Best value or most played with gifts from Santa

[DipSwimSwoosh]

Santa bought my ds a toy kitchen when he was nearly 2. My ds is now nearly 7 but has 2 younger siblings and the kitchen has honestly been played with every day for the past 5 years.
Mini micro scooters lasted years too.
What have been your best Santa gifts?

Sylvanian Families. I really resent the extortionate price but they are played with constantly. Same as Happyland for a slightly younger crowd.

Like you, a kitchen....well actually a wooden cooker with a load of wooden food. Massively popular for years.

Other successes include a Brio train set when they were little and a metal detector when DD was 9,

Oh I'm so glad you said that. That's what I've just bought one of the younger ones for this year!

A Brio train set?

Wooden train set - bought when eldest was 3, played with by youngest then passed on to a friend 9 years later. It started out with a Tesco set then picked up random bits at car boots, sales etc!

Games like dobble and labyrinth have been played with well, also a chess set. DS has been in to nerf guns for a few years so they’ve been good value and lasted.
Bikes well used especially when the weather is good.
Insulated water bottles also though guess not a fun gift or a toy. Older DD air pods though not cheap have been used daily.
We also had a brio train set and toy kitchen when they were younger which were very well used for many years, train set was passed on to nursery and kitchen given away so hopefully both still in use.

8yo DS asked for a teddy last year, which we thought had only been added because his little sister (3) wanted one. But DH found one from the Entertainer which was bigger than DD, and it has been an absolute hit. On weekends, it is lugged round the house routinely, and apparently especially enjoys watching TV with both of them. It was half price, too, so possibly the best £10 Santa's ever spent!

A Duplo Batcave which DS adored and played with for hours and hours every week.

Our wooden food still gets load of play even though we got rid of the kitchen a while ago.

Wooden kitchen from Aldi still going strong with daily play 4 years later.

Scooter used nearly every day.

Train set (john lewis) used frequently and will be added too this year by santa thanks to Lidl's compatable wooden sets

Also a musical jewelry box has been much adored by older DD over the years.

Yes, brio here too! Glad to see Dobble on the list, had just bought that for ds.

DD is now 17 but we still laugh about the Christmas when a plastic piece of toast was her "bestest ever" present.

Apart from that, Playmobil, Playmobil, Playmobil. Every Christmas for about 5 years. She only really allowed it to be packed away when she was about 11. Most was second hand but Playmobil is such good quality it was like new.

A little farmhouse that opened up and that had animals inside (not playmobil but similar). And a red bus with the alphabet on the side. When you pressed the letters it said them out loud. The DS that loved that one could read at age 3 so either the bus was a genius toy, or he had an affinity for letters which is why he loved it!

The bundle of Sylvanian families house and furniture and animals I bought on eBay about 8 years ago which has been played with incessantly. And added to extravagantly... I love the Sylvanian.

My children are 19 and 16 now but I fondly remember a garage / car park thing they both loved, with ramps and all sorts for cars to whiz around on. Happy days.

SmartMax.

Played with everyday here

Kiddy superstar microphone.

Now on year 4 of it and it's pretty much played with daily.

A little handheld pirate style telescope off Amazon. And a rainbow llama which was supposed to light up but broke straight away, so just a soft toy now. They were both from last year.

Cooker - played with daily for years
Train set - ditto
Wooden blocks - ditto
Trampoline - ditto
Heelies - worn til they wore out
Kapla - even adult guests play with this one
Moon ball - daily use going on 4 years now.
Microscope - used occasionally but brilliant to have
Tonka fold up garage - carried with us when out and about for years. Still won’t part with it.
Red riding hood cape - most popular costume in our house.
Lego - reluctantly included as it’s played with constantly but we have far, far, far too much and it keeps coming. It’s like the plot of a 1950s horror movie.

Playmobil. I got a little set of musician playmobil figures in my stocking nearly 40 years ago, which started an enthusiasm for playmobil that I have passed onto my Dc.

We have loads of playmobil, but I noticed my Dd had set up a scene using the musical instruments from that very first old set yesterday.

Anything LOL. Appalling quality for the price but played with daily for over two years now...

Wooden kitchen
Micro scooters
Train track
Chalk board/whiteboard easel

Lego here, dd get Lego every year but still does the old sets over and over again as well as building random things, she started playing with it at the age of 3 and is now almost 15. Also the playmobil campervan has lasted a few years.

The Hot Wheels ultimate garage (with the shark) has gotten a lot of love here. Am amazed as most hot wheels stuff is utter rubbish but this one is surprisingly sturdy.

And we’ve gotten nearly 10 years out of the Brio!

Over the years probably little figures - in particular busy books. Cost £5-6 per set of 12 figures, and bought their favourite characters at the time. Fit in a little bag to take out, no holes so don't go mouldy in the bath/paddling pool. Best value for money!

Last year for dd2 definitely her dolls - barbie, bratz and lol she spends ages playing with them. And stewie the llama (bought in peacocks after she fell in love, he looks like a giant willy but she adores him!) He has been everywhere with us, Legoland, the Isle of Wight and up to London 😂

Dd1 always asks for bread and Mrs claus delivers every year with a basket of freshly baked bread! (Shes 12 and doesn't believe now, so its mostly for dd2s benefit!)

Build a bear, ds got when he was 6 and no interest in teddies. The thing comes everywhere with us to years later and i dread to think if we loose it. Was never attached to anything when he was younger.
Currently a liferyder scooter. Got during lockdown and has been used every day since. And uno. We all love uno here