Am I insane to think of buying this for ds for xmas?

[Maveta]

Ok it wouldn´t be just us buying it. It costs 200quid BUT one granny always gives her grandkids 100euros for xmas, and his granddad gives 50euros, a great aunt also 50euros. That´s 200euros that they give us and tell us to buy him something on their behalf.

He´s only 18mo but this is a long standing gift giving pattern established with his older cousins and although not guaranteed is pretty likely. IF they did give this money, I´d quite like to buy him something really lovely that he would (hopefully) enjoy for a long time.

We don´t have tons of cash by any means, he has toys but not particularly loads, and most are hand me downs or gifts. He has lots of books and always seems busy enough with what he has. We could buy lots of little toys with that money, or save it for him (boring??), or buy this He is obsessed with vehicles, tractors at the moment but trains, planes, cars, buses, whatever.

Or is it just ridiculously extravagant??

Lovely, i would go for it.

Well, he will grow out of it in 6 months, but then it's an heirloom type thing, so you will neve be able to get rid of it.

Not sure tbh.
I see your logic, but I find my ds, aged 2.3, can be mad for something for a few months then go right off it.

Would he really use it over a long period of time? If so, then buy it. If yo are not sure, then wait.

Go for it, my dd still squeezes herself into those things now! Don't worry if he doesn't use it for ages though-these things are very prone to phases xx

Dd is 5 in March btw

what about the ride-on tractor WITH trailer further down the page for £79.99 (more things for DS to do with it now and in the future)

Postman Pat Pedal Van for £499! Puts tractor way into perspective!

I think that although he would probably love it, he won't love it 10 times as much as a standard wooden rocker costing £20.

I do understand the attraction of something fab like that BUT I think it is lost on the children! He will see a tractor, he will not see a handmade hand painted craftsman thing.

In your position I think I would:

• save some
• buy 2 really nice things totalling about £100 eg a rocker, a ride-on, a farm, a garage, a wooden trainset.

This is a nice website, they deliver quickly and the photos of the toy shop looks just as toyshops ought to.

I'm sorry but I think it is very extravagent and as Lynette says, he will grow out of it very quickly. A big wooden train set or similar would appeal for longer I think. If he doesn't need a lot, could you maybe buy him a cheaper ride-on toy and then put the rest towards a lovely, heirloom-type toybox, or a chair, or something else for his room?

Maveta- Does he have a Brio train track? Personally, I think that's the best thing you can get for a vehicle mad 18 month old. Not cheep, but you will get years of play out of it.

I know, I know!! those are the doubts I have. In 2 weeks he might like lions and giraffes, and 2 weeks later hammers and building blocks. And he might outgrow it. But he MIGHT love it. It does say ´1-8yrs´on it, is that wildly optimistic?

Ride ons are a bit pointless for us sadly (there are so many good ones), we don´t have a garden and there´s not really anywhere good to take him where he could get good use out of it. It´s annoying as there are loads of cheaper ride ons that he would love. I guess he could ride it in the house but it´s only a flat and that could get really annoying.

Sorry, by "ride-on" I meant a rocker thing, like the one you've linked to - but cheaper.

I think I'd save your money and buy something that isn't as big and bulky - are you really going to store it for an heirloom?

sorry, cross posted.. all food for thought and I see the point that he would like a simple rocker just as much. I guess it´s a classic one of those things that we buy more for how gorgeous it is rather than how much the kid will ACTUALLY like it compared to a cheaper version.

But it´s so PREEEETTTTY

I think it's a good idea. It's attractive, easy on the eye for grown ups too and crucially, it will retain some value so you can sell it when he outgrows it.

If you're not the decluttering type then I would avoid it. If, like my dh, you'll be tempted to hang onto it then avoid at all costs because the last thing you need is a big heavy thing which no-one plays with but which you are too soft to get rid of.

I speak as someone with a hand painted, large heavy 'James' wooden train in the boys room which dh refuses to get rid of and which no-one ever plays with any more.

Oh go for it - you don't need to justify to anyone! If you can afford and you want to get it, then get it!

Its gorgeous btw ...i want one!

Hi Maveta

I know where you're coming from.
But personally I would be more inclined to get a wooden train set (or similar). Ds1 has got a wooden Thomas set, and every occasion, we add to it.
Classic, and ds2 loves playing with as well

oh the indecision, I think i will be revisiting the page quite a few times as i waver. I know i could get him loads of smaller things for that money.. or furniture (a nice toybox is a good alternative and i have thought of it but seems more for us than for him iykwim)..but then i go back and look at it and it´s so nice...

thanks for not condemning me outright anyway

It is nice, but bulky and also I do think he might just get bored with it very quickly.

We have a rocking horse but it is high up - therefore when ds was a baby we could hold him on it to rock, he loved that, and as he grew, well he now still loves it and he is 5.

He wouldn't so much I think if it was low down like that.

I do kwym but whenever i have splashed out on something fabulius, I have usually found something much cheaper is preferred, and also a better investment in terms of what they get out of it - I mean it's more proportionate iyswim.

aahh, missed the bit about who is paying for it

In that case, I'm not sure what I would do.

(actually, if it had been for ds1, then I would've gone for it, because ds2 would be able to play with it)

Btw Dobbin was £60 from our charity shop. Rip off at that price - he is falling apart in terms of hair, and even ahs a cigarette brun on his arse

hi runny yes a train set does keep cropping up as well. And he LOVES trains too. He is just a bit more of the destructive banging smashing running around making noise little boy at the moment, I can´t see him sitting down to use a train set. He has a thomas train and mostly just throws it around seems to lack a bit of finer motor skill still

I think it's lovely but tbh, having a ds (now nearly 4) who is mad about vehicles and always has been, I think he'd get a great deal more use out of a similar thing but with wheels, that he can ride about.

keep crossposting! being very slow tonight. So ride ons.. do you let your kids ride them indoors or do you all have gardens?

I think you need to consider how much space you have.

If space is not and never will be an issue, then get it.

In our experience, once ds had storage for toys, a bigger bed, his fort, bookshelf, drawers. There is no room in his bedroom for anything else!

We would not have room for something like this in our sitting room so it would probably end up in the shed or at my parents.