Just for fun-What Are You Buying Your Toddlers for Christmas/Hanukkah?

My plans are Potato Head accessories and whatever clothing needs grandparents don't take care of. At two years old I only get my kids one or two gifts because that's all it takes to make them happy.

Yes price limit, I have two boys and our limit is $100 for each boy and then we will do a big Santa gift. My oldest is 4 and my youngest is 1, so around the 2 year old mark my oldest loved wooden blocks and cars.

We'll probably order from Amazon for our toddler - it saves a LOT of driving around. I am thinking about Dinosaur Train toys. Some other train things too. He loves trains. We'll probably try to find a good train table on Craigslist.

My oldest wants legos (legos and more legos), but he's not a toddler, so that's N/A. But he'll want to play with the train table too.

We always set price limits and we always fail to meet them...

Our daughter is 19 months right now, and her second birthday is in Feb. I am going to do Christmas just like my parents did. We got little gifts, a stockting and then a big gift. So for her stockting she will be getting bouncey balls, hair bows, baby wash, a new toothbrush, socks, etc. For little gifts I would like to get her some clothes, maybe a new pair of shoes and some books. For her big gift she will be getting a play kitchen and food.
For her birthday she will be getting a baby ATV.
I don't really have a budget, but I also don't spend a ton. Usually for her birthday I get everything super cheap because I buy it after Christmas. Last year we got her a push walker, a ball popper, and 7 small toys all for 40 bucks, all the Sears aisle that my boyfriend and I just happened to go down when we made our credit card payment. Crazy, but I was psyched I got all that stuff for that cheap! Have a good holiday! =)

We don't buy our son anything for Christmas. Grandmas and Grandpas and aunts and uncles take care of all that. Our son gets PLENTY from them. Last year (at 18 months old) I think I bought him a flashlight and a stuffed animal- that's it. He liked the flashlight more than the toy - go figure. He's since broken the flashlight so I might spend $5 and get him a new one.

But one gift he got at 18 months that he just loved were these Apple Grove Pals. GREAT for that age. He's 2.5 now and still plays with them, but not as often as he did when 18m-2yrs. Here's one set (the one he got for Xmas). http://www.littletikes.com/toys/apple-grove-pals-friends-... We've since gotten all the other sets. Pumpkin Caper good, Farm set good, Train set okay, Breaking News very lame.

My children are now 3 and 1...we spent a total of less than $200 for both. They got some new and some from Craigslist. They each get 4-5 gifts to open and then 4-5 are open under the tree from Santa. Then they get a stocking.

My kids are each getting an outfit from Gymboree, a few new books, games (Elefun and Chutes and Ladders), puzzle for my daughter, plastic football that lights up for my son, garage with cars/elevator for my son, a gaming system (Craigslist unopened for cheap!) for my daughter, dump truck, socks, flashlight and Elmo cleaning kit. All of these things have been purchased through either Craigslist or Amazon.com. I spent $190....

Alex is 3 this year...I am looking at the Fisher Price Imaginext line for him. He has played with the Batman playset at a friends house and it really seemed to hold his interest. I am also looking for a Large car or dump truck that he can crawl around and push as he is not really that interested in the smaller matchbox sized cars. Alex is totally into his board books and rather stuck on letters and numbers, I found some cute ones at TJ MAX that are the baby einstien brand that are reasonably priced. He also has a love for the beanie baby sized stuffed animals...so I am on the look out for a zebra and a beaver ( I know, crazy, huh?) The last thing on my list of ideas is he LOVES The Muppet Show. We have Season One and he watches it a lot, so I will probably either put it on his list or if no one seems interested I will probably buy it for him. I have tenatively set a limit at $100 per child from Santa this year as I have 3 kids...my two older children will be 10 and 15, so it might go over a bit because the older kids "wants" are more expensive. My favorite place to shop? Where ever I can get the best deal....I shop Walmart, Toys R Us, Target, Big Lots and even the dollar stores ( dollar stores and the dollar section in Target is awesome for finding cute stocking stuffers, we are kind of anti candy here) Also another great place to look for stocking stuffers is Factory Card outlet.
Merry Christmas....I enjoy the season, I make lists so I do not stress out too much, we do not charge we pay in cash, because spending beyond your means is just silly. Enjoy the season, and remember it does not matter how much you can give, but the spirit it is given in. I have had lean years and looking back it has never mattered, my kids have always enjoyed Christmas...because we keep the real reason for the celebration in our hearts. This is the perfect time of the year to start new family traditions to carry on throughout your children's lives. I am so looking forward to making our ornaments this year and decorating cookies with ALL the kids!
Thoughts and prayers
B.

I am buying my son tons of toys and clothes and sippy cups cuz he dont use bottles any more...

Santa is bringing my 3 year old a play kitchen. We are getting her a wooden block set from Melissa and Doug's website and a few small things. I basically stay at home now and we can't afford much this year. I totally agree with getting used things from Craigslist. I went overboard last year and my 2 year old didn't even open all of her gifts. She was too interested in what Santa had brought, which was a Dora Dollhouse with all the accessories that I bought from a mamapedia mom for $40.

My 18 month old daughter will be getting a kitchen, play food and dishes, baby dolls and baby doll gear as her big gifts for Christmas and Hanukkah this year. She'll be getting a baby brother for her 2nd birthday, so we figure the baby stuff will be perfect. We don't set price limits, but I try to get good deals where I can, like free shipping, 20% coupons, etc. I usually shop at Babies R Us/Toys R Us, Target or online at One Step Ahead, but will probaby hit a few of my early education supply stores for the food and dishes.

I plan on spoiling my 19 month old son for Xmas this year because he will be having a new sister born right around xmas. He is obsessed with cars, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, and bouncy balls. I plan on buying him this new mickey mouse train toy, one of those rugs with roads on them, they are made for matchbox cars. I also wanted to buy him a set of the Crayola color wonder markers. (the ones that only color on special paper) I definately don't want to spend too much, keep it under $100, since winter time is tough with my Dh's winter layoff. I will probably only shop walmart, or target. Cheap and easy to get too.

I've been doing more and more shopping on Amazon. B.P. is right - toys don't have to be brand new to please toddlers; they just have to be new to THEM. I have a one-year-old granddaughter for whom I was planning to buy a tunnel - one of those lycra-and-wire things, but with a flat bottom instead of its being perfectly round. However, I can't find it anywhere now, so I'll have to check with her parents for other ideas.

I have set a custom of giving grandchildren an item of clothing, a book, some art supplies, and something else special. And no, it doesn't have to be brand new (except the clothing because new is a special treat to my grans!), as long as it's in good shape.

Until at least 3, they don't really need a lot of toys to make them happy. Actually, I think they don't even need to be new! I got my son a wooden Thomas Railroad with a train set with a gift certificate he got for his b-day back in March. That is the only "new" present he is getting. It was 50 dollars and I would never have spent that much if it was my own money. He will get a couple other things that I picked up at garage sales that I know he will like. I think we have maybe another few years left that I can pull this off.