Alternatives to 'stuff' this Christmas?

[Misty9]

With two DC aged 2 and 5 we have more than enough 'stuff' and I'm trying to think of alternatives - both for my kids and my nephews (2 and 6) - which would be exciting in their own right and acceptable to young children! Ideas?

Maybe ideas for adults too?

Subscription to a magazine?

Tickets for a theme park/day out/family friendly play or film

An IOU book of museum trips and parks/ beaches?

Magazine subscription is a really good idea. DS is a by older (9) but we got him a Beano subscription for Christmas last year and he looks forward to it arriving every week. Going to do similar for DD (5) this Christmas.

*a bit older

My mum got ds the national geographic mini kids subscription last year and he could not be less interested when it arrives bi-monthly...to be fair, it is tiny and he doesn't like animals that much!

Might look for science type magazines though as he loves knowing how things work..

Look for WhizzPopBang magazine - it's a science experiments magazine, I bought it for my goddaughter, they send you emails with equipment lists for extra experiments and things too

She was five when I started buying it

Would you think of making them their own books? I was on a train many years ago and a 3 year old was leafing through a home made book which was all about him. I started chatting to his mum (a teacher) who had made it for him and told me he loved it. So I did this for mine years later. Just photos and text about what they do during the day, who is in their family, a recent holiday etc. I mad a cover with their photo on it, printed, laminated and bound them. Big hit.

Blankets, hottie animals, personalised swim bag with swim kit (in fact anything personalised - lots of stuff on ebay), onesie.

I actually had a thread on here last year about ds asking for a book of stories about a character I made up (once!) But sadly I am time poor and hardly any of the software works on ipad as they all seem to need flash. I will consider it again this year though.

Do you know if whizzpopbang has been going well jonty ? I've seen it before but thought ds possibly too young?

At two if you don't want to buy stuff just don't. A big box with a few balloons in can give hours of fun.

When my eldest two were young money was really tight so Christmas wasn't about the presents list. As they've got older, i've remarried and have a third child and slightly more money around but Christmas still isn't about big gifts. We save the bigger gift choice thing for birthdays and focus on a nice advent at Christmas which they get involved in choosing and enjoy opening. They also get a stocking of nice bits.

I like the lego and playmobile advents. I like that they get to play with them and get excited about the build up to Christmas which is about lots of family getting together.

I know its not what you've asked but whilst your DC are young you've still got the chance to establish what your traditions are and if you don't want stuff then just don't buy it.

For adults I quite like having a one gift price limited rule. We do £10 or £20 and have 15 - 20 of us on Christmas day doing the exchange. People are really creative and more thought goes i to the one gift and it being very personal. We also have more time to see what each person gets rather than 20 x 20 pressies.

We can buy minimally but sadly the relatives won't... so am possibly going to ask for money towards certain things, like season tickets for attractions etc. But they won't like that either.

twinning

All you get is a certificate that can have pride of place in your bogography.

What the recipients get is transformative.

Sorry, messed up the link.

It should be Toilet Twinning

Preferable to the PA goat by some distance, I think

Ooh I might get fil a toilet twin, thanks trojan !

I'm going to ask for Premier Inn vouchers for all of us!!! We live a Premier Inn, and they are great for little weekends away, or even just overnights. This summer we stayed in Beverly PI on a Saturday night after our normal swimming lessons/homework type day - about an hour away - then drove on about another 45 mins in the morning to see the puffins at Bempton Cliffs on the E Yorks coast. Too long both ways for a day trip there and back from home really. Nice little microbreak.

Could you ask for a theatre trip or a day out of some sort instead? My kids now go to the theatre much more often than I do, and it's a lovely experience while not cluttering up the house with tat. It does help that we're in London, with easy access to children's theatres and special trips like the London Eye, a ride on the double-decker to see the Xmas lights, ice-skating at the Natural History Museum etc.

Theatre vouchers is a good one actually as ds is starting to enjoy the trips we do. Might get the same for my nephew too

Where are you? My children - similar ages - love the theatre. The Snowman is at Sadlers Wells every Christmas and my 4 year old has been asking if we can go again since, ooh, the day after we went. Stickman is on in London this Christmas too.

on the same note as theatre vouchers, mine have been given cinema vouchers and loved that as a present.

East of England, so vastly less cultural than London sadly!

We have friends where one Auntie pays for everyone to go to the panto. It works so well on many levels. The family get together, her Xmas shopping is done in July and hopefully the kids will remember it and her fondly. Sadly I don't have that sort of family!

Just to go against the grain here, I used to get "experiences" as a gift as a child and I hated it.... I just wanted toys!

What experiences did you get oly ? I think that's a valid reaction for a child! I'll make sure they have some toys too, just fewer perhaps.