this year's "it" item

[jennilynn]

Is there such a thing? What gifts are your kids (or hubby, etc.) begging for this year?

[Joolsplus2]

Zhu Zhu Pets (electronic hamsters and hamster tubes). Adults, um..my dh wants a Kindle...

:)

[TonFirst]

Oh, is THAT why my son told me he wished he had a hamster instead of our dog?

Dude. Kindles are Teh Awesome. My husband surprised me with one for my birthday this summer and I had no idea how much I'd come to adore it.

[lizzywednesday]

My DH wants an iPod Touch.

For his BIRTHDAY.

Which is in 3 weeks.

I have no idea what he wants for Christmas yet, but he's started shopping for me, apparently. (And I haven't asked for anything.)

[AnnieW625]

digital cameras for the under 5 crowd seem to be really popular with my friends from mommy group. DD did see one in the TRUS big catalog yesterday and said she wanted a camera. I am still not thrilled with giving a 3/1/2 year old something that really takes pictures, but there is probably no such thing as a fake play camera anymore.

For DH he really wants anything tool related. The Kindle, Iphone, and Ipod Touch are probably going to be big sellers again.

[wellyes]

I want an ipod touch too!
Or, if you're anti-apple, a Verizon Drone.

I think ipods/itouchs/etc at a tipping point, I work in Boston and as I walk up and down the rows of the public train it seems TONS of the people are using them now.

[AnnieW625]

I want an ipod touch too!
Or, if you're anti-apple, a Verizon Drone.

I think ipods/itouchs/etc at a tipping point, I work in Boston and as I walk up and down the rows of the public train it seems TONS of the people are using them now.

I am anti AT&T, but I haven't been convinced that anything Verizon has will really ever compete with the Iphone as being as easy to use. Maybe the Storm 2, but I don't think that's out yet. Still crossing fingers that Iphone and Verizon will be partners soon.

[lizzywednesday]

digital cameras for the under 5 crowd seem to be really popular with my friends from mommy group. DD did see one in the TRUS big catalog yesterday and said she wanted a camera. I am still not thrilled with giving a 3/1/2 year old something that really takes pictures, but there is probably no such thing as a fake play camera anymore.

....

Have you considered the FP "kid tough" digital camera to get her started?

Honestly, the best camera I ever had as a kid was a FP 110 film camera, and the nieces have the FP digitals ... IIRC, we got them memory cards (on Black Friday special) that year.

(FWIW, the camera I used to "steal" when I was a little kid was my dad's Kodak disc camera ... I would take pictures of our dog in the backyard.)

[AnnieW625]

Have you considered the FP "kid tough" digital camera to get her started?

Honestly, the best camera I ever had as a kid was a FP 110 film camera, and the nieces have the FP digitals ... IIRC, we got them memory cards (on Black Friday special) that year.

(FWIW, the camera I used to "steal" when I was a little kid was my dad's Kodak disc camera ... I would take pictures of our dog in the backyard.)

Yeah I am pretty sure that is one in the add. My first camera I got as a kid (I was 9 or 10) was called a Le Clic and it was a 110. They were really popular in the late 80s because like Esprit bags they came in a variety of bright colors. Mine was purple/yellow with a red button.

[lizzywednesday]

Yeah I am pretty sure that is one in the add. My first camera I got as a kid (I was 9 or 10) was called a Le Clic and it was a 110. They were really popular in the late 80s because like Esprit bags they came in a variety of bright colors. Mine was purple/yellow with a red button.

I remember those and was probably thinking about it when I asked for the camera I actually got ... my mom thought the FP would get more mileage because it had a neck-strap and rubber bumpers.

It made it through me and then my brother Ger, so I guess it pretty much paid for itself!

BTW, if it makes you feel any better, the photos come out really fuzzy for multiple reasons, resolution is only one of them. Until your DD learns how to stabilize her arms, she's gonna have shaky-cam shots.

[zoestargrove]

We bought a FP one for my son last year. It broke 3 days after getting it. I called and returned it - wait 6 weeks for replacement and that one also broke. I can't recommend the FP camera. You're better off getting a less expensive or possibly second hand "real" camera IMO.

My mom loves her kindle too. I'm typically not impressed with gadgets, but I secretly lust over an Iphone.

[Tondi G]

my 4 yr old wants the toy story R/C remote control car (the thing is big and I think 80 bucks!). He also wants rocky the robot truck and the shake and go extreme raceway.

