It’s an eternal family conflict, like dark meat versus light meat, or whether you open your gifts on Christmas Eve or Christmas morning.

How big do you go on Christmas?

Writing in the Wall Street Journal, Neal Templin explores the tension in his own family.

By the time I arrived on the scene, the entire family -- more than 20 people -- would gather at her grandmother's house in Mexicali, Mexico, on Christmas Eve. Around 10 p.m., Santa (my future brother-in-law in a costume) showed up with an enormous bag of presents and stepped into a roomful of children shrieking with joy.

"It was all about the children," says Clarissa, who thought the experience was priceless. And she has spent hundreds of dollars on presents every year to duplicate it.

I, in turn, kept trying to relive my childhood. When our oldest son turned 5, I got him a used bike for $35. He seemed happy enough with it.

Templin, who writes the Cheapskate column, does not seem to be winning his battle.

How do you strike a balance in your family? Do you like to lavish the kids with gifts, or keep things simple?

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