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teachingmom
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| Posted: Dec 01 2008 at 12:05am | IP Logged
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My goal for quite some time has been to get my Christmas shopping done by the time Advent begins. I almost reached that goal this year! I finished shopping for gifts for my older girls, dh, my parents and mother-in-law, nieces and nephews. I still need to get something for a few Godchildren, but I am nearly finished. 
But I am at a loss for ideas for my 2 yo and almost 6 yo girls! I have a few small things for each, but can't think of new ideas. Part of it is that, with 6 girls in the family, we already own most toys a young girl could want. I don't want to add lots of plastic junky stuff or things that take up lots of room.
The other day my 14 and 12 year old dds were trying to help me with ideas. I said no to most of what they suggested. My 12 year old told me that my problem is that I am trying to shop from a mother's perspective and not from a child's perspective. She suggested getting my toddler a baby doll. She told me how excited she always was to open up a baby doll on Christmas morning. Hearing her say that almost convinced me, but I can tell you that we must have over a dozen perfectly good baby dolls in all shapes and sizes around here. I can't really reconcile adding to that.
Please share with me what you are planning to give your younger daughters. Or I'd also love to hear what you have given in the past that they have loved. Thanks for any advice you have.
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~Irene (Mom to 6 girls, ages 7-19)
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mellyrose
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Sometimes it makes a difference when you receive your "own" baby doll. (spoken as someone who loved baby dolls as a child)
What about baby doll gear? I picked up a baby doll stroller for Lydia at Big Lots for $8. She's getting that, a baby doll, and a princess tent ($20 at Target).
When I was a big sister, one year I made bedding for a doll cradle for my sister -- I made a bumper, a new mattress and a blanket. (um, ok, I'm still a big sister, but my baby sis doesn't play with dolls anymore)
Colin got a pop up play tent when he was just over a year and they STILL play with it (he's 8). It folds up very compactly.
play silks?
My little girl is only 19mo, so I'm not much help. I'm sure you'll get some great ideas!
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Melanie in AZ
Colin (11/00), Nate (05/02), Lydia (04/07)
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SuzanneG
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I am FINALLY buying a baby doll this year! (for the 2.5 yo) We have about 20 baby dolls in this house and I have never actually purchased any of them. I'm sort of excited to have a new doll under the tree too!
But, apart from that...the 2-year-old is getting another set of Foam Blocks, which she LOVES and plays with all the time. And, another animal toob. Toddlers can never have enough animals!
The baby stroller is a good idea. What about a baby sling?
Mini-back-pack?
Doll house people?
Calico Critters?
My Little Pony was always a favorite here.
Do you have a play-kitchen? Maybe a couple new kitchen-items to add to it.
Here are some ideas for the 6-year-old:
Fabric lined Baskets
Latch HookKit
Return address labels
Wallet
Wedgits
Doll house furniture
Doll Clothes
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Suzanne in ID
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JodieLyn
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Yes, sometimes it's good to get "your own" baby doll or whatever. But I might weed out some of the ones you already have to make way for new special ones. 
My 2 yr old is getting dress up shoes and tiara from her sister. Plastic animals and a couple of oballs and a sock puppet from us.
My 7 yr old is getting a Barbie Fairy movie (Magic of the Rainbow) and a pair of fairy wings and a sock puppet from us.. and her sibling gift (we draw names for those) hasn't been bought yet so I don't know what else.
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KackyK
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You probably have plenty...but the excitement over here is always dressup...anything...costume jewelry, dresses, shoes.
My 3yold (she got it when she was 2) loves to no end still her hippity-hop ball. She also asked this year (she'll get it for her bday in January) a purse. Maybe a purse, you can buy a cheap "real one", so it doesn't look so toyish. I was going to buy an empty compact and chapsticks and a "real" wallet.
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KackyK
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guitarnan
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The baby doll stroller is a great choice. My dd LOVED hers - more than the baby doll!
Dress up gear goes a long way...try your local Goodwill for some accessories and jewelry.
I polled friends' children recently for gift ideas and was told that Barbies and Polly Pockets are popular. (I dislike Polly because of her tiny tiny tiny shoes...) I ended up buying some Skippyjon Jones books for my first-grade niece instead. Richard Scarry books are always great for the younger set.
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Nancy in MD. Mom of ds (24) & dd (18); 31-year Navy wife, move coordinator and keeper of home fires. Writer and dance mom.
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Angi
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If you have a doll house, how about a new doll family. I know that ours, though a good quality, are not handing down well.
My 3 year olds are getting little magnet sets from WalMart. They have a metal box and different scenes/backgrounds, and about 40 magnets. I think we bought Fairy Dress-Up, and Doll Dress-Up.
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Tina
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When I was little, I got a baby doll for Christmas every year. It was the gift I looked forward to the most. I would definitely weed out the old ones, like Jodie said, though. And the doll strollers are so fun for the little girls.
Play food/kitchens have always been a hit around here, year after year. But I do get rid of some of the old, worn out looking stuff, before bringing in the new. Every year, before Christmas we go through all of my children's toys to weed out broken stuff to throw out, and the toys that they've lost interest in get donated.
And recently dd6 has gotten big on "journals". I picked up some journals at the dollar store and some cute fancy pens. She takes one with her almost everywhere she goes. She writes "stories" in them, and draws pictures, etc. And she loves to show us what she's done in them and "read" her stories to us.
We have the polly's too  . I debated getting rid of them several times, but the truth is, they play with them almost every day. But our polly's have no shoes  . I told the girls that if we were going to keep the polly's, they'd have to go without shoes.
Playsilks and other dressup are used a lot here. And play animals, especially horses.
