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Parenting

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Original poster

do you buy

22 replies

festiveface · 15/05/2006 21:40

your children toys/books/craft activities etc willy nilly or do you do it for birthdays or christmases only?

i have always tried to be careful not to spoil them and have done the latter but not sure if it's the best thing now tbh

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moondog · 15/05/2006 21:41

Books willy nilly
Everything else for special occasions

LucyJones · 15/05/2006 21:41

mostly just for presents but if I see something that I know he'll like I might. For example haven't bought him anything since Xmas but saw really cheap Spot sticker books in Asda so got him those

Kidstrack · 15/05/2006 21:43

don't mind buying books and arts and crafts find the kids love using them, they love new books for me to read and they love making new things, but toys is another matter only birthday and xmas

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mistressmiggins · 15/05/2006 21:43

I must admit that I do buy crafty things when we run out and books if one catches my eye

toys - definitely birhtyda & christmas only

hulababy · 15/05/2006 21:43

Books and craft stuff I buy throughout the year for various reasons, and sometimes for no real reason at all. Craft stuff especially I buy as and when she runs out or if we see something a bit different that she hasn't got/used. Toys she gets at time other than birthdays too - as a treat/reward for something particularly good, a holiday (occupy on plane) suprise, etc.

DD knows that she doesn't get something just by asking for it. Infact she knows she is less likely to get something just because she asks.

Jasnem · 15/05/2006 21:44

Books willynilly, but mostly second hand/exlibrary.
craft I just keep a cupboard of stuff and top up when I find things.
toys proper presents

PrettyCandles · 15/05/2006 21:46

I don't see why presents shouuld be only at Xmas/Birthdays - especially in our house, where ds is in Sept and dd in Dec, so there is an excuse-wilderness during the rest of the year.

Admittedly big special presents, eg bike, dolls' house etc, are saved for special occasions, but we buy smaller gifts throughout the year.

madamechocolat · 15/05/2006 21:47

All willy nilly - probably because there wasn't much money when I was a child (not that I felt deprived!). Ummm food for thought this...

Kidstrack · 15/05/2006 21:50

must admit i might have bought toys throughout the year if kids had not had summer birthdays, my birthday is Jan and i hated not having toys throughout the year all my friends had summer birthdays

Pixiefish · 15/05/2006 21:52

January birthday so I buy her stuff as and when I want to. Never when she asks though but it's a really long time between her birthdya and christmas

Clayhead · 15/05/2006 22:08

To go against the tide...my dd has a December birthday and ds is in September too but I only buy for Christmas and birthdays.

Clayhead · 15/05/2006 22:09

Just to be nosey festiveface, why are you no longer sure it's the right thing?

Tommy · 15/05/2006 22:13

quite often buy books and crafty stuff when I see it. Toys would wait for Xmas and birthday (although DS1 is early Jan which is a but unfair for him so sometimes he might get summer present too).
I also like to buy them a small souvenir if we go out for the day somewhere - bought them both a new cup from the farm last week - mostly because I used to love gift shops when I was young and we were never allowed to have anything from them!

Original poster

festiveface · 15/05/2006 22:18

well, i always have bought books willy nilly but thats all. I haven't bought other stuff because they have tons for birthdays and christmas and tbh they play with it for a short while and then it gets left anyway and i suppose i just have this bee in my bonnet about not spoiling them.

when i think about it though, when i was a kid my mum bought me stuff when she could, sometimes oten, sometimes not if she was skint but i am pretty sure i was more appreciative of it than mine seem o be, hence the wondering.

last summer holidays i found to be a nightmare. they were bored and fighting almost constantly (even though i did try) so was thinking about collecting a few new things in readiness for this years holidays. i have bought some sticker books, balloon decorating kits, model plane kits and this also made me wonder whether should really be saving these for christmas.

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bettythebuilder · 15/05/2006 22:21

I tend to but little treats for dd all year round (mainly craft stuff and books), but I think that's because her birthday is on Christmas day, and I feel sorry for her
We don't really get her a birthday present, but do buy her a decent present in the summer, ie last year a slide for the garden.

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festiveface · 15/05/2006 22:21

meant to say, i also tried giving out pocket money so they could buy things themselves but i stopped(although mil does it sometimes) because ds2 kept buying guns with his !we ended up with about 10 of the buggers!

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bettythebuilder · 15/05/2006 22:22

festiveface, I do the opposite, and hide some of dds christmas/birthday presents, then give them to her later in the year!

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festiveface · 15/05/2006 22:27

now why didn't i think of that, sounds more logical !

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Tamz77 · 15/05/2006 22:29

All the time, ie if ds shows an interest in something, I will get it for him, if I can. Recently we visited a friend and he spent a very long time playing with her dolls' house, so I got him one off e-bay. It is not to spoil him; I was so shuffed to find something that really held his attention, and encouraged imaginative games (he is 2.9), and was something that we could play together. If I waited for birthday and Christmas to give him stuff I'd miss a lot of his phases of interest (eg if I suddenly developed an interest in Chinese cooking and wanted to buy myself a wok, I wouldn't deny myself until it was a 'special occasion'; why deny ds?). I rarely buy new unless from Poundstretchers or similar and love the fact that he is at an age so easily pleased by small, unusual toys and trinkets, so we are both going to wallow in it for as long as it lasts. I also find it great fun going rummaging in charity shops/boot fairs, letting ds happen across something that takes his fancy, and letting him go and pay for it and take it home. At the end of a busy afternoon being dragged around all the shops I want to go in I think it's nice for him to get a treat too.

Ledodgyherring · 15/05/2006 22:33

I give one main present at Birthdays and Christmas as they get lots of bits off other people if you buy too much they tend to get forgotten about. Because my dd is just 3 and my ds is 24 weeks I tend to get bits throughout the year as well mostly arty stuff for my dd as this runs out quickly but also things that are suitable for their age as at this age they grow out of toys quickly.

acnebride · 15/05/2006 22:36

willy nilly. i get really bored playing with the same toys over and over again. anyway ds's birthday is in january so i don't fancy having to wait 11 months and then have 36 presents in one week.

though buying also includes plenty of skip trawling etc. got a fantastic load from the next street the other day.

AngelaD · 15/05/2006 22:44

I do buy loads all the time which I know I have to stop and i will, otherwise they have no sense of value or looking forward to things. I tend to buy them for Christmas the crap they see advertised on the TV that they think they want and the eucational stuff I want them to have gets sneaked into the house on a daily basis.

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