DO you always give your children a 'main present'??

[noonar]

my dds are 2 and 4. last yr they got bikes. this yr we're going skiing before xmas. the inlaws have bought them huge dolls' house plus accessories. i'm starting to think we should just give 4 or 5 small gifts eg dressing up costume and game from ELC.

i cant seem to get away from the idea that they should get a 'main' large present, eg toy cooker for my 2 yo.

now, i want to keep the expense to a max of £50 ish per child. also, there's the issue of space .

what dyou think? small pressies ok?

We don't. We buy a few presents and out of those I'm sure they will have a favourite but we never go out of our way to get a 'main' present. I'm sure their childhood won't be destroyed if you just get little pressies!

thanks. this idea is coming from me, not them! silly, i know. i guess now that dd1 is nearly 5, it'd be a good time to set a precedent. ie no expectation of 'main presents'.

We tend to get a main present and then maybe a couple of bits (depending on the size/cost of the main present) but there's been times when we haven't known what to get them and so we've given them a box of individually wrapped smaller presents and that's proved just as popular. One year a pair of sunglasses and an umbrella proved to be just about the biggest hits - that's children for you isn't it!

i also feel bad that i have more ideas for dd1 than dd2. it's just her age though. also, as dd2 often follows her sister's lead when playing, they tend to like the same toys, eg sylvanian families, even if they're not esp suitable for a 2yo.

i feel like whatever i get one, the other will want too. they dont share that well atm, so its tricky.

you're right , you cant always think of a main present. also, at this age, main present seems to = large present! not ideal space wise.

We generally give ours a main present between them (eg an easel or an indoor trampoline) and then a mixture of large 'tree' presents and small 'stocking' presents. At this age they really aren't that aware of the relative 'size' of presents, so the special present from the ILs will be very exciting, and they probably won't notice if you give them lots of little presents. If anything, they will probably be more pleased with the number of presents rather than the 'size'.

there are these HUGE art cases at Toys R US ... they're wooden and filled with loads and loads and they're £10 each .. and on 3 for 2 so I'd say get something like that for the 4 year old

thats true. its def quantity over quality at this age!

thanks twiglet, both dds would love that.