Anyone find Christmas shopping difficult?

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I do because I find it really difficult to know what to get people and knowing if they will like it or not. Sometimes I wished I had no family to shop for then there wouldn't be any Christmas shopping for me. Sometimes I feel like I want to skip the shopping but then I feel real selfish and self centered because I got gifts from my family and I didn't get them anything so I do the shopping. I'm always asking my parents what they like for Christmas and what my brothers like and what they already have so I won't get them the same stuff they already have.
Today I shopped and got gifts only for my boyfriend and I put them in a stocking I got today and put it on our bed on the right side where he sleeps and I wrapped up the gift I got him. Yesterday I only got three things for each person, my brother, my mother and my boyfriend's mother.

Also things are expensive too. I know my brothers like videogames and and shows like South Park and The Simpsons but they all add up and cost a lot for a few items.


Thank god it's only one time a year.

Too many people!! AAUUGHHHH!! !

This year my extended family is just doing a giftcard exchange. Everyone buys a $25 giftcard to a random place and we exchange them in some way. It's cool because we already have 2 giftcards that we can put in the mix without having to actually buy any. I hate buying gifts for people.

I always find receiving a gift more difficult because you are expected to show signs of appreciation.
I could be over the moon with a gift but I would still have to "pretend" I like it even though I actually do.
I often just copy the reactions I have seen from other people (be it real life or in film/television) when they receive a great gift.
Clearly a lousy actor, I often have to heap on the reassurance that I like the gift and this is especially true with girlfriends.

You know how people on game shows dance & jump waving their arms because they have won a washing machine or something? I have always found this behaviour difficult to understand.
Even if I myself won a new car and/or a cash prize of X million dollars, my reaction would belie my true feelings.
I would be over the moon, yet my reaction would be a slight smile and a comment like “Oh. Excellent. That’s great.” All delivered in the same steady, clear tone I have always used.
This is often inadvertently construed by well meaning NTs as insincerity.

our famliy does the shopping the day after and we celebrate christmas at the end of the months

That makes sense. It's probably a lot cheaper that way.

it makes sence. jesus wasnt born on that day anyways. i listen to vivaldi's the four seasons

too many people

too many nasty 'incense' smells

too much bad, tinny xmas music being broadcast overhead

to much assumption that I belong to the majority religion, when I do not.

I find shopping for other people difficult whether it's their birthday or christmas.

I never know what other people are interested in and there for end up getting something that they most likely hate.
Also...I find that at christmas time, the shops are VERY busy and this makes it harder to shop as I am more likely to put it off until the last minute and then rush through it buying anything thats left

Sometimes I will just make a card or a letter for someone...especially the older members of my family, them seem to appreciate it more as making something generally means that you have the time for someone [according to the 'rules'].
That is a lot easier to do as I write a lot of poetry, so cards are easy for me to make. I will just write a poem which will take 5 minutes [literally] and then decorate the card.

I not only dislike christmas shopping, but the whole holiday season. I don't know why, but lots of people say that they are excited or happy and can't wait until christmas day. For me though, it's just another day...except people buy rediculously expensive gifts for one another to celebrate a day that has no significance to them what so ever...[unless they believe in jesus/god etc].

I have it down to one, and she makes me gift wrap. She does not care what, so I buy her a nice rock, I am running late this year, with a wrapped present it started the tree, more presents, cycle. Her real present was a wad of money. Then she coud buy things for others.

She is 18 now, and still expects a nice rock for christmas and birthday. Gift wrapped of course.

Gifts cards are the option. Buy people gift cards and give it to them as a present and they can buy whatever they want with it. Saves all the time an energy to do it. I do it when I run out of time for Christmas shopping. I almost bought my brother a gift card last year because I hadn't gotten him a present yet so I was at Best Buy in Spokane on the way home from Portland and I was looking at the games and I saw a Family Guy PSP video and bought it for him. I wrapped it when I got home but unforuntily I didn't know he already had the game but was thankful anyway for it because it meant how much I cared about him that I would buy something he likes. But I lost the receipt to the game but luckily my brother was still able to exchange the game at Best Buy in Missoula.

I do most of my Christmas shopping on Amazon. It's a lot easier to browse over that, and you can look at items similar to things you know someone already owns if necessary. My family's always been mostly about asking for stuff, though, so that makes things really easy, and my wife's family she deals with. That really just leaves the only hard task as my wife herself.