Went to Toys R Us yesterday.........

[sweetheart]

Ds (8) has his birthday early Dec and Xmas coming up so we took him to Toys R Us yesterday to have a look round and see if anything stood out - NOTHING! Not a single bloomin thing looked worth buying

I have no idea what we are going to get him this year and I am loathed to waste money on crap that won't be used.

Can anyone give me any inspiration?

Sorry to put a downer on things but is it just me who thinks that kids get too many toys, many of which are generally junk and go unappreciated?

I have generous family who will provide most of the presents for my DD, so cant see me getting her much myself. Maybe an orange or something.

Not sure why you're getting a tough time OP .

Most threads on here are people asking for suggestions and inspiration for presents. Not sure why your thread's being treated differently - Who wants to waste money on crappy gifts?

My DS is 8 at Christmas and never has been into toys his only real interest football. Last year we bought him some things for him to open but we also got him tickets to a big football game which meant a weekend away and also tickets to wwe also a weekend away and he was thrilled the football game was the best present ever apparently, maybe something like that for hockey?

We did the same with the dd's ( took them to toys r us to get ideas ) and all dd1 wanted was the giant pink unicorn and dd2 some moshi monster figures ( even though she has 100's already ). I think sometimes they don't really know what they would like, I know my dd2 loves lego but she would never be drawn to it in toys r us. Sometimes I think toys r us is a bit to overwhelming as there's so much there. It does get harder as they get older though, dd1 is almost 10 and is at that age where she doesn't really play with toys, she loves pokemon but like minecraft there's not a huge selection of toys so I have had to order some online from Japan ( gone are the days where she will pick something from argos ).

zippey I couldn't agree more! Both my kids have more stuff than they need, it's a total waste! Hence why this year I'm really trying to think carefully about what to buy.

We have in the past let them decide on new decorations for their bedrooms and re-done them as their birthday present with a grand unveiling on their birthday - unfortunately their rooms don't need redecorating again at the moment.

Sunshine - it's fine if people want to come on here and give me a hard time. I know I'm not the only person with this problem and I know as far as problems go it's a great one to have - you know other than wondering how I am going to feed my children tomorrow!

Er..maybe he has too much stuff already! My ds is a similar age and yearns for many, many things!(He has no i pad, no DS,no scaleextric (I wish)no X box. Some lego and action figures etc.)
If I were you, I would get him the skates he needs, and a couple of beast quest books or whatever, and some art stuff.
You don't have to spend hundreds.
Or, you could give him the money, and he could spend it on whatever crap he likes.

You could do a cull of the stuff he currently doesn't play with, and give it to a charity shop? That way someone will end up playing with it.

The cull is taking place this half term. You're right - he DOES have too much stuff already! Part of the problem is having birthday and Christmas 2 weeks apart.

I would get him the skates he needs

Then:
Something for outside - ball/ kite/ crochet set/ tennis racket

Something to read - book/ kindle voucher if has/ annual/ magazine

Something to wear- anything

Something to eat - marshmallows/ choc santa

Some nice art supplies - clay/ watercolours and paper etc

what about something he could get an enduring use from like a computer, or is that way over budget?

We got my son some software to do his own animations one year, as he loves art and drawing but with a computer rather than a gamne machine e.g xbox etc, there is a huge range of software to suit different interests as opposed to apps and games iyswim?

If he already has a modern enough tv, you could link it to that rather than have another screen.

My son just wanted his bedroom redone with new bed etc for his birthday last year, would that be of interest to him?

And I don't think you are being picky, I hate it when they ask for things (tat) which you know full well it won't get played with, we have had many Christmases where dd1 has got lots of toys and then after a few hours she's back on her computer and never touches the bloody toys again , dd1 often asks for tat such as plastic dinosaurs and board games (guess who was something she begged for and it rarely got played with), I don't want a house full of unwanted toys.

