Best toys

My 5-year-old GS likes dressing-up costumes. His very favourite at the moment is a particularly revolting Star Wars one called Darth Maul with a horrible mask. And of course they have to have the light sabres. Other GS had a pirate costume a year or so back. If you're good at these things, you could make them. Little girls go through a pink princess phase (complete with tiara of course) but you have to get it right, because they feel insulted if they've outgrown it.

this was a big hit with my grandsons

....I want the cowboy one!

Oh I like the sound of that; think I'll put one on my Christmas list. I bought youngest grandson the London bus for his birthday but all he's interested in is Star Wars so I think Darth Vader goes for a spin in it .

I've bought a wooden cafe and a hospital from the Dolls House Emporium which have been very successful. They are small, like a box and open up like a book. They have a couple of small dolls and several pieces of furniture and accessories. They're suitable for 4+ I'd say and my GC of both sexes are still playing with them and the eldest is 8.

I too like wooden toys. I like the bus. The roof comes off and you can play with the people. Then there's Brio with its endless combinations. I bought a wooden marble run that was well received recently. The runs can be altered into a variety of configurations.

Thanks applepie Have just clicked on your link and spent a fortune in no time.
The toys look so good and I really love wood.

I've bought my grandson a Leapfrog this year, I've heard good things about it!

Great Little Trading is the one I'm using at the moment; I bought the shop last year for Christmas and we had such fun playing with it. My grandson seems to suffer a bit from peer group pressure when it comes to toys, so I like him to have toys here that might appear a bit babyish to his friends, but he still enjoys playing with them. The Thomas the Tank wooden track and table was the best thing ever. We said if he never played with it again after 6 months we'd've had our moneysworth out of it, but he played with it for years. And some people had said not to get one because it was quite expensive and he would grow out of it quickly. Also a little wooden kitchen from Letterbox; it's square so it fits into a corner. I've got a shelf in my living room for the wooden toys and I think they look lovely.

My DGS who is coming up to three absolutely loves his tool set. I was a bit skeptical when DH first came home with it for him, as it was a bit on the shiny side and I'm an oldie who loves wooden toys, but DGS can't get enough of it!

When they go onto lego technic - I know some 30 + year olds who are hooked on lego!

Thank you all, fab ideas here. Lego is a great idea, lasts up until their 10ish.

crimson I love wooden toys too, they look classic! Have you been on Great Little Trading Company's website? It's quite good.

What about teens? I have a very fussy DGD, anyone have any experience buying gadgets? Are Kindles any good?

In fact, Early Learning Centre still sell it. It stays in my living room all year round because love wooden toys.

When my grandson was a year old I bought him a wooden postbox that had a set of five different coloured 'letters'. I was quite disappointed with it at the time. Nearly five years later and he's still playing with it..today he wrote on some postcards I gave him and posted them. At Christmas time we put cotton wool 'snow' on it, and buy christmas stick on things to make cards and letters.

Sainsburys currently has up to 50% off selected toys including Duplo and Lego. I am hopeless at buying childrens toys . This year I have decided to give cheques to go straight into GCs savings accounts and some small presents to open on the day.

I'm wondering when Lego reaches saturation point. One of my GSs loves it to bits but has almost enough to build an extension to his parents' house! What next for this kind of 7-year-old?

Agree Helmar the Vtech photo album is a great success with littlies. My sister fosters children prior to adoption, and one set of new parents made the album of family and pets for their toddler before she went to live with them. She still carries it everywhere, and now my sister has helped to make albums for other young children. My daughter has bought two of them for this Saturday, when her twin daughters will be one.

Not wishing to advertise a particular store but look for My First Shape Sorter that plays tunes and makes animal noises. Under one's love Vtec Tambourine. I agree that the photo album is wonderful. How about board games? iTunes vouchers (or Amazon) are always welcomed by everyone.

I purchased for my granddaughter for her 1st birthday, a Tomy Discovery Forget me not Photo Album. It is a butterfly shaped photo album for babies. you add your photos and can record messages for each page. I put photos of the closest members of the family and got each of them to say something or sing a nursery rhyme. It can be stood up like a photo frame when not in use.
She loved it and still does 2 years later!

I`ve ordered a Disney Cars digital camera/ video camera for youngest grandson, who will be 4yrs and 7 months by Christmas, plus a learn to tell the time wristwatch and a torch. The rest are getting money, I think, apart from eldest daughter still at home, I try to get her something nice as a surprise as she has more money than we`ve got, so no point giving her money!

Duplo or Lego depending on the age of child. Just bought a deluxe box of duplo from the asda website for my gson who is 3. He never tires of the small box of duplo bricks he has at the moment.