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Original poster

Dd wants a (in my opinion) rubbish present for Christmas.

367 replies

Florencenotflo · 21/10/2021 09:02

Dd is only 5 and already doing her Christmas list. She asks for the (attached) present every time we go into the toy shop and has even asked to buy it from her own money.

I am usually quite happy for let her spend her money on things she chooses, but I think this is really rubbish! And I know it will be top of her list again this year. Our budget this year for Dd is around £100 on presents for Christmas so to spend £40 of that on one present seems daft. The reviews of it are terrible, the case is pretty flimsy (not really usable as a suitcase) and the contents are mainly paper.

But at the end of the day, she's 5, it will make her happy, do I just suck it up?

(Plus, I can now see why my parents never bought me a Mr Frosty for Christmas when I was a child, although I'm still salty about it 😂)

OP posts:
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Lockdownbear · 21/10/2021 10:43

Op really I just wouldn't, their has to be more suitable things out there.

That hand bag that the other poster linked too looked good. I'm sure you could get a bright pink case suitable for actually using that she won't outgrow.

Mr Frosty was relaunched a couple of years ago. And was equally shit. So of all you Mr Frosty lovers you should have bought oneWink.

mushroom3 · 21/10/2021 10:43

I would buy her a Disney suitcase that she could use like this one, www.ebay.co.uk/itm/284389219985?hash=item4236eb1e91:g:w48AAOSw1fZhAoX5
and fill it with other disney bits similar to the ones in the original pack. You could put extras in too ! My daughter wanted a suitcase at the same age. We bought her a purple spotted small suitcase she liked (and the matching large version) They have just gone to Uni with her!

Original poster
Florencenotflo · 21/10/2021 10:46

@Blackmagicqueen she does already have that, I'd forgotten, but she does still play with it and she's had it over a year.

@AliceinBorderland I know! Which is what annoyed me the most, you can't even fill it with other stuff. I might try and have a look at it without Dd and see if I'd be able to remove the plastic trays by taking out the screws?

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LittleDandelionClock · 21/10/2021 10:46

OMG that's so cute. I want one! Grin

It's actually not that bad tbh @Florencenotflo I mean the price. £39,99 is a decent price for a main Christmas present. She will be a very happy little girl. Glad you decided to get it! Smile

fumfspos · 21/10/2021 10:47

It's total tat.
And expensive tat for what it is.
I'm a bit torn here - the sensible part of me says I wouldn't buy that tat which will break in five minutes and end up in landfill and it can't even be repurposed as a suitcase because of the design inside. Getting the unicorn suitcase that someone else linked to or another princess suitcase and filling it with nicer things is a good idea.
BUT, she really wants that Disney Princess one and if she is given an alternative she is going to be disappointed.

Oh, I just don't know. Could you have a chat with her and see if she can be persuaded to go for an alternative - eg. show her some proper suitcases with princess designs. You can tell her that the Disney Princess thing isn't made very well and won't last more than a few weeks before breaking and she won't be able to keep things inside it because of that stupid bit of plastic inside.

Brollywasntneededafterall · 21/10/2021 10:48

My dd is now 32..... But back at around 4/5 she asked for a toy ironing board.... Santa didn't bring one and she was anxious that he must not have thought her to have been a good girl! She was quite sad... Not bratty stroppy she didn't have one...
Quickly got one a few days later and 'found' it round the sofa where Santa must have misplaced it. Faith restored...
Ds 6 wanted That Bloody Noisey Ice Cream Cart thing last year.... Too old for it but Santa delivered.... Going on Gumtree very soon!!
Ime Christmas is for special gifts from the jolly man.

SkankingMopoke · 21/10/2021 10:48

Hmmm I'm not sure I could bring myself to spend that much on something that would break and go to landfill so quickly either. The short term gratification (for both DD and your experience of giving) isn't worth the long-term/actual cost. There will be other Christmases where sense and their heart desires match up. I had 2 Christmases that have stuck in my memory for getting the most fantastic present that I'd desperately wanted, at 8 and 10yo. I don't feel upset that every year wasn't like those two (although I am also in the Mr Frosty club!)

If it were my DD, I would be looking to get one second hand and then filling it with lots of individually wrapped goodies: fluffy unicorn sleeping mask, lip balm, hair bands, purse etc. If second hand wasn't an option, I would interrogate DD to work out what it was that was so good about it and trying to find a better quality alternative bag and filling it as above.

FWIW, 5yo DD2 has asked for a Barbie car and a giant Rainbocorn this year. Both are utter tat and a waste of money IMO. We have compromised by getting the car second hand, and a smaller Rainbocorn.

Lockdownbear · 21/10/2021 10:50

If she already has the bag and doesn't use it I'd be pointing that out.

Santa won't bring toys he doesn't think you'll play with.

