Liam Payne has a problem: people won’t stop buying presents for his son. The (magnificently-named) Bear Payne is inundated with endless gifts from friends and family, whatever Payne Senior says.
The former One Direction singer told Ok Magazine: “We have a lot of extended family between me and my former partner and they buy him stuff all the time. I can’t really say: ‘Don’t buy him stuff’.
“But we were actually talking about it recently because he has so many toys in the house and I’m like, ‘I will literally get him one toy’. Because he doesn’t need loads, he’s got loads.”
Payne, who split from Bear’s mother, Cheryl, in July 2018, said he couldn’t believe how many presents there were for “one, very small child” on Christmas Day.
“It’s a bit ludicrous really but I can’t help the fact people love him and they want to spoil him,” he said. “I just think as he gets older I’m going to have to teach him the value of what it is.”
Despite the fact Bear has celebrity parents – this experience is one known by many. What can you do if friends and relatives insist on spoiling your child? It’s no use teaching your little one lessons about making do without things and being grateful for what you have, if every time a relative visits it’s like Santa’s crashed his sleigh into their bedroom and spilled the whole thing.
So we asked our HuffPost UK Parents community how they get around this issue.
A four-present rule – something they want, something they need, something to wear, something to read – was suggested by a few readers, and seems to strike a happy medium. Everyone still gets to feel generous, while there’s a guaranteed practical element to what’s received and a manageable total amount.
Enforcing a strict “only on birthdays and Christmas” rule is also something people have suggested, even going as far as providing a list to work from (and adhere to).
Or, asking people to club together and donate money towards a trip or experience – rather than buying stuff – might give you truly precious family memories, while also saving filling your house with things you don’t want.
Alternatively, if your pleas fall on deaf ears and you know the people around you are going to be excessively generous whatever you say, save a few quid and don’t get them anything yourself – not necessarily useful advice for Liam Payne and his many millions, but pretty handy for the rest of us.