What are your children still playing with almost 7 months on...

[MTWTFSS]

DS1 (4 years old)... still loves his Imaginext Castle

DS2 (2.5 years old)... still loves his Playmobil Zoo

Interested to hear what others are still playing with :)

Oh and skylanders after ds decided he has completed it. Disney infinity 2.0 is still being used though.

Again, keeping this bumped because it is very useful.

DS was almost 2 last Christmas. He still plays with:

Duplo
Brio
Bob the builder toys (second hand from FB selling - MASSIVE hit.)

He also got a lot of use out of the jigsaws he was given, but outgrew them by spring (we bought wooden peg puzzles, should have gone for proper ones)

The toy that's going the longest is the wooden train set from.Christmas 2010. It's grown over time too.

DS played with it from 2 to 5 years, and DD, now 2.3 years is just getting into it in a big way.

It's our most played with toy by visiting grown ups too. :)

My top tip - did you know pretty much all the different wooden train set makes go together, expensive brio and cheap aldi sets alike. The only one that's a bit of an awkward fit is Ikea (surprise surprise! ) but even then if you force them together, after a bit of playing they wear down and fit just fine.

That makes it a great gift to ask for, if relatives want present guidance. Once you have the basic set you can ask them to get extra bits to add to it and there's something for every budget out there - trains, tunnels, platforms and people etc.

DD (7) is lying in bed with me playing Animal Crossing New Leaf on her DS. Think it's safe to say that it is a hit

20 MONTHS - Scuttlebug several times a day. massive hit

books - loves them

Not bothering with those music playing toys (alphabet dinosaur etc)

2DS and games - favourite Nintendogs
Playmobil Pony Farm and Hotel
Books, books and more books.
Colouring and Top Model books
My little Pony

What isn't:
Anna and Elsa Toddler dolls
Elsa dress
Aqua beads
Cool kardz

Happyland has been a huge hit here with my 3 year old (we have far too much of it!!) my 20mth old son is just starting to get interested in it. They both love duplo and play with it every day. Both also love books. The biggest hit was the fisher price garage bought on eBay for £7 and fought over regularly. My son likes his toot toot cars and conveniently they roll nicely down the ramp of the garage!

The xbox 360 still going strong. They got lots of leg sets from family some of which is still unopened . Am hoping the summer hols will kick start interest again.

I'm really struggling with ideas for this year for the 9 (almost 10) year old especially. Although both want an electric guitar (never going to happen! !)

Hits with DD4 have been Baby Annabel, shopping till and basket of tins,
lego and play doh.

The Elsa and Anna skating dolls that she begged us for have barely been touched since January.

Playmobil & Playmobil 123 is played with by both DC (DS 4, DD 2) also Lego, play doh.

DD loves bobbles, clips, etc (not bought by us, but still a winner)

Not played with: IKEA cot... Used as a step

I won't buy as much this year. I've bought high street and amazon vouchers so will restrict my spending for Christmas to November and those shops

DS (now 2.9) plays with his £3 rubbish truck daily, plus brio bits. Expensive mini micro scooter get ignored!

Imagine cut batman and imaginext castle are played with daily by 8 yr old and 4 yr old DS. Mash ups didn't get played with much and all the novelty spy gear was ignored after a week.

Playmobil, my little pony equestria girls dolls, dolls pram, for both dd's 2 & 4. Add happyland for dd2 who's 2 she will get some of it out to play every day without fail. Puzzles for dd1 who does at least one puzzle a day.

DS (3.5) is still enjoying his wooden train set, marble run and cars.

HITS:
DS1 (7) - Lego, as usual. And books. Don't know why we buy anything else.

DS2 (3) - Lego batcave, imaginext batman stuff (gets played with by both actually)

MISSES:
Imaginext dinosaurs. He loves them, but they don't really get played with - too cumbersome.

Dressing up stuff. Both loved it at first, but the phase passed quickly - and I was relieved. Couldn't deal with superheroes fighting.

DD is 16 months. She is still playing with the tunnel and ball bit she got for Xmas. She loves to hide in the tunnel and play peepo!

DSs (6&8)

Hits:
Labyrinth board game - they love this.
Bird Bingo - very easy to play with other families/DC of all ages
Books - always
Fish plus fishtank
Footballs
Cool clothes

Misses:
Remote control cars
Things for their rooms/ornaments/boxes to put stuff in

Bought DD a kitchen when she was 1.5, she's 3 now and plays with it everyday.

Her Playmobil she loves, but doesn't play with it everyday.

She got some colourful farm animal counters that she uses all the time. Loves to pretend they are fruits and vegetables.

I was thinking this the other day ... the best thing I ever bought for DCs...the thing that has been used throughout the years by both DCs and it still gets used now.
An IKEA easel -cost £15. Magnetic white board one side, blackboard the other and did used to have a big roll of paper over the white board but a few years ago DD2 (now 8) took to using the stick that held it in place as a weapon toy so it was removed and I don't know where I put it!
It was a Christmas present for DD1 just before she was 2 ...she now 14.5.
(I did have to glue a bit back together once but only after DM used the shelf bit to help her stand up...whoops!)
They have used it for squiggles drawings and painting. The white board for magnetic letters and numbers. Then mainly for writing - (I remember before the paper went a long rant from DD1 (6) about how unfair I had been when she had been punished for something -it was so funny I think I have kept it! ).
The blackboard they do the odd drawing (or band/book symbol now from DD1) - have drawing competitions sometimes but mainly for writing silly insulting messages about each other (X smells or loves Harry Styles (massive insult in this house) or similar - X eventually realises and changes the X to Y etc then Y realises) ...or just random silly stories ...
I was thinking when we move I will have nowhere to put it but I am thinking of cutting the legs off and fixing the blackboard to the wall as a memo board...
Not sure about the white board bit - the magnetic bit is fine but the coating is flaking off a bit....might be skip time.
But definitely the best £15 I have ever spent...

Still play with/use,
DD 15, iPhone 5, Tony the Tiger onesie, various make up bits.
DS1 10, lego castle, Melissa and Doug Suspend game, Nerf gun and bullets, various books.
DS2 4 Imaginext Batcave, Gotham city jail and figures, cash register, police costume, orchard games, Melissa and Doug meal stickers.
DS3 3 Imaginext lions den (we already had the castle) Melissa and Doug dressing up hats, stamp set and ink pads, Duplo.

Waste of money,
DD popcorn maker though she does love the flavourings I bought to go with it the popcorn it makes tastes a bit burnt so she just does it in a pan, Best of British logo game.
DS1 remote control helicopter broke before new year, forensic science set was a bit rubbish.
DS2 balance bike, Jake and the Neverland pirates 'who shook hook', frustration game.
DS3 balance bike, Peppa pig house, schleich animals, mega blocks.

ds 8 his dinosaurs

ds 6 his man bag. it's really a buzz lightyear bag his kiddi zoom came in but now it's his man bag. everything is in the man bag. I found cheese in their once

iphone 5. I thought the contract was a bit pricey, but it has been worth every penny.

ASDA wooden kitchen with food and plates from IKEA. My 2 year old plays with it every day.

Weeble-lot castle has been played with daily for six years