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Christmas

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Original poster

DC asking for rubbishy, but pricy, present!

73 replies

jemsywemsy · 12/11/2017 23:00

What do you do if your DC wants something really crappy looking but expensive for Christmas and puts it in their letter to Santa?

My 4 year old has asked for a Shopkins mall thing that's £80 and it looks shite. We can afford it but it just seems like the kind of thing she'll get bored of after 5
minutes and it feels like such a waste of money that it just makes me feel uneasy to buy it her. She has no concept of money yet really, and just thinks it looks cool.

If she asked for something smaller I could also get her a few nice surprise things too that I think she would enjoy more in the longer term.

Her brother has asked for something that's £60 so I could just say that's Santa's limit?

Or do I just say Santa won't bring it because he doesn't think it's very good and there are other things that would be better?

Persuade her to ask for something else?

Or just bite the bullet and buy the tat?!

OP posts:
ChristmasLists · 12/11/2017 23:02

Just don’t buy it? Why do you need to justify to a 4 year old? Is she that spoilt and ungrateful already?

PugwallsSummer · 12/11/2017 23:05

I tend to say “Santa will only deliver that to older children. You can ask for it again when you’re 8” (she’s 5). She just accepts it and moves on.

Migraleve · 12/11/2017 23:06

Agreed. You just don’t buy it. She is 4. She probably wants everything she sees. Just get her something you know she will love that gives better value for money.

LBOCS2 · 12/11/2017 23:07

Last year we bit the bullet and bought the £80 MLP Princess Celestia Castle. It’s currently in the skip as it never got played with and fell apart literally days after it was put together.

This year we’re asking for alternatives.

MistyMinge · 12/11/2017 23:08

That's a bit of a uncalled for comment Christmas

If my 5 year old asks for something I think is shit, I tend to really make a fuss of something else he says he likes. Make it sound like it'll be loads better. I'm sure she'll be ok if it's not there on xmas morning. Maybe just get a smaller shopkins thing so she's not too disappointed.

BestZebbie · 12/11/2017 23:09

Get her a £30 Shopkins Tall Mall from Ebay (that is the boxed price, they are more like £15 preused) and some other stuff?

Original poster
jemsywemsy · 12/11/2017 23:12

Thanks for the lovely reply ChristmasLists 🙄. No she's not ungrateful or spoilt at all, but she's 4, it's the only thing she's asked Santa for and it's not about "justifying" it to her, it's about explaining it in a way that she understands. Because her brother is getting the thing he's asked for and she's been a good girl so she'll wonder why she didn't get what she asked for! I guess I should encourage them to come up with alternatives. Christmas letter hasn't been sent yet so will work on getting it changed!

OP posts:
youngestisapsycho · 12/11/2017 23:17

Was that the only thing on the list? I just used to tell mine that Santa couldn’t bring everything they asked for.

NoSquirrels · 12/11/2017 23:18

Your Santa letter is the problem .. we've always told DC that they should put lots of suggestions if different things, so FC can choose. We follow the "Something you want, something you need, something to wear, something to read".

That way you get loads of suggestions, FCcsn get some, you give the others out to family/you but them, and you can steer the process e.g. "Ooh, wouldn't a new onesie be a good idea" etc.

However, if you are buying a £60 something for her brother from Santa, I'd probably suck it up & pay the £80 for what she wants, regardless of it being tat.

overwhelmedbyitall · 12/11/2017 23:19

I get my kids to write a long list of lots of things (some maybe a little directed by me ;) ) They know they can ask for anything at all and Father Christmas will bring a stocking of small things and choose one big thing from thir list for under the tree so it's a surprise. It has worked well for us so far!

UserWhatYouLike · 12/11/2017 23:23

I’d just get it if it’s what she wants. Think of her little face when she sees it on Christmas morning, knowing you wouldn’t buy it but Santa did!

I figured out Santa wasn’t real when he got my friends a Mr Frosty and I never got one 😭

GreenTulips · 12/11/2017 23:25

At 4 you can easily buy second hand

Best of both worlds then

ladybirdladybug · 12/11/2017 23:33

Shopkins are fucking awful. 4yo DD loves them. Have you seen the Youtube videos? Total commercial crap.

DD would love shopkins for christmas - it's not happening! I won't let her watch the videos anymore either. It's like mainlining marketing messages.

LovingLola · 12/11/2017 23:33

Because her brother is getting the thing he's asked for and she's been a good girl so she'll wonder why she didn't get what she asked for!

You need to remove the link between her being 'good' and Santa bringing her stuff based on her 'goodness'.

GreenTulips · 12/11/2017 23:36

How do you remove being good? It's on every TV show and Christmas film and teachers join in ..... no going to happen

Original poster
jemsywemsy · 12/11/2017 23:39

Santa ASKS them if they've been good when they meet him, it's what Santas do!

OP posts:
ladybirdladybug · 12/11/2017 23:39

How do you remove being good?

Simple. Every time you talk about Santa it's a given he's coming, no reference to having to be good. Job done.

Works for us.

ladybirdladybug · 12/11/2017 23:41

Santa ASKS them if they've been good when they meet him, it's what Santas do!

Yes, but that doesn't mean you have to keep that part of the story up at home.

Santa is magic FFS! And everyone's Christmas traditions are at least slightly different. Just don't labour the point and the kids will happily suspend their belief about that bit too. After all, it's in their interests to not have to worry about the being good bit of the story - why would they question it if you don't?

RoganLogan · 12/11/2017 23:47

Mr Frosty was shite anyway.

PodgeBod · 12/11/2017 23:52

Maybe I’m soft but if you can afford it I would just buy it. Maybe see if she’s still talking about it in a couple of weeks before you commit.

Emily7708 · 13/11/2017 00:12

My goddaughter received this for her birthday in October so I have seen it set up and I can’t tell you how utterly crap it is. It looks nothing like the picture, comes with 4 pathetic shopkins but no dolls and barely any furniture. Nothing would persuade me to spent £80 on it. The Tall Mall (which she also received) looked much better.

ForgotwhatIcameinherefor · 13/11/2017 00:16

What I have always done is engineered"assisted with" DDs' lists slightly and can actually confirm that we have the Shopkins Tall Mall as requested on DD2's list last year following my our research and "joint" reasoning that it's also a storage item for her collection etc. Then it was bigged up regularly as always being advertised on kids TV. She was super pleased with it on Christmas morning Grin

Iamagreyhoundhearmeroar · 13/11/2017 00:23

Oh God! I'm all for giving kids whatever they want at Christmas, but that looks like a load of shite. Scandalous Shock

Vitalogy · 13/11/2017 00:43

UserWhatYouLike Funny, reading your post. I also did not get Mr Frosty Sad probably because lets face it, it was shite, my mum and dad probably couldn't justify wasting the money, which I understand now, not then though.

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