What to Buy for Christmas

My girls love Legos- and they are easier to pick up than other multi-part toys because you just scoop them into a bucket.

I'm also struggling for ideas this year- we are just so overwhelmed with "stuff" that the thought of getting more of it seems counterproductive. There is one thing I am excited about getting, though- a bug vacuum. Mommy is a big wimp, so whenever there is a spider in the house I just put a glass over it and wait for Daddy to get home, and the girls just sit and watch it. A bug vacuum will help me AND entertain them.

What we started doing when my son was about the age of your kids is having him give away toys. We explained to him that he had a LOT of toys and that there were kids in the area that wouldn't be getting toys for Christmas and that he could help them get toys for Chrismas. Starting the day after Christmas he would pick out 1 toy (or 10 small things like matchbox cars) each day for 2 weeks. At the end of the 2 weeks we, including him, would take the toys down to the local Sharing House where he would give them to the people to give out for Christmas. The cleaning out has gotten harder over the years becuase he has given away most of the things he didn't like. Now he has to make tough decisions and really think about the other kids. He's actually always done that, some of the toys he's given away in the past have really surprised me.

We also started having him make a Christmas wish list, explaining that you do NOT get everything on your wish list, it is a list of items you WISH you could have. We also had him rate it from what he wanted most to least.

Between the 2 we got a pretty good idea of what he did and didn't like.

I always tried to buy my children and now my grandchildren, one educational toy. This year I am getting the TAG and TAG Jr. Educational system. It's a device that you slide across words in a special book and it reads it to you. My 4 1/2 year old granddaughter is into books and writing words and likes being read to. This will allow her to go through books on her own. My 2 1/2 year old granddaughter likes books to and I bought her the younger version. I don't have boys or grandsons so I'm not sure what boys would like but barbie and dressup is always a hit. My older granddaughter loves coming hair. She has a couple of the barbie/bratz heads. Also, I always bought an age appropriate game. Last year it was candyland.

You've gotten great ideas!
Before reading them I had thought about a family gift that keeps on giving all year like a family membership to the Zoo or aquarium or other museums aroung Atlanta.

I highly recommend checking out these sites:

www.hearthsong.com
www.onestepahead.com or www.sensationalbeginnings.com
www.youngexplorers.com

They all have educational and imaginative toys that kids REALLY love! The toys I get from there seem to foster and interest instead of lasting a few days and becoming boring. Of course you should get your kids something they actually want. Why don't you request catalogs from those places, and have them look through them. My 3 year old LOVES this practice! We also took a "field trip" through Toys R Us with the strict understanding that there would be NO toy buying that day, but that we were looking for what we needed to tell Santa about. It was so much fun! It also got him way more into the idea of sitting on Santa's lap!

A general rule -if a toy is something that fosters creative play and imagination, it's more likely to stand the test of time because your child can come up with lots of different things to do with it. The GeoTrax Pirate Ship has been HUGE since last Christmas here, and so are some jungle treehouse type toys, train sets and construction sets. A little kitchen has been really big too.

I have a 7 yr old girl and a 5yr old boy.
My son LOVES legos and loves to draw. So a lego set and an art set is on his list. at 4 my daughter liked my little pony and drawing and dress up and about a dozen other things. But Id go with dress up stuff and ponies or maybe strawberry shortcake. They also make girl lego sets called "belleville" she might enjoy.

I have an almost 5 yr old boy and he can not get enough of his Bruder trucks. He plays with the constantly. They are not inexpensive but they are the best quality trucks money can buy. They last for years and never fade. Although you'll likely never need them, the company provides inexpensive replacements parts for every part of every toy! Bruder trucks are educational because they are designed to be working mini replicas of the trucks they are simulating. Check out the Bruder truck website together. I'm sure you will find many things he'll be excited about and will potentially enjoy for years to come.

PS. My son's favorites are the recycling truck, tow truck with Jeep, and crane.

Here are a couple of websites that feature recommendations for good toys.

http://www.toyportfolio.com/
http://www.hoagiesgifted.org/shopping_guide.htm

My nephew is 5 and he loves legos as well. Since you said you are on a fixed budget, I thought I would suggest checking out www.slickdeals.net. As Christmas gets near, many stores and manufacturers offer great sales and coupons. Someone is bound to post them on slickdeals. I've been able to give great gifts to my nieces and nephews for cheap b/c I watch the board for the great sales and use coupons. Target just released a bunch of coupons which includes $5.00 off some lego sets. Here's the link:
http://sites.target.com/images/2009HolidayCoupons/holiday... There's something like 15 pages of coupons so you might want to narrow it down and only print the pages you need before you hit the print button.

Hope this helps!!

Each year I buy lego sets for my boys! Every single year and they are ALWAYS a hit! Just get the age appropriate ones for yours. As far as a girl, I'm kind of new in the department myself.

Mother of 4