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This year in the Seven Cherubs house I am working on a new Christmas gift giving plan for my cherubs. Normally our tradition is that each year for Christmas I look around for a new present or toy for each of my kids and by new I mean a whole new set or product to introduce to our family and home. After some reflection I have decided to make a change this year as I find by Christmas day I have exhausted myself and our expenses trying to get everything that they want and desire.
Seven kids with seven different personalities and desires = frazzled and exhausted mum.
We long ago reached a stage where we had way too many toys and this year I just cannot stand the idea of adding even more toy chaos to our home. My plan is to use more wisdom in my older age (feeling old today!) and have decided to build upon what we already have.
My new Christmas gift giving plan for my children is to look at what we already own around our home and to add to it or to build upon it. By the way, let's hope my kids don't see this post!
A couple of examples:
My girls love to play with 'Littlest Pet Shop' so I have purchased a few packs to add to this collection. I know it is something that they already love and as I have already purchased the big version of this product (in the picture above) I just need to add a few more little things and I can add to the fun factor.
My kids also love to read the 39 clues and Diary of a Wimpy Kid books so I have purchased a few extra books to finish the collection off and to have it all up to date with the most recent stories. I love reading these books as well and talking to my kids about them so this is a fun gift for all of us.
My boys (and Liberty) love Transformers toys. As we already own several of the larger transformer toys I have purchased some smaller versions available now to add to the collection and for them to have fun with. This way it is not as expensive as buying all of the bigger versions and we can still have more of the characters without having to pay the more expensive amount.
We are a big fan of Lego in our house and are continually trying to add to our collection. In the past I have tried purchasing smaller packs but found they did not get played with very much. This year as my boys are a little older I have purchased some larger lego packs I have been watching and waiting to go on special that will allow my children to work together. I am hoping that the larger pack will encourage team work and combined play.
My girls really love Beanie Kids. They love to collect them and adding to this collection I know will make then happy. Once upon a time I would have purchased a whole bunch of them but now I do not need to even purchase 4 of them - 1 for each girl. If I purchase 1 or 2 I know they will be excited to have more in the collection. The Beanie Kids are shared and get swapped around so cutting back to 1 or 2 will be easier and my girls will still be happy.
So do you get my idea and my plan? Basically I am trying to keep it simple and to expand on a few collections we already have and to teach my kids to just enjoy what we already own. I don't know what the reaction will be this year from my kids but I do have a few surprises in store for them. All part of the Christmas gift giving fun when you are a parent.
So what is happening in your home this year?
Trying to cut back or going all out this year on gifts?
I am dreading the influx of toys into my already overcrowded toy room this Christmas. With parents and siblings that like to spoil The Smalls (the only ones in their generation) it gets a little nuts.
ReplyDeleteI was only thinking yesterday that I would do the same thing, add to what we have and what they love. We have so many toys that don't get played with at all.
You have inspired me to do a big cull before Christmas!
Nice one :)
ReplyDeleteWe never go all-out on gifts. It feels so exorbitant. Of course, the attack of the guilts comes over me whenever I visit one of my daughter's friend's homes and see their rooms full to the brim with pretty much every girl toy imaginable.... But still, we have always been minimalists in this area. She doesn't want for more and it hasn't noticeably affected her enjoyment of her room, her home or her life (so far)! Perhaps I'll be forking out for therapy for her in 20 yrs. ;-P
We have had years of that as well Melissa and have had a big cull. Hence my desire to keep it simple and not get back to where we were before. Love how you are keeping it simple Kirrily x
ReplyDeleteusually I add on to what we have (a la Littlest pet shops etc) and 1 bigger gift (like their first bike or musical instrument etc)
ReplyDeleteAfter decluttering old toys and selling them on ebay I have accepted my kids don't play with half of what we have (we have too much after 8 years of gifts and my flea market finds) so mostly they are getting art supplies, books and DVDs with 1 big gift being (hopefully) a camera for 8yo (voucher from us to take her shopping in the jan sales - a simple point and shoot but not a kiddy one) and zhu zhu accessories for the 6yo since we have 10 pets between them and not a single track or bit to go with them.
I think from this age there is just less they can add on as they accumulate so much (especially since we have 2 girls close in age so they share interests - we have a huge lot of zhu zhu pets, beanie bears, LPS etc)
It's so hard to keep it all in order when you have a large family - I don't think I go "all out" but my kids certainly don't miss out. It's frustrating when I think they've already seen my spreadsheet (despite my efforts to keep it hidden) and know what they'll be getting :( I'm not totally sure but a few comments lead me to believe this may the case!
ReplyDeleteWe are moving interstate two days after xmas.Sobwe to are keeping it simple they are getting stuff for tgeir room rather then heaps of toys,plus all 4 kids are getting a joint present which will be an xbox rather then a heap of little toys for each child.i to hope my kids understand but they are more excited about moving so they should be fine with the minimalist xmas this year
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ReplyDeleteive done something similar this year, have purchased several bulk tubs of lego from ebay and ordered a handful of instruction manuals.all done up in a huge 70L tub!although im dreading finding lego in every nook of our house they will be occupied for a very long time..i might survive the holidays after all!(and it cost a fraction of the price of new )
ReplyDeleteI feel less guilty if we have a price limit for each child. Because my children are so young I've only spent $20 each on them this Christmas because they get so spoilt from our families and they have so much already. I've chosen presents that will last all year at their age level- we had the problem last year that my daughter got to 1.5years and had no age appropriate toys and I ended up having to buy some! So I'm hoping this time things will work out a bit better.
