Pram or not for a soon to be 7 yr old dd?

[twolittledarlings]

My daughter who is 6 and will be 7 a week before Xmas has asked for a pram. She already has stroller ( cheap one). She is a petit 6yr and is now wearing 5-6 yr old clothes. She is quite babyish as she is the baby of the family and still likes to play with her Baby Annabel sometimes. Not all the time. She does have lots of other toys and this year, so far, she has got 2 x lego 3 in 1 house sets, 4 amusements boxes of Kinex, nearly the whole complete set of ZHU Hamster and accessories and quite a lots of boxes of craft and games and other nic naks which she will share with her 8 yr old sister. I have spent so far over £700+ on them so should I buy a pram too?

What stops me from buying it is that I prefer to buy her more learning toys (abeit Zhu toys) and I think she may be too old for a pram as most probably, it will stay indoors and not be wheeled outside.

[twolittledarlings]

Forgot to add that my hubby says preferably not.

[Ragwort]

- £700 on toys - are you serious?

[WhatsWrongWithYou]

Dd was still in to dolls at this age - although cradles and clothes rather than prams as there isn't really anywhere to push a pram where we live.

I'd tentatively suggest that the doll thing is a stage children need to go through until they get it out of their systems and move on to something else - no longer needing 'props.'

If you're determined to spend more money, and are prepared to be tripping over a pram on a daily basis, it will probably benefit her more in terms of imaginary play than worthy 'educational' games where the play is more directed.
(Don't know what Zhu toys are.)

[ZENZIZENZIZENZIC]

If you buy a pram too, could you not keep some of the other gifts for another occasion (birthday?).

[cece]

at £700 on toys.

My dd is 9 and still plays with her dolls and prams....

[twolittledarlings]

The thing is both my girls birthdays are at Xmas. One on the 19th and the other on Xmas eve. The 2 sets of Lego alone was about £90 and the Zhu pet hamsters totalled £200. The Kinexs were approx £90 so £700 does add up.

The rest are books ( quite of lot of), lunch bags, tote bags, towels annual, beauty stuff and other games.
They did not really ask for a lot on their list to Santa, about 5 things all of which are mainly sweets, moulds, pram, wammy to share and a couple of Zhu Hamster things. She got a hamster last year but as I did not get any thiing to go with it, she did not play with it.

This year, I wanted them to learn to ready instructions hence the lego and kinex kit. The Zhu Zhu Pet toys was mainly due to Argos and Boots 3 for 2 but may be a good investment as their friends can play with it when they come round. Less playing with the Wii. We do have the space for this if need be and they both play quite a lot of imaginary games.

[girlywhirly]

The thing is, twolittledarlings, DC play with what they want to play with, not with what adults think they should. There are endless dolls prams on ebay that are described 'unwanted gift' 'as new, daughter not into dolls' etc. If a pram is what she really wants, I'd put away some of the other stuff and get her one. It doesn't need to be expensive, but if looked after will have a reasonable second hand value. I agree with the poster who said dolls are a stage that need to be given up of a child's own accord and not at a certain age. This is probably their last chance for a pram, and considerably less expensive than what you've bought already. Be glad that your girls are not trying to grow up too quickly!

I get your point about learning to read instructions, but the most fun to be had from lego and the like is allowing their imaginations to design the model. You might find that the k'nex isn't played with as much as you'd like if they didn't ask for it. Have they expressed any interest? If not it could be an expensive gamble.

[savoycabbage]

I seem to remember from when I was buying my dd a pram, that Mamas and Papas do one that is bigger for older children. This might be one.

[girlywhirly]

Argos have a Silver Cross Ranger for £34.99, ages 4-8yrs, folds flat for storage. Also a Mamas and Papas Skate for £54.99, ages 5-10yrs.

[DanceOnTheDarkSide]

It doesn't matter what you have spent, if she doesn't want what you have bought she will not play with it.

[twolittledarlings]

Thank you for all your input. They are all so true. If they have not asked for it, they may not play with it and also tha fact is that they are still so young.

Some friends bought them some Kinex last year and they do play with them, that is why I thought I might get more.

