I recently found out that my son-in-law's family is as you described yours. How sad and empty for him! We never had much money when I was growing up, so gifts weren't the focus necessarily, but we didn't do much in the way of creating a mood.

I remember one year when my oldest was 5 and my youngest was 3 (my 2 youngest hadn't come along yet), I went all out. Bought them hundreds of dollars worth of toys. I've never felt more empty and made a vow never to have a Christmas like that again. I'm sure I missed the mark other years as well, but I was always able to course correct the following year. I am sad for those who have lived only the empty, consumer version of Christmas because it really can be an amazing time of year to recenter and reconnect. I'm glad to hear you're the same!