok

First-world problem?

In the grand scheme of parenting, navigating the sea of grandparental gifts might be a challenge, but it's a problem I really should be happy to have.

It’s better they want to shower my baby with gifts than show no interest at all.

Maybe I’ll just “forget” some of the gifts at their house, which conveniently happens to be four hours away.

Originally published as Dear boomer grandparents, please chill with the Xmas presents