Is it totally normal to make a wish list for your spouse?

That sounds really thoughtful of your parents. They would have to really get to know your interests and spend a lot of time with you to be able to guess what you really wanted. Did it work? Did you love your gifts from them?

My dad had always told me to make him lists. He just seemed to have no idea what to get me unless i wrote down every detail of the object in question, even if i have talked to him about it. In a way it's a good thing. I guess it helped me with comparison and decision making, but there were years when i didn't want to make that decision. However, i do recall one year that he chose gifts for my sister and i with no input and we ended up with bracelets that looked like dog collars. We joked about them being tracking device vessels, but it really was a nice gesture... Even if it did hoard a GPS inside it.

Your boyfriend is completely correct. If you don't tell someone what you want, you can't get mad if you don't get it.

It's great for adults and great to ensure that you don't get said adult a piece of junk they can't even use or enjoy. My husband and I just tell each other what we want. It's not a big deal.

I don't think we'll get into the full swing of celebrating Holidays until we have kids, though. There was never any novelty or any special-ness in Christmas other than for presents for me and I have a feeling that my husband is the same way, but kids are totally different in that respect. When I have kids... if they remember little from their childhood, they will always remember Holidays >=D

Everyone should just buy themselves something nice for Christmas and make themselves a dish they really like. Then on Christmas Day they should just spend time with people they like and share their favourite things with them.

It'll never catch on.

I wish my family would have done that. I would give them lists and often they wouldn't follow them and I'd end up getting something that I hated. Sometimes, they couldn't afford EVERYTHING that I had listed but the least they could have done was to by me things I actually would like. I have gotten gifts from them where it seemed that they still didn't know my personality and other times I'd have to wonder if they bought me those gifts on purpose...

Sometimes, lists are a good idea because you get to give the person EXACTLY what they wanted but the function of lists eliminates being Surprised. It's nice to be able to surprise someone and having the receiver liking what was giving to them. There is the huge risk that by surprising someone you could be giving them something they will hate and possibly never use.

It's normal ESPECIALLY for adults. The whole unlist crap is for little kids anyway. Well, they also sound like assholes. Why get someone a gift that will end up useless? Or making someone unhappy? It's a waste of money.