What 'big' present are you getting DC?

[CircassianLeyla]

If you do big presents, at all. We don't every year but this year we are getting:

DS1 (7) table football
DS3 (2) kitchen

Really struggling with DS2 (5).

They also all have birthdays very soon after Christmas.

We also know that DS1 and DS2 would like bikes, but we have no where to store although if I could guarantee we would go out on them they would be a good choice.

DS2 like sciencey things, nature and superheroes. I have thought about making him a boxful of bits tailored to his interests but I think at 5/6 he is just going to see a massive football table and think he hasn't got sonething like his brothers. He also is desperate to learn to play the guitar and would be made up with one but without having lessons first I am reluctant.

Anyway what are you all planning so I can get some inspiration or do you have any suggestions?

DS turns 2 on 7th December - haha TheOnlyPink !

We've got him a Weebles treehouse for his birthday (in sales in April, gosh we're organised!)

Had thought about a balance bike but he's just been given a motorbike and scoots around on that, faster than roadrunner! Not sure it's worth getting a balance bike as well, we're not exactly flush either.

All presents sorted for children:
Ds1(8) playmobil future planet
Dd1 (will just be 6) playmobil school
Ds2 (3.5) playmobil pirate ship
Dd2 (13months) brio rocker

I have bought everything already. No idea how we are going to build all this bloody playmobil! Big presents and stockings from the big Fc. I think we will do the Christmas Eve hamper with pj's, book and an alarm clock each (they don't have any clocks yet and last year ds1 came in at 2 in te morning asking if it was time to get up yet).

Might try this Christmas fairy idea for Christmas Eve. Sounds like a good way to get them to stay in bed instead of coming down every 2 seconds asking if Santas been yet haha

I also wrap the living room door up. I put wrapping paper across the whole door held on with Sellotape. The kids absolutely love bursting through it on Christmas Day haha. Plus it stops them from sneaking in the room to try and guess what they've got before its time to even get up!

Just remember to leave the door open though...

My dad did this one year and forgot to open the door so when my brother, sister and went to run through the paper we crashed into the door x

Yes, the Christmas fairy arrives on Christmas Eve. She gets to our house about 3pm, about the time that dd is driving us insane
She knocks at the back door and we ask dd to answer it as we are busy!
And there is a gift bag with the pj's and other bits in it!

We also leave carrots and reindeer food out in the garden. A couple of years ago I had just got into bed and realised I hadn't emptied the plate of food and chomped on the blooming carrots!

Table tennis table for DS
New micro scooter for DD

Ds3 is getting non clothes related items for the first time this year. Last two years he has been pretty oblivious. He still won't really get it I don't think but he is ready for a few choice toys of his own now.

LOL helentres hope running into the door didn't hurt too much :o I would love to do the wrapping paper idea but our stairs lead straight into the living room (tiny house) - but I'm banking it for the future if we move.

Our jammies (we all get them now as it's quite easy to find funky adult trousers in Asda etc) arrive 'from the elves' around bedtime, usually they also deliver a nice tree decoration each which they can hang on the tree just before bed, although last year I couldn't find anything nice so they delivered a cuddly toy each for them to take to bed. Normally they arrive outside the front door, but we were out all Xmas eve last year so I stayed behind a few extra minutes as we left to arrange the things on the stairs and left a trail of stars from the front door!

Love the trail of stars and the wrapped up door idea.

Having spoken to DH last night we are now trying to work out if we can make the kitchen and games table before we go to bed and get into their rooms so they see them in the morning without waking everyone up, we live in a small flat.

It's just I sometimes find they don't always quite "get" what they have when they are in the box. Perhaps we can just put them up next to the tree.

Hi - a note of caution on second hand Wii though.... the early ones are now at the breaking down stage - the CD drive breaks and it is a b*&&& to replace (I've done 3 of them!) - so some unscrupulous private sellers are getting rid of broken ones - or ones near the end of life..... take care....

DS will be 4.3, and will get something playmobil - probably the fire engine, or police car. DD will be 18 months, so only getting her a small duplo train set - she won't care, but DS will!

OP with Santa present we unpack/build them. We spent a brilliant couple of hours on Xmas eve building the playmobil castle (complete with baileys and white Christmas on DVD!), even set up the knights/horses round it. Their face when they saw it was definitely worth it!

I think when they are older and perhaps if they ask for specific playmobil, we would leave it in the box for them to build, but at this age they prefer it ready to play. Obviously Lego I wouldn't build for them though.

I agree, my two clearest memories of Christmas are when we got bikes or when my brother and I got TVs with built in video. They were just by the side of the tree and I think 'berserk' is the only way to describe it.

Mine have to have small, portable presents this year, because we are staying with DH parents, who are an 8 hour train journey away (including several changes and a transfer across London). So all the presents need to fit into our suitcases, and we need to be able to lift them!
No idea what to get, so lucky I have a few months to rack my brains about it. If we had been staying at home I think I would have got DD1 a bike.

