Here we all are on the countdown to Christmas, and I don’t know about you, but I am pretty unorganised this year with very little purchased and absolutely nothing wrapped yet! EEEKKK! I am nowhere near where I wish I was for the time of year we are at, I do however think that it is unavoidable that for the next few weeks I will be writing about the bargains and ways to save money to make Christmas magical and wonderful with out it being anything that causes large expenditure or debt.
I wrote recently about how I wanted the gifts we give to our kids to be quite minimal and for them to focus on others more than themselves. I have also said on numerous occasions that I am more than happy to give them good quality second hand than always going for the obvious 1st thing you see in the shop. So with that in mind, it leads nicely in to 2 of Ethans 3 gifts he will be getting for Christmas this year (thank goodness he doesn’t have the internet or any level of reading) which combined cost me £6 and a few quid postage!
I have deliberately gone for things that they haven’t whined about getting, but I know they will absolutely love and get lots of use out of, they are things that will grow with them for a few years and things they can easily share with cousins and friends that come to play.
- A new train bridge
Ethan absolutely loves and will spend hours playing with his extensive train set. He loves the various creations and tracks he makes and he loves everyone to play it with him and appreciate each unique set up and with that, as parents, we all know that Brio is a name to be trusted and that is because its made to last. To me that means that a second hand piece of Brio is likely to be (give or take the odd scratch) in pretty good condition!
This Bridge (and 2 pieces of track) was won on Ebay for £5 and I really love it, not because it was a barg, but because it reminds me of tower bridge in London, and as we hope to take him in the not too distant future (provided its safe) I can just imagine him seeing HIS train bridge in real life…I know he will love lifting up the bridge and making a whole new lay out with his trains! - A Medieval Castle
Ethan has gone through phases of being into knights, but never really asked for anything to do with them.
So why buy him it then? I hear you ask! Well as I watch him each time he goes to the royal armouries, and with his new “fighting talk” and rough and tumble stage of life, I really think and feel like this will be right down his street. He absolutely loves imaginative play, he loves castles when we are out and about, and it will be a huge surprise that I don’t think he could ever guess! I decided I would get him a castle and it turned out to be this one:
It cost me just 99p (yes pence) on ebay and I went to pick it up about 1/2 an hour away! This has to be the biggest bargain by far, and I plan on buying 5/6 knights to wrap up with it and to start him off with so he has a reasonable number to explore and battle!For Gift number 3 I am thinking “A Costume”
Dress up is something both Ethan and Megan enjoy and I find it quite a traditional gift too! I really enjoy seeing them take on a new character and play for ages together so lovely in their own little world. I am hoping over the next week or so to make him either a knights costume to theme with his castle gift, or a pirates as he loves them too (I might do a knights and pirate trousers!).I have looked around at various shops to buy them, but honestly feel the quality and price aren’t too great and for what you pay for better quality and lasting fabrics, it seems more sensible to sew him something! So watch this space…I love the 3 gift giving approach we have taken and so very much look forward to also buying a few little bits, small toys, treats and underwear to fill his stocking from Santa with. It has taken away a lot of stress to really consider why we are getting it and how they might like it, instead of a list of so much they think they want!
On our list to buy for we have 2 of my nephews. I am still deciding on what direction to take for one, but for my sisters little boy, I Picked up a gorgeous floor puzzle in HomeSense for just £3.99 which I know he will love, and which has an RRP of £9.99 – another Barg!!
I have also made some Pajama bottoms to go with it, which put the whole gift at about £6, and which I will show you in a later post!
I am absolutely going nuts that Ethan’s main gifts barely scratched the surface on our budget and we snapped some great deals and saved an absolute bomb… I like that I can also give our family some lovely thoughtful gifts for just over £5 and this really makes me feel a little more excited for Christmas day and seeing all of their little faces!What has been your biggest bargain so far?
That castle is a real bargain! I love finds like that, they will get so much fun out of it! Last night I was on the second hand toy stall at Lucas’ Christmas Fayre and bought some wooden puzzles for the twins for a couple of pound, I was made up!! Our stall was raided, I now know where to look next year. Xx
The castle has to be a contender for the bargain of the year. 99p is an amazing price and I love it when you get such wonderful gifts for under £5. I too am usually much more organised than I am. A few years ago I would have been all wrapped by now. I am blaming blogging and social media lol x