Those of you that aren't keen on edible advent calendars ....

[nappyaddict]

What do you think to the Playmobil ones that build up a Christmas scene?

I personally don't like the ones with food or little presents in them cos I think Christmas day should be about the feasting and the presents and having a small one every day sort of dilutes this.

But the Playmobil ones build up a Christmas play scene gradually and then you could reuse it year after year so after the first year it's used it doesn't really count as a present every day, it would be similar to those nativity scene ones.

sorry nappy are you talking to me? are you trying to root out some perceived hypocrisy on my part regarding non-religious ADVENT calendars? as in the advent of christ? keep trying.

Sorry I can't work out what you are trying to say very tired this morning. I was talking to BlackBag.

ah yes, so you were, apologies.

Hello Nappyaddict, apologies for delayed reply.

Unsuccessfully try to avoid the big man with the nylon beard. One year there was the option of DD1 school fayre, DD2 playgroup & nursey and a local friends get together, so four lots of HO Ho HO's without us seeking out any extra. So refused some, left early another time without makig a fuss. Trying to keep the big day special.

On the weekendish bfore xmas we write/draw a picture and send it by one of those tissue paper hot air ballon things.

our eric carle one recommended on here has arrived today....its absolutely BEAUTIFUL! and will be a keeper! definately recommend it too just lovely!

Can you show me a link to the hot air balloon thing, I don't know what you mean.

Sky Lanterns

They've quickly become a rather nice tradition here for special occasions.

Just seen how expensive Hawkins are, are local garden centre had 10 for £10 so look around.

our not
are

The Lego advent calendar is £25

Just ordered the Eric Carle, thanks for the suggestion! I love the idea of the PlayMobil but a)too expensive b) try to avoid buying toys before Christmas - makes the excitement of the pile of plastic tat on the Big Day even greater.

Please be careful with sky lanterns, they can harm wildlife if they come down in the wrong place. Your link says "biodegradable paper" but not what the supporting part is made of. Both bamboo and wire ones are potentially harmful

Our garden centre ones have a cardboard ring round the base & holding the flaming bit, we just send one up per occasion [special tight emoticon] to make it more special.

Agree that it must be a nightmare cleaning up post wedding & festival carnage and that actually it rather defeats the point. As with so much to do with Xmas - one is special, lots just make you sick.

I bought ds a Playmobil one last year. He was 7 and loved it almost as much as me.

I also have one with drawers which get filled with tasks/activities for each day. I look after children and this a good sharing one!

I now really want the Eric Carle one after seeing the link but I must resist.

When ds was smaller, I bought a paper nativity scene calendar from Phoenix Trading for an absurd amount of money with the aim to re-use it but a lot of the bits ripped easily and it was only used once but I bet I still have it somewhere .

We need more children in my family because at the moment there is only my ds. Ds has 2 aunts and a great aunt who don't have children, also an adoring Granny which means he ends up with lots of choc calendars aswell. I must find a way to stop them from buying them for him - any ideas?

Hocus - I LOVE your idea and think my ds would like it a lot less than I, so could be an excellent way of getting him to do some chores around the house . I might combine it with my advent drawers.

I found something similar to this at a car boot sale for £6.50. It is very sturdy and will last. I love it. As we aren't religious I'm not sure how I feel about the nativity scene but I've never seen one with a winter/snowman/santa scene.

BlackBag You can get those lanterns from pound shops. Not sure if they have wire or bamboo in them though.

I've bought the Playmobil knights one for DS this year - its ready built so you don't need to put it together. It was £16 but we're treating it as one of his presents because he'll play with the knight/horse/etc for ages afterwards. In fact we looked in a toy shop recently and saw a Playmobil horse and knight with a sword for £9.99, and in the advent calendar you get loads more than that so it seems cheaper than buying the normal Playmobil sets.

Ooh - I've just bought the Playmobil nativity scene for DD (1) and plan to turn it into an advent calendar-type thing by stringing up 24 socks across the fireplace and putting in one piece a day for me her to find each day, ending up with the baby Jesus on Christmas Eve. Bit put out at the lack of wise men and feel that I need to invest in the other set now.

Like the OP I intend to use it each year - it's a bit kitsch as a nativity scene, but it will be perfect while DD and any siblings are small. We can invest in a smarter one when they're older. I'm hoping that getting the toys out of their sock will be interesting enough to distract DD (+ ?) from the fact that there's no chocolate. And like another poster said, it will become part of the family tradition.

I'm with Awitch - I'm RC by tradition and heritage more than by belief, but do feel strongly that Advent is a religious festival and should be treated as such. But using the Playmobil toys will make it quite fun. I've also decided on a rule that she will only get to meet Santa once before Christmas - this year we're going on the Santa Special on the Watercress Line - unless it's really unavoidable. And Santa's presents come wrapped in brown paper in her stocking and the others come from Mummy, Daddy, Grandma, etc.