ReplyDeleteI have been looking around for some bulk lego and need to check out ebay some more - great idea. I totally love the idea of only spending $20 - need to work on getting down to that much. Thanks for sharing your plans ladies. N x
ReplyDeleteFunny, we are actually this Christmas starting to bulk up for the first time! I found it so hard to buy for babies- baby toys can be so expensive and boring. My son, now 2.5, is actually into things and wants things- I had a great time shopping for him!
ReplyDeleteThis has been on my mind SO MUCH this year! We have enough toys! But of course we want to give them something "Fun" on Christmas (and so do their grandparents who are asking for ideas). One thing I have done is avoided ever asking my kids what they want or what they hope Santa will bring. I've never introduced the idea of making a list for Santa. I can pick up on what they like, and I don't want them to feel 'entitled', y'know? I am still at a loss as to what to "ask for" from the grandparents though. We are giving one daughter a "Woody" doll (from toy story) that she got really excited about when she saw it in the store. The other is getting a fisher price little people set (to add to their little people collection). Those are from us, and Santa is just doing stockings this year. We shall see what the grandparents do! (We have the added issue of one of their birthdays being in December & the other in January, so more gifts keep coming)
ReplyDeleteI like to spoil my kids a little at Christmas, but I think it evens out as we have a no new toys rule during the year except for Christmas and birthdays. But my idea of spoiling is quite tame in comparison to some families I know. The kids all get the same number of presents each, and one present must be a book or a set of books, and another present must be an outdoor toy. I too like to build on things they already own
ReplyDeleteFor grandparents gifts they often send us a giftcard to use. Sometimes I take the kids shopping after Christmas during the sales so they can pick out something and sometimes I just put the money into a bank account for them for when they grow up. They really don't need anything else so saving money for them is the best gift I can give them I think.
ReplyDeleteWe have done exactly the same this year. Our girls are 7 and 3 and while they don't have the latest and greatest of everything, they don't miss out either. We are trying to hold off on the electronic gadgets (ipod, ds etc) for our 7yr old as long as we can, as I think it's only such a limited time that they're interested in toys, that I want to enjoy that simple part of their childhood. With my 7yr old really into Xmas this year, we were lucky enough to be able to get her the majority of things on her list (Bratz dolls, scrapbooking supplies, playdoh, zhu zhu accessories) which are all adding to collections we already have and for our 3yr old we have chosen to add to the collection of My Little Pony, Zhu Zhu and Little People stuff that she already has. A much easier way to go I think!
ReplyDeleteWe're having an issue with too many toys. We're moving, as you know and I did a huge cull yesterday. They play with only a couple of things. Sammy is obssessed with his cars (he has a couple of hundred little cars and adds to them each week) and Alexander mostly plays with his books or the computer. They both love Lego and both love, believe it or not, the home corner/kitchen toys.
ReplyDeleteSo most everything else is gone. Got rid of the train tracks (2 sets). Kept the train table so the could play cars on it. A lot of the stuffed toys are gone (except the faves, which are in their beds anyway). 2-300 books kept.
Alexander is obsessed with the Wimpy Kid series. HE has EVERY one they made. Can you tell me about the 39 clues books?
I also try to add to what they already have - Lego & K'Nex are big & the boys love them, as well as books. When they were in to trains, it was add ons for the train set. It worked well & it also made it easy for other people to buy gifts for the boys :)
ReplyDeleteMy 9 (nearly 10) year old has all the Diary of a Wimpy Kid books & is just getting in to Harry Potter. Hasn't read the 39 Clues books yet, though. Are they good?
Let me tell you about the 39 clues. My kids love them because it is the story of a brother and sister who have to travel around the world searching for clues. So it is a good book for boys and girls in that way. I have read all of the books myself and they keep the kids guessing on what will happen next, lots of twists and turns. It has been the only series I could get my 10 year old daughter to read - she reads them over and over! You can read more about them here:http://www.the39clues.com/info/about
ReplyDeleteI like your plan, Naomi. We don't have as many toys as we used when the older kids were little but there is still a lot and it's difficult to keep it all under control.
ReplyDeleteBrilliant idea! Very wise thinking :)
ReplyDeleteGreat ideas there Naomi. Always good to expand on what they have already, especially if they love them so much. I think this is my very first year where I've gotten my Christmas gifts all organised, bought and to be wrapped..or not wrapped...depends. I'm sure your kids will be thrilled with what you've gotten them this year. :)
ReplyDeleteThat is smart shopping Naomi!! I love that your children will get more longevity out of their toys.
ReplyDeleteI've been trying to do the same and also encourage family members to 'build' on what we have too (eg, Duplo, Little People, ikea Trainset etc) . This year I've set a strict budget of $300 for EVERYONE (extended family, kids & each other). It has been tight, but I've been creative (entering comps to win stuff for specific ppls, car boot sale for my baby, host party to get what relatives want as host gifts) and think I've managed to pull off some presents people will love. Sounds like your kids will love what you've gotten them Naomi, as you listen to your kids and know what interests them :)
ReplyDeleteAmazing gifts. I especially like the pink dolls. I bet my daughter will love 'em!
ReplyDeleteWe have been doing that for a few years now buy a big present for the house something we all will use ( this year a TV )and some little presents under the tree.
ReplyDeleteP.S I thought I was the only kitchen dancer.