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mom of 3 girls and 1 little man
The Best of Times
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teachingmyown
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My two year old dd is getting a baby sling, fridge magnets, a Veggie Tales CD and play silks.
My 5 yr old is getting play silks, a Barbie movie, a "real" tea set and some books.
My seven in 3 days dd is getting silks, a math game, Brain Quest and maybe a doll stroller. She and the 5 and 8 yr old girls already have dolls and doll slings.
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SusanJ
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I've considered pretty much every idea mentioned here for my 2yo dd. I think we're going to pool money from grandparents and get her a doll house partly because I'm sure my 4yo ds will also like playing with that. But if we were relying on our own budget entirely I'd go with inexpensive kitchen stuff or playsilks, I think.
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Bookswithtea
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One more vote for her own doll. And definitely weed out the old ones. Each of my girls has two dolls...one baby doll and one AG type doll. They are (or were, when younger) completely devoted to them, but ownership is a big deal with a doll. Costumes/play silks are always huge here with 2 yr olds on up to at least 7.
Our 6 yr old girl is getting her own Magic Cabin cape (her older two sisters already have one each), a tea set that is tin so that she can take it outside safely to play with it. She's also getting a "make your own calendar" calendar (these are cheap at Michaels). Craft stuff is always a hit with 6 yr old girls, too.
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mothering ds'93 dd'97 dd'99 dd'02 ds'05 ds'07 and  due 9/10
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DominaCaeli
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I wrote this in another post too, but here's what I'm making my 2yo daughter for Christmas this year:
--toddler-sized messenger bag
--letter and number tiles (made out of foam board squares)
--bean bags (I made a set of 20 matched bags so that she can play matching games/Memory with them too)
--a wooden chaplet (for her St. Nicholas stocking)
--a Molly Monkey
--felt lap board with shapes
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CKwasniewski
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My 6 dd is getting a turtle neck dress for Sundays, a nice hardcover fairy tale (The White Swans) and a little felted unicorn and pixie I got Here
I am not big into baby dolls--and she doesn't play much with the ones she has. But I like to "splurge" and get a lovely picture book each holiday--ones that she'll remember and I'll save for her to read to her own kids...
good luck,
ck
eta: a baby doll carriage is great too!
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Fuzzy
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Can I ask what "play silks" are?
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Milehimama
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Lincoln Logs + barn animals are a huge hit around here. Especially horses.
I bought our 3 yo an Aquadoodle that hangs on the wall.
My 3-7 yo girls LOVE "tea party"/fake food/restaurant. I bought the 4 yo a cash register, because they play restaurant almost every day.
My older daughter at age 6 (and still!) loved the foam pattern blocks.
Wikisticks are cool, too!
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wifemommy
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My sis learning from our favorite "toys" growing up gave my girls 2,4 and 6 last year a box full of pretty material in various sizes all hemmed. ...for dress up, tents, blankets etc. They get played with almost every single day!! Annie
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SuzanneG
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Oh yes! The tea party/fake food is a favorite toddler-girl activity too, as well as the cash register......but cash register maybe for the 3-5 year old crowd.
I also thought of something else as I stepped on it for the millionth time today......a DOCTOR KIT! 2-yo-dd plays with this all day!
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Suzanne in ID
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KackyK
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Yes...my 3yold is getting the cash register...makes another great use for play food items.
Also, LOVE the Aquadoodle on the wall idea. Ours was ruined (someone used crayon on it). Might just have to invest in another one now! Very popular here.
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KackyK
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tallulah23
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Those that mentioned kitchen sets...do you have any affordable suggestions? Any that aren't cheaply made but will still last? Dh is on the fence about it since it is pricey for us, but I REALLY think my 2yr old dd will LOVE it! :)
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teachingmom
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Thank you all for taking the time to post your suggestions! We really do already have the majority of things suggested - doll house with lots of furnishings and people, kitchen set with tons of food and extras, dress up clothes, many dolls (including 5yo's own AG doll and 2yo's Bitty Baby that used to be her sister's), dolls cribs and cradles and high chair, hippety hop ball, and more Polly Pockets than Walmart .
But you've given me some new ideas to think about. Among others, those foam blocks look really interesting. I'll rethink the idea of a new doll for my 2yo. (Maybe even with a new stroller since the wheels keep falling off the old one!) I'll definitely follow your suggestions and go through and give away some of the old ones if I do.
The journals are a great idea and already on my list. I recently ordered prayer journals for my almost 9, 10, 12, and 14 yo's. I was planning on stopping by the dollar store for in inexpensive journal for the younger girls. My 2yo will be very excited. She has taken over a black marble notebook from one of her older sisters and constantly asks for a pencil to "write" in it.
Fuzzy wrote:
| Can I ask what "play silks" are? |
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They are squares of brightly colored silk fabric that kids use to dress up, make tents, wrap up a baby doll, etc. I've seen them in catalogs for years and always thought they were way too pricey. If I only knew they would end up offering the sort of value that our American Girl dolls have - many, many hours of enjoyment, even though they are expensive - I'd seriously consider them.
Anyone else want to comment on whether play silks are really worth it?
Another question: A few months back I was at a play rehearsal with some of the girls. A few girls in the play brought small animal toys that looked interesting. They were not Calico Critters, of which we have one set that does not get played with  . They looked like tiny plush toys - maybe a few inches in length. (Close to the size of Littlest Pet Shop animals, but soft.) I think the girls would play with those and enjoy them. Any ideas what they were?
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~Irene (Mom to 6 girls, ages 7-19)
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4Real Forums : Mothering and Family Life
Topic: Christmas gifts for younger girls?
