Okay....what are you getting the kids for xmas?

[lorihadams]

I am so over it already. Yesterday my 5 yr old hatched out a plan to get an armadillo littlest pet shop toy. He told me that he wanted to go to Bass Pro Shops (Santa is there for the next few weeks) and GET Santa and take him to Target to show him which one he wanted so that he got the right one. My reply was "BAA-BEEEE, we can't KIDNAP Santa!!!"

My husband's idea was to help the kids sit down and write Santa a list of what they wanted. My 3 yr old DD walked over and said "Daddy, I want everything......write it down." As she tapped the sheet of paper. So my husband wrote down "everything".

Is anyone else ready to pull their hair out? My DD is 3 and my DS is 5. I have gotten them some clothes, stocking stuffers, 1 movie each and books so far. I am contemplating a beginner guitar for DD and one of those flat drum pad things for DS. I want to get them things that will force them to use their brains. We homeschool, if you call it that right now, we play a lot and read a lot. Nothing too formal yet. Will I go get the littlest pet shop armadillo, yep if I can find it. Will I get some sort of Barbie toy that my DD does not need, yep probably.

We have an Elf on the Shelf book and elf. Every day they tell the elf to tell Santa to bring them whatever they happen to want that day. It is ridiculous. For those of you that haven't heard of Elf on the Shelf....google it.

So, what are you getting your kids this year?

 

[Javamama]

SO over it. My frustration isn't what my kids want or what we are getting them - it's all the ridiculous relatives that need to spend money on JUNK that I eventually throw away. Gahhhhh. my kids get so much stuff from grandparents that we have trouble even making a list of things they want because they already have everything you should see my mil's house on Christmas day. Presents floor to ceiling. But they can afford it so i can't say much about it.
I try so hard to keep gifts to a minimum but I can't control other people. So I'm trying to find one or tow quality items for my kids from us, and they don't expect much, or even care really. My son really only likes computers and books so he will get upgrades and software. My 9 year old daughter likes crafts and creating, so that's easy.
My three year old also wants "everything", but especially loves princess anything. No problem there.

And yeah - the stupid elf thing! It spread though our school like a virus a few years ago so we do it. This is the last year they are coming to our house. Santa's having a permanent recall next year.

Both daughters also have December birthdays. What were we thinking when we planned that?

 

[aggieterpkatie]

We (Santa, I mean) don't plan on getting a ton of things for the kids this year.

Boy,7
Tag reader
a couple Tag books
a nice used digital camera from ebay (or if it takes better pics than mine I'll give him mine )
Benji the movie ($2!)
Rock'em Sock'em Robots (game)
Don't Break the Ice (game)


Girl, 5
a dollhouse (main present)
Little House on the Prarie paper dolls
Memory game
Operation (game)
Princesses movie

Those are from Santa. I'm making Girlie a knitted crown and wand to play princess. Not sure what Boy's gift will be from us. Both kids are getting homemade (rice filled) heat packs with cool fabric.

Oh yeah, and they'll get a few small things in stockings.

 

[Henrietta23]

DS is 8 and after losing his latest tooth came to the realization that if 3rd graders don't really think the Tooth Fairy is putting that quarter under their pillow, then maybe some other characters can be doubted as well. He's mostly over it but has been struggling the last few days...
Anyway, he will get a few Lego sets, one or two new dvds, a new DS or Wii game and a board game or two, in addition to stocking stuffers. That's from DH and I. My mom will get him a few more toys, probably Legos and a new bathrobe. MIL will get him books and then complain that he won't sit and read them with her because he's not "a reader" because he'd rather wrestle with the cousins he sees once a year. SIL will buy him nice toys meant for a child 2 years younger than he is.
He thinks he wants everything he sees but he gets overwhelmed with too much very easily.

 

[TanksHill]

I actually placed a small order with Lehman's yesterday. Some hand crafted wood toy stocking stuffers. I got dh a tool. Someone is giving me a sauerkraut stomper.

Other than that I have had a couple of request.

DS10 want some ridiculously expensive Lego set. It will be my main gift to him.

DD7 is a big time crafter and wants to learn to sew. I will maybe do something along those lines for her.