It's far too much to have as cupboard clutter. And a huge chunk of your budget. Don't be guilt tripped into it.

prettybird · 21/10/2021 10:50

My ds has a Thomas the Tank Engine one like that - it was really useful for flying as it meant that all his soft toys (who always travelled with us Hmm) could go in it plus things to play with on the plane. And he was responsible for pulling it along and it wasn't too heavy or bulky for us to carry too if/when required

May that plus the wee Disney Princess handbag that someone linked to above?

prettybird · 21/10/2021 10:51

@mushroom3

I would buy her a Disney suitcase that she could use like this one, www.ebay.co.uk/itm/284389219985?hash=item4236eb1e91:g:w48AAOSw1fZhAoX5 and fill it with other disney bits similar to the ones in the original pack. You could put extras in too ! My daughter wanted a suitcase at the same age. We bought her a purple spotted small suitcase she liked (and the matching large version) They have just gone to Uni with her!

This thread is moving so fast: this was the suitcase I was referring to that my ds had had in the Thomas version.

godmum56 · 21/10/2021 10:53

the heart wants what it wants...

Rosesandblossoms · 21/10/2021 10:53

@SouthOfFrance

Tell her they've stopped selling them as they keep breaking Wink
Genius
Rollerdecks · 21/10/2021 10:54

on the other hand... I remember campaigning very, very hard for a Girl's World with extendable pony tail and eyes that changed colour if you tipped the head forwards and backward.

It was disappointing on an epic scale. You couldn't really give it the cool make-up looks as 'demonstrated' in the little guide that came with it, because the doll had no eyelids so you could only draw round the eyes with liner and the hair wouldn't style because it was nylon, not hair. My main memories are (a) breaking the extendable pony tail by accident at 5.45am on Christmas Morning, and (b) having to fake delight for the entire christmas holiday despite feeling guilty about the tremendous emotional pressure I'd put my mum under to get it.

My DSis and I are clearing out the family home this autumn and I just know I'm going to find Girl's World head in a cupboard, and I'll have to book straight into therapy.

EdmontinaTiresofNameFlipping · 21/10/2021 10:55

I do agree with a pp that getting the tat and discovering it is tat is a learning experience. Even at 5 she’ll gain a tiny bit of wariness towards the next must have thing advertised on TV.

Surely it’s fair to let her learn from her own experience - rather than have to be satisfied with parental knowledge and a ‘sensible’ gift?

KrispyKale · 21/10/2021 10:55

My neighbour got the Girl's World head so dodged that disappointment.

RedToothBrush · 21/10/2021 10:55

@Glitterybug

It wouldn't be my top choice but don't you remember how gutted you were at the time to not get a mr frosty? This is her mr frosty.
I wanted Mr Frosty. I never got Mr Frosty. I was excited about the presents I did get. I wasn't an ungrateful brat.
Corneliusmurphy · 21/10/2021 10:55

I would rather get a different bag with wheels that you could actually use (Disney store have a frozen one you can personalise or smiggle do them) and then get a nice eye mask/make up bag set, I’d imagine boots or Superdrug would have something nice.
I would have said go for it (I am also still slightly sad about mr frosty) but the fact you can’t actually use it for anything else would really annoy me!

When the dc got bigger and asked for something particularly pants we’d read the Amazon reviews together and if it still went on the list then fair enough.

KrispyKale · 21/10/2021 10:56

You can be gutted and not let on.

Beautiful3 · 21/10/2021 10:58

I agree with a previous poster who said reccomended the unicorn suitcase, and adding bits to it. Tinted lip balm, sun glasses, real head phones, eye mask. It would be so much better.

BlowDryRat · 21/10/2021 10:59

My parents bought me a Mr Frosty for my birthday. I was very excited, and then very disappointed when it failed to make a slushy. This is the grown-up version: www.dunelm.com/product/zyliss-classic-cheese-grater-1000114401? At least when you fail to grate ice with it you're left with something useful.

Dd wants a (in my opinion) rubbish present for Christmas.
Chemenger · 21/10/2021 11:00

At least it doesn't have one billion tiny things that you have to assemble on Christmas Eve. Snow White's cottage (no dwarfs included, which I realised sometime around the 22nd of December) still gives me nightmares more than a decade later.

Crunchymum · 21/10/2021 11:01

Could you get it for her birthday instead? As then hopefully it will go in the sale? (I have two January born DD who aren't twins and both love pink, plastic shit!!)

Although as she has shown a sustained and unwavering interest, I think you are going to have to suck it up Blush

Blackmagicqueen · 21/10/2021 11:01

'wanted Mr Frosty. I never got Mr Frosty. I was excited about the presents I did get. I wasn't an ungrateful brat'

I don't think anybody is saying you wouldn't be pleased with the gifts your received. It is just when you are a child you always remember that one thing you really wanted, the thing you want over anything else and so much so you'd prefer it to be your only gift than a boat load of other things..it feels magical.

Lockdownbear · 21/10/2021 11:02

She doesn't need a £40 gift to learn about cheap tat, that lesson can be taught with a £5 magazine or toy from B&M bargains.

Op I couldn't bring myself to waste so much money.

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