What's going in the re-useable calendars this year?

[lucysmam]

Due to various things I am way behind with any Christmas shopping .

I need inspiration for my girls' re-useable calendars please! They'll be very nearly 7 and very nearly 10 by December. Cheap as possible is good too.

I'm off to town tomorrow so will pick up some bits and bobs while I'm there

Ooh watching this as I need ideas too.

Mine are younger but I was thinking finger puppets and little windup toys in some, and notes for activities for that day in others!

Hair clips?
Giant balloons?

Chocolate? Otherwise why bother with a stocking?

Either chocolate or bits of a Lego set split up. But I think the former

Lip balm. Hair bobbles. Hair clips.mini bath bomb.expandable flannel. Festive jewellery.

Mine is younger but as well as some of the above I do little notes for activities to do together

I do have some activities lined up for December I can put in, I always see it suggested then forget to actually do it!

Chocolate will go in too but not every day elQuinto, we use the Christmas tree calendar my mum made me when I was small & it has always had small gifts rather than just chocolate. I usually look out for something unusual - last year they had some chocolate animals (in coloured chocolate!) :)

I think I might raid Primarni's festive stuff for packs of slides/bobbles and bits that I can split down. And have a trip to the fancy sweet shop at the outlet maybe to see what I can get there.

I have someone local who makes crayons, so you can get Christmas shaped ones or letters to spell their name. Maybe search on Facebook?

They sound good Cuppa, thanks. I'll have a hunt.

I am going to do a "treasure hunt" over a few days with a bigger present at the end. (The usual like chocolate as well of course!) They will receive notes with clues on (encrypted) and map fragments.
In the past, I have created riddles, poetry and whole stories with hints to activities or hidden treasure (play places, Christmas tree decorating, see panto or even a new jumper for Christmas j day at school!)
My kids are 6 & 12 and although they won't have an actual treat every day, they love, remember and treasure the little notes and hints towards something bigger!

Pokemon characters like these
m.ebay.co.uk/itm/24pcs-Wholesale-Mixed-Lots-Pokemon-Mini-Random-Pearl-Figures-New-Hot-Kids-Toy/142058833207?_trksid=p2053742.c100463.m3226&_trkparms=aid%3D555014%26algo%3DPL.DEFAULT%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D20150527183144%26meid%3D9c284a064bf24f1e95d7a14e856eecfd%26pid%3D100463%26rk%3D1%26rkt%3D1%26

Place marking

Chocolate, I am sick of spending time buying cute things that are small enough to fit in the stocking to then be greeted with a disappointed face because it's not chocolate!

I've got a few of the Lindt miniatures, santas helpers, reindeer, teddies etc so she's having one of those each day!

I've bought the Pokémon figures from eBay too for my 9 & 6 year old Pokémon mad sons, i got 48 of them for 6.99, got to get about 4 packs of chocolate coins so another £2 and find cheap advent calenders to put them in...... Still way cheaper than the Lego/hot wheels/playmonil ones though...

Placemarking. Am doing one for the first time this year for DC1 (nearly 4). So far have hair clips, a big sheet of Minions stickers that I'll cut down and chocolate coins. Love the idea of little notes for activities. Mothercare also have a Happyland Nativity set that I've been wondering about buying - perhaps I could separate the figures from that?

Mostly choc but also some stickers, smelly erasers, hair clips, hot choc. I also bought a bumper pack of christmas stories so every Sat I am going to put a note in telling them to go and look somewhere. Will also do a few baking cookies, leave collecting, making christmas card notes too.

Oh they are only four though so are happy with chocs and stickers anyway.

I like the balloon idea. They love balloons. Will see if i can get some of those light up baloons to stick in.

My little one is only going to be 20 months so I'm obviously way more into this than he is!

I'm going to put a sticker in each calendar section and have a matching sticker on a Christmas/wintery book that I've wrapped. He can wear the sticker, help me find the matching sticker, unwrap the book and then we will read the book together. I've been buying Christmas toddler friendly books whenever I've seen them. They range from Peppa Pig to The Nativity! Christmas Eve's book will be the family copy of The Night Before Christmas as that's been tradition since I was a baby.

Sierra I love the Nativity figure idea! I'm definitely using that next year.

I aim for 12 days of chocolate and 12 days of gifts. Some days the gifts are too big for the calendar pockets so the DD's will find a model of a Christmas tree instead. They will then find the gift under our tree. These gifts are usually their Christmas pyjamas, christmas story book and a new bauble for their tree.
Smaller gifts I've gone for the usual stationery, hair accessories, small toiletries and raided Claire Accessories sale for necklaces/lip balms.

Poems
Jokes
balloons
small hair clips
a chocolate or two
a few sweets
tiny stationery (those small rubbers you can get, mini pens, staplers etc)
small decorations for the tree
rub on tattoos
10/20/50p piece

I'm putting in notes for an activity that day, eg. Go see Santa, put up christmas tree, but also some notes telling them to go look in a certain place to find something, these things will include christmas books, an orchard toys christmas game, craft stuff to make things like christmas cards, paper chains, gingerbread house to make, a new decoration... basically all the stuff you generally do with them or give them anyway in the run up to christmas but spread out to one every day.
We don't do christmas eve boxes or 1st dec boxes, we do this instead.

I love the treasure hunt idea! Unfortunately my brain isn't very good at writing clues though but I will have a go.

Also really like the nativity split down idea, I'm not sure where my set is at the mo so will look out for a nice but inexpensive one when I'm out and about.