DD5 told me No baby dolls. Ok missy, then how about some coal?

dog gets a big bone.

That's my list.

 

[Henrietta23]

Forgot to add: new sled. I'm expecting big time snow this year!

 

[FarmerChick]

I am having great time this holiday season so far......

I am done shopping.

I had Nicole (5 yr old) point out "all" the things she wanted from Toys R Us catalog.....she got some lol

and my Dad built her a dollhouse out of wood (I only have to hit the store and buy some little furniture for her)



Her main presents are these:

MobiGo (hand held learning game) and a few cartridges

and a kid computer that attaches to the tv. She wants my computer so bad, but I can't let her really get on it cause she has already hit major keys and caused a few disasters lol---so her kid computer has learning games etc which she will love.


I got her alot of paint decorating kids, like paint My Little Pony and Tinkerbell paint decoration sets....along with paint my BobbleHead Pets haha

And her Barbie Fashion Tale doll and Flairy sets

other than that, she got some books, DVD and a few other small things but she made out like a bandit without me spending too much money.


I bought all this stuff in Oct and Nov. under no stress and it is all wrapped already...lol

no, for me this holiday is fine!

 

[tamlynn]

My kids agreed that a family trip would be better than presents! We have to travel to see snow, so we're spending a few days in the snow this winter. They will each get one present from us for Christmas morning.

We also celebrate St. Nicholas day (Dec. 6) where the kids set their shoes out and get a small gift and some chocolate. Then my dd's bday is Dec 26, so still plenty of presents overall.

 

[patandchickens]

I guess I am lucky. I get virtually none of the "want this want that want-the-other thing", at least not for brand name toy-store toys. (My husband and I are having great ongoing difficulties getting the 3 year old to understand why he cannot have a $250,000 combine )

But, I don't go into that kind of store very much at all, and don't leave Toys R Us flyers from the newspaper lying around for the kids to obsess over, and so far they do not have too many friends of the own-everything-in-the-shop type. My 6 yr old seems mildly jealous that other kids own, like, every Star Wars toy and accessory on the planet; but it is not a big deal to him.

We =do not= do the whole "letter to santa claus" thing, I feel that kids are greedy enough without actually being encouraged at it LOL

So, more or less what my kids are getting (I really have not worked it all out yet). Both will probably get a few small gifts like a chocolate orange and colored pencils. Beyond that:

6 yr old is getting several books from thrift-store, a winter hat and mittens, a sleeping bag (? - still contemplating it), some more odd hardware bits (scavenged from my stuff) to add to his stash of "things you can make things with"

3 yr old is getting a variety-pack of colored printer paper for drawing on, a quilt i'm making him for his bed, and I will probably make him a cardboard doll-type house since he's really into that kind of thing right now, and probably something else I haven't thought of yet.

We divide it up so that a few presents come from Santa Claus (appear magically on the hearth overnight) and the rest are explicitly from mommy and daddy. The kids also make or "sacrifice" a present for each other (either a *useful* craft-project item, or one of their toys/etc they're willing to give to the other person)... they're just too young yet to take shopping to give free choice of things without price tags becoming an issue (having had a looooong and fruitless discussion with one of them two years ago about why a $99 automatic juicer would not be a good present for his brother even though it *was* on sale )

Pat

 

[Bettacreek]

I'm lucky as far as the kids go. My oldest just turned three and my youngest will be two in March. I did let my three year old come to Wal-mart and choose his own toy for his birthday. He picked up a ride-on bulldozer, then picked out some matchbox cars. Once he started trying to pile other junk in, I had to cut him off, lol. But he was fine with it, as soon as we left the aisle, all was well. He DID want one of those motorized jeep things (two can fit in and drive it) but, well, mommy doesn't have $400 to spend, lol.
So, this year, for x-mas, I will probably let each kid pick out one gift from the toy aisle (we really honestly never go to the toy section, so just being able to go is huge for them, lol). We're also lucky (unlucky?) enough to be eligible for toys for tots, so the rest of the presents will come from there, except maybe some junk food goodies and whatever my family rains down upon them.