Dd1 will be 2.8 and is getting a pirate ship and pirates as her big present.

Dd2 will be 10 months and is getting an Elc post box.

We do stocking and 1 present from Father Christmas, then a few more medium size things from us.

We do a large sack from Father Christmas and maybe one toy that doesn't fit in the sack and then a bunch of toys from us, we only have my parents here so they don't get many other gifts. Probably 5/7 things from us ranging from a larger gift to charity shop finds.

DS will be 5.5yrs at Christmas and his main present from us will be an Ikea lack table (£5!!!) superglued with 4 lego base boards and a few bags of lego wheels / doors etc

DD will be 2.5yrs and I've already squirrelled away her gifts purchased on sale at various times, Melissa and Doug wooden dress up dolls / threading beads / a Disney Mulan doll / some duplo and a Strawberry Stable horse thingy what I was thinking I don't know but it was super cheap oh and will probably get her some more felt play food from Ikea when we go to get the Lack table.

Other than the lego I'm a bit stuck on what to get DS this year too, still time to think about it though... and what do you do when the ONLY thing they want / ask for is utter rubbish and not particularly cheap?? DS is mad keen on this Air Hog Atmosphere thing he's seen on TV its over £20 and all the reviews are rubbish. But he reallllllly wants one :-/

DD is about to turn 8 (literally right after Christmas - I laboured Christmas night!!).

When she was 4, we got her a "Micro scooter", which has been enormously well used. She scoots to school, home from afterschool club in creche, and playing around the green - still. We've just replaced the handlebar grips in the past week as they were so well worn. And it's much smaller than a bike (and can be made tiny by taking out the handles to put away flat). There are also folding scooters you can get too.

When she was 5, we got her a DS lite, which she adores. For her birthday that year, she got a big crafts kit in a box.

When she was 6, she got the firestation from Lego City. And a big complicated jigsaw.

When she was 7, it was another bike (she got one aged 2 and 4 as well) as she'd grown out of the previous one again. She gets a LOT of use out of the bike (cycles to school the days she comes straight home afterwards, to sports training, and out with DH at weekends, as well as around the green with friends).

There are loads of different Lego themes, and then loads of kits within each theme, so that can be a great way to get a nice big present.

Kiwi personally I would get the thing they want if it was within my budget. I feel your pain, though! But it's better than a disappointed dc on Christmas morning.

Dd, who will be 20 months, will be getting the IKEA duktig kitchen, plus some of their play food etc. Will also get her a book, some colouring stuff and some chocolate buttons. Am so excited - she quite liked Christmas last year, so she'll bloody love it this year!

DD (2.2 @ Xmas) is getting the Fisher Price Home for the Holidays dollhouse as her main present.

DD is getting a pop up tent (proper one not a toy) if I can find one small enough and cheap enough and a massive arts and craft set put together by myself As she's getting a tablet for her 6th birthday next month I'm not going mad. Her other presents will be books and pjs and maybe an outfit from H&M.

I very little idea what to get 2 year old DS. Hoping he'll be able to give me a clue when he starts back at his stay and play group next month. Although it'll probably be cars. Cant move for cars in this house right now!

DS1 will be 6 1/2 and is getting Disney Infinity for the Wii with the Villains and the Sidekicks Playsets and several of the Power Discs

DS2 will be 3 1/2 and will be getting an Innotab 2 with 4 games and an App Card

Dd1 (10) the new Samsung tablet

Dd2 (8) no idea shes yet to pick something big.

Dd3 (18month) a red retro kidkraft kitchen +accessories or a silver cross coach built pink pram, either or and the other she will get in February for her birthday

Dd will only be 7 months. Have got new pjs for Xmas eve, along with a little dressing gown and slippers because our house can be quite cold in winter. Going to get a little toy house I've seen and a couple of outfits, maybe a teddy bear. Think we're going to splash out on some baby converse for her. We've wanted some and couldn't justify the cost but since she's not really going to be aware of Xmas and we can get away with buying her less we're thinking about getting a pair. She's also the only grandchild on both sides of the family so she's going to get spoilt rotten.

We're getting our DDS (who will be 10 and 7 by then) new ipod touches.

They have got second hand ones, which we bought for £50 second hand and they've had them a couple of years now and proved themselves trustworthy with looking after and respecting them. But they're 1st and 2nd generation so many of the latest games just won't load on there any more. They work, they're just too old.

So we've bough some 4th Gen ones. They were reduced to £150 (+ £10 cashback) in Argos for the 32GB. These will have a good 3 years in them before they need replacing and will keep the DDs happy.

Other than that, DD1 will get ballet stuff (she starts festival dancing next week, so I'm sure she'll need some kit by Christmas) and DD2 will have a CD player that has got an ipod dock to keep her ipod in and charge it.

My parents are buying them a 2 day taster session at a local PGL camp (£100 for one night / two days) and that's all. Just little bits after that.