With regards to the Ranger pram, I went to Smyths today to see the pram and I think she may just about play with it but the handles are upto 74cm height so maybe too low next year for her to play with. If anybody is interested in this, the cheapest I could find is from THE ENTERTAINER - toyshop.com. They are selling them for £20.

Am comtemplating getting the Mama and Papa Excel pram which is for 5-10 years old and the height of that is up to approx 94cm so may get more use but also double the price. Cheapest I could find is £48 from ELC with the 20% code but have to pay postage.

Need to do more research. I probably will get one, just need to see which one will fit the age/height range etc.

Thanks again.

[SE13Mummy]

23 years ago I was desperate for a dolls' buggy and my parents eventually let me use my saved up money to buy one - they'd been worried that at the age of 10 I was 'too old' for it. In spite of their fears it's still going strong; I played with it for a long time and now my DDs, nieces and nephews love it.

My DD is nearly 6 but is tall for her age (wears 7-8 clothes) and still gets an enormous amount of play/fun from this pram which she was given for her 3rd birthday.

The only reason I can think of against buying the pram is that its arrival will almost certainly reduce the amount of play that the other toys get. Could you take some of the other things back/sell them on eBay? DD1 has a near Christmas birthday too but I've spent about £20 on her present figuring it's about the gift, not the cost and I know she'll be thrilled with what she's given.

[LesbianMummy1]

Are you serious take some stuff back and buy the pram.

[GeekOfTheWeek]

Get the pram.

Pretty mean to just get her things that you want her to have.

[twolittledarlings]

I will get the pram, I have decided.

I asked my girls today what they most want at Xmas, my dd9 says she wants Zhu Zhu Hamster set and dd7 says she want a pram.

The Pram it is.

Thank you all.

[WhatsWrongWithYou]

Well done. I was trying not to say what Geek said tbh .

[twolittledarlings]

Just an update.

Have just bought the mamas and papas x-cel pram for her from an Ebay toy shop for £50.

Hopefully she will get many more years of playing with this therefore have got her a bigger pram for 5 - 10yrs old. She was again playing with her dolls again with her sister so maybe can fit 2 dolls in there.

[mumeeee]

I was going to say a pram was fine for a 7 year old,she is not to old, DDi and 2 were still playing with prams and dolls at the age of 10. But as you hacve already spent £700 I would definatly not buy anything else.
To me £700 on toys is way OTT

[twolittledarlings]

Mumeeee - if it was for Christmas then maybe OTT but its also both their birthday presents too.

Not only that but the past 2 years, my oldest dd did not want a birthday party, she only wanted a cake, a restaurant meal for immediate family and some money in the bank so she is considerate enough not to waste money on her birthday as I do in the past spend quite a bit on the parties.

This year round, I will have a party for 20 friends at a soft play centre for the younger one and included will only be 4 best friends of my older dd. She does not want any more.

I do spend a lot on toys / books but I do make the most of them by looking after them ( they do look after their toys/book) and afterwards in a few years time, I have a clear out using NCT sales and Ebay etc.

[WhatsWrongWithYou]

No need to justify yourself, twolittle - I'm sure lots of us have spent more than that amount on two birthdays and two Christmasses - just sounds a lot because yours is all at once.

[twolittledarlings]

Thank you - WhatsWrongWithYou. I feel a little better now. Better not say how much I have spent on Lego today.

We took her to the Lego shop and both dds says they do not like sets, just lots of lego to make their own inventions so have been buying a huge bulk lot from Ebay.

I can justify it as I have over 2 huge crates of duplo to get rid off so this smaller lego (2 crates worth) can take its place.

I better not use the computer for the next 2 months now as I just cannot help finding things to get.

[SE13Mummy]

Two huge crates of Duplo - you'll make a fortune on eBay!

[twolittledarlings]

I know, I bought that off Ebay from America. Each crate costs about £35 bid and £35 postage and its got all the zoo animals, lots of trucks and transport and barns etc. Its worth paying that much as I know I will get them back off Ebay.

Just need to decide when to sell and also see if the dds will get used to playing with the smaller lego before I part with these 2 crates.