birthday presents for kids

i remember being told by a parent that they had queued all night for the PS2 as they were in short supply that year...the price was well over the top and they had stood outside a shop until it opened in december..............she then went on to say that her young son wasn't really that bothered but that if any other in the class got them then she wanted him to have one......................she also bought him a pony ... again he wasn't bothered...............

you can chuck money at the kids but really getting to know what they like and want is harder to find out unless you talk and listen......and its hard for them to figure out what is more important to them unless they really have to think of choices.a or b.which do i prefer.....................

Jindalee wrote (see)

What I personally find worrying is how much time kids spend with electronic devices. Does anyone else remember not having a mobile as a child/ teenager and having to make arrangements at school when u wanted to meet your friends after school? Or taking some change for a public phone in case you needed to call your parents?

Abso-bloody-lutely. I worry that we are breeding a generation of kids who won't be able to do anything without touching a screen or pushing a button. What happened to drawing and painting, making things or actually playing with them?

FFS when I was 9 I wanted a Sindy doll for Christmas!

these teenagers are stick on their o#phones all day everyday...........but will text rather than have a phone conversation.................trying to get one of them to pick up a phone when its ringing or phone someone is anightmare.

I worked in a small reception office for a riding stables.........10 teenagers all had phones for years.trying to get one of them to pick up the phone and take a message was an impossible job..................a skill that most work[laces still need and they were so used to texting that they were scared to take a basic phone message

surely its all about balance.  I wont let my kids have tv/pc in there room just yet.  no need.  but despite there being many electronical devices in our house this weekends activity is already set up as we are having a science weekend making crystals, a lava lamp and an exploding volcano.  So you dont need fear for all children out there, some have interested parents some have lazy parents.

In fact using an IPad we could research and watch footage of an real volcano eruption, then make her own volcano experiment explode, record the whole experiment on it, upload the footage to the schools learning platform on the net, write about it on the discussion board and have other kids in her class comment and she can explain.  Very interactive and very engaging for her and her class who all do it.   So save the daily mail style nashing of teeth of a lacklustre generation of kids as many are doing just fine. 

Childrens' birthday and Christmas presents should be no more than about £35. The problem is that they see their friends getting gifts that cost £200-£300 and that sets the precedent for what other parents buy their children.

No wonder people grow up not knowing the value of money.

Why £35?  why not £10? 

Rickster wrote (see)

Childrens' birthday and Christmas presents should be no more than about £35. The problem is that they see their friends getting gifts that cost £200-£300 and that sets the precedent for what other parents buy their children.

No wonder people grow up not knowing the value of money.

I'm going to hazard a guess you don't have kids in your household.   It's not just video games, consoles, phones, laptops etc that cost a lot more than that - it's stuff like a guitar or a bike.    Are they allowed to buy an MP3 player and download music or is that too decadent ?     

All power to your elbow Dean but there are plenty of kids who live in an electronic bubble and can't apply anything to the real world. Even relying on something as simple as a spellchecker will give you a disadvantage in many jobs - I know I've seen it happen.

Lad came in, good CV, interviewed well. We set him a written test - on paper -  and found out he he couldn't actually spell.

Since the system we were using didn't have a spellchecker he couldn't do the job to the required standard. His otherwise promising chances were scuppered by the lack of a basic skill.

i recognise that scenario but pretty sure some kids had poor spelling before ipads/iphones/spell checker etc.  but true the tech in this case is covering it up for some, just like calculators did 20yrs ago.

there again........games are probably cheaper than them doing sports nowadays,..................

one of my sons who is really good with money.never goes for names for clothes etc.keeps good care of things....................plays hockey with the sticks cost more than £100 a time..................

riding boots for his brother cost £150 a pair.............

a road bike would cost  a few pennies...............

 running shoes cost a pound or two as well........

where did the days of a cheap pair of daps and a football go to

And this is interesting:

http://www.themothersunion.org/DITCHtheCMASlistFINAL.pdf

I do ask for a list to get an idea........i even ask my hubby for a list.................but they all know that they will not get everything on the list........just a selection

and i am lucky that i am not the type to get heavily into debt...........i get asda stamps all year around so i cvan enjoy a big food shop without having to pay anything.......and i only get gifts that i know we can afford

from that mothers union i can confidently state that 72% of parents surveyed are idiots

i see my kids xmas lists as a guide to what they are into and if given the money themselves they would prefer to get.  They wont get everything on it and if its too extravegent they will have their expectations managed.  but helps make sure i dont waste my money on things they are not into.

I understand there is pressure at xmas but its poor decision making/parenting that leaves you in debt come january. 

Its the same with weddings...we all have to spend spend spend...but one of the best weddings i went to cost less than my photographer did at ours.  They stayed in budget and looked to make the most with what they had....it was excellent.

I don't have kids, but I see all around me more and more expensive toys/gifts/technology showered on them at Christmas and Birthdays - kids demand stuff nowadays and they get it.  When I was 9, all I wanted was a Ken for my Barbie - I didn't get it so nicked my brother's eagle eye action man instead!!  (Barbie much preferred his rough and ready look...)

What I'm saying is that kids today assume the world owes them a living as they have always got what they wanted, when they wanted it.  Like others have said, they know the cost of everything but the value of nothing. 

When I was 14, I worked at a riding school on a Sunday and all I wanted was a pair of leather riding boots which were £110 - so, I got a paying Saturday job and saved all year - then my parents went halves with me on the condition that I looked after them.  I still have those boots and they are still in good condition, unfortunately my legs are fatter now so they don't fit....but I can't bring myself to sell them - maybe one day they'll fit again.....

Beth.i wish my sons boots would last longer.............but the expensive ones are for best.......

at size 12 its hard to find any boots let alone bargains

Haha Seren Buble is not for life... just for Christmas!!  Although saying that he is hot!!

My lego has just arrived, very impressed with the delivery from Amazon! Looking at getting them both Kindle Fire's any recommendations on that?

I also have a lovely pair of long Leather riding boots, but since I started running I can't fit in them any more, Damm those calf muscles!!