Dd1 asked for the despicable me 2 DVD, because it wouldn't look much wrapped up I bought her a giant minion teddy to wrap up with it, I know she will love both the teddy and the DVD and it bulks her present pile up a bit as her sister will be getting bigger items ( as she still loves playing with toys ), I have now bought a few things for dd1 which I think she will like but she hasn't asked for, I got her some fab flashing speakers from B&M which she can plug into the PC and I might get her a funky alarm clock for her bedroom, her main present ( which she has asked for ) is the new pokemon game for her ds. All the things I have got her look tiny ( don't get as much for your money when they get older) but dd2 has a bigger pile as she likes lego, Barbie , moshi monsters and loves cooking ( so got her a chocolate making kit ).

oops, was too slow typing and didn't see the info on bedrooms.

The best present DS had last year was the john Adams hotwires set. It has had masses of play and has both DS1 and DS2 sitting down for ages.

Zoobs also popular.

Spy gear video watches and night vision goggles both a hit.

Skateboard and ramp also popular.

Ahhhh see another problem, ds is our youngest so lots of things he's already played with when dd's had them before him - just like the hot wires set

A well I feel for you then. I find DS1 easy to buy for and DS2 impossible to buy for for that very reason

My ds 8 is getting from us and various family:-
Bop it Tetris
Sky landers swap force and characters
Angry birds ds game
Tom gates books
Football boots
Angry birds Jenga game
Weird slime lab
Yahtzee game
Guinness book of records
Liverpool fc annual and calendar
Selection box
Despicable me 2 DVD
Subscription to match of the day magazine

Any inspiration?

He has mentioned sky landers but only since his cousin got some for his birthday recently. He'd never shown an interest before then so I'm not 100% sure.

tbh my kids struggle to find things in toys r us - I actively hate that shop! Maybe think outside the box. Is there some fun bedroom stuff you could get (duvet covers, pillows, clock etc). Or tickets to go and see a show with a gift along the same theme. Or buy a few inexpensive gifts so he has the whole gift experience on xmas day but then put money into his account for later in the year? for his birthday what about no toy but a fabulous day trip out somewhere (we tend to buy 1 inexpensive gift for birthdays and then do a day trip out and a small party instead)? What about consumables like craft bits, foods you wouldn't usually buy, bath stuff (my kids love tinti!). Or a magazine subscription? We seem to buy fewer and fewer toys each year for ours as there is only so much you can play with. This year they are getting a few extra but only because I gutted the playroom and got rid of bits my daughter had outgrown but that wouldn't interest my son. This meant we had extra pennies and also room on the shelves for a bit of a shakeup!

I keep hearing about this hotwires set - is it really decent then? I'm surprised as John Adams stuff is generally shit I thought (chocolate coin maker etc)?

I totally agree about toys r us etc being totally overwhelming for some children. Not just the sheer volume of stuff but the huge space and bright lights etc - my DD for one can't manage that kind of environment, neither can I for that matter. She's the same in our large childrens library - adores books but faced with the endless shelves she just clams up and refuses to choose anything

Sorry, off on a tangent there!

Hotwires is fab fuzzpig. Read the reviews on Amazon. It's good quality and the things they can make do actually work. Gets a little tiresome setting off the burglar alarm in the bedroom for the fourth time in a row but delights the kids.

OP I'd do skylanders. It's a good game and whilst on one level the numerous different characters are annoying since each one costs about a tenner, it mAkes for endless present buying opportunities! Be aware though there are three different games, skylanders, skylanders giants and skylanders swap force. Different figures go with different games.

Thanks squirrel I'll definitely bear it in mind for the future. Bizarre that the same company make a lot of very unpopular toys too!

Ds is 8 today. He had his last big party so got waaaay too much stuff. Popular gifts included a skateboard, lego (he has loads but loves it), lego alarm clock, the new hex bugs,chemistry set and books (fiction and non fiction).

He got cash too and his own choices were lego castle, skateboard helmet and top trumps. Our gifts were pretty small as had the party.

He is having an xbox 360 (and little else after this lot!) as he is minecraft mad but only has the demo on.my phone.

We are going to winter wonderland for my sisters birthday which is the day before ds's so I think I'll sell that as a birthday treat for him, I know my sister won't mind him crashing her birthday. Looks like I'd better research sky landers then.

Try searching Amazon, start with the thing he likes, Lego minecraft, then look at the 'people who bought this also bought...' suggestions. I find this quite useful. Maybe a really good boardgame like forbidden island?