Another good suggestion, but she actually never asks me for what I want. Even when we discuss how hard I am to buy for (in her mind), she never actually says "what would you like for Christmas"? To her, the surprise is more important than fulfilling any want or need that I might have.

But I don't want this thread to devolve into a discussion of my MIL. Rather, I brought her up just as an example of how fixated some people are in giving, receiving or buying more stuff.