Siblings - are their toys common property?

[elliott]

I have two ds's aged 4 and 2 and I'm wondering how to deal with toy 'ownership' - particularly coming up to christmas when they are about to get a whole new flood of toys.
Up until now, pretty much everything we have was originally bought for ds1, and as ds2 has grown into it we have just sort of assumed that it will become common property and he will be able to play with it (there are rare exceptions like soft toys, but that's about it). This doesn't seem to be much of an issue for ds1, but I have a nagging feeling that its not really fair on either of them. For one thing, I can always think of lots more stuff I want to buy for ds1 (because he's older, can do more things, and I don't have it already!) so he gets more (or bigger) things bought for him, but then is expected to share them. Ds2 on the other hand, doesn't have much that was bought specifically for him at all.
So I just wondered how people dealt with this, and especially around Christmas when I'm not sure whether to buy some joint presents, and how to deal with the sharing of individual presents.
Over to mumsnet collective experience!

dd1&2 (7 and 4yr) share practically everything, dd3 (8 motnhs) will share too!
I was wondering about this as my brother is 12yr old than me so can't go on my own childhood. Asked DH and he said he had to share a lot (but then he has a twin bro). For xmas they get some shared presents (play village) and some seperate (dolls), but then they forget whose is whose and share it all, apart from bedtime cuddly toys. I do find I can get more for dd1 as she's older and at school. But at this age they don't know they missing out by getting hand-me-downs, honest.

We go for the 'common property' approach with our 19 month old and 3 yr old

We always have had the rule that 'we share' and even if it belongs to you, you mustn't take it until whoever has it has finished playing with it or put it down. It has always worked to some degree but then no one really wants to shre do they???

We are with pol25, except for the special bedtime bears where you have to leave your brother's bear alone. DS1 is 2.8 and DS2 is 1.1.

Cunning plan fails when DS1 feels that his train track needs to stay laid out even though he has moved on to playing with something else...

After last Christmas's Great Doll Buggy debacle - lots of MINE!, weeping, and running away with it - the Inferiortettes are getting identical Big Presents this year.