My 8 year old wants games for his DS and the Xbox 360. a club penguin igloo playset.

my DH wants an ipod nano that takes video

[lizzywednesday]

We bought a FP one for my son last year. It broke 3 days after getting it. I called and returned it - wait 6 weeks for replacement and that one also broke. I can't recommend the FP camera. You're better off getting a less expensive or possibly second hand "real" camera IMO.
...

That stinks.

IIRC, the nieces still have theirs, but this was 3 years ago already!

Too bad that they don't seem to be the same quality as my old FP camera; that thing was AWESOME. (OK, I was embarrassed by it for a couple years because of teasing from the stupid kids at school, but it was truly awesome.)

[bubbaray]

The FP camera is a waste of time and money -- takes lousy pictures IMO.

[Momof3Labs]

The FP camera is a piece of junk. The pictures are so crappy (and that was hard because DS1 was proud of them and wanted to print them out) and the memory card died pretty fast, though was easy to replace. It also eats batteries like there's no tomorrow. For the price, you can get a pretty decent adult camera.

[pb&j]

Last year we gave DS my dad's hand me down digital camera. It's still going strong, and he loves it.

[Roleysmom]

The FP camera is a piece of junk. The pictures are so crappy (and that was hard because DS1 was proud of them and wanted to print them out) and the memory card died pretty fast, though was easy to replace. It also eats batteries like there's no tomorrow. For the price, you can get a pretty decent adult camera.

I had the exact experience as Lori. DD1 was so disappointed in the picture quality. She would say she wanted "real pictures." A low-end adult camera is a much better idea. I wish we had just done that first.

[DebbieJ]

The FP camera is a waste of time and money -- takes lousy pictures IMO.

And it eats up batteries like crazy.

[DrSally]

Last year we gave DS my dad's hand me down digital camera. It's still going strong, and he loves it.

See, I sold my old digital camera on CL and I should've saved it for DS!

[fortato]

We bought a FP one for my son last year. It broke 3 days after getting it. I called and returned it - wait 6 weeks for replacement and that one also broke. I can't recommend the FP camera. You're better off getting a less expensive or possibly second hand "real" camera IMO.

My mom loves her kindle too. I'm typically not impressed with gadgets, but I secretly lust over an Iphone.

We bought Jack one too, and it ate up the batteries in an hour. So we got another one, and had the same problem. They refunded our money, and that was the end of it. I just let him use my old Kodak... it takes better pictures anyway.
Get a less expensive camera...

[hillview]

Oops this post is becoming a FP bash. Have to agree with pp it is junk. Back to the original thread, I am interested to hear about the top "it" items as well. I saw a youtube about the hamsters ... it isn't on my list but I can see the attraction.
/hillary

[jse107]

I just got an Ipod Touch for my birthday and LOVE LOVE LOVE it. It's really fun. And, DH--who is very anti-Apple--has admitted that it's pretty great. So, although he would be loathe to admit it, it's on his list.

For the kids, I have no ideas. I'm thinking the new Wii Cars racing game for DS. We're going to Disney in a few weeks though, so that's counting as a large part of Christmas. We just don't need more junk in the house!

[egoldber]

LOL! The only thing my kid has asked for specifically is a camera. :)

I ahve never heard of the Zhu Zhu thing before here. I know that Bakugan is still popular. And of course Nintendo DSs. And Legos.

ETA: Sarah has been listening to recorded books on my iPod lately. I think she would really like her own.

[Tanya]

My kids haven't started asking for anything special yet and I've even asked what they want for Christmas. After all, this Santa needs to watch for sales.
I have picked up the new Tinkerbell DVD and the new Ice Age DVD with coupons and sales and my mom and I have gotten a few more Disney Princess barbie dolls for them.

As for the FP camera, my oldest got one when she was 3.5 and she LOVED it and now my younger daughter plays with it all the time. We started out putting the pictures on the computer and letting her pick out so many to print out, but she didn't seem to have that need for long, so I don't even remember the last time I even cleared the memory stick. Anyway, our camera is 3 years old and we haven't had any problems with it. Yes, the picture quality sucks, but my kids never cared. They just liked that they have a working camera that's a lot like Mommy's since they can see the picture they took, etc. And for all the abuse it has taken, I would be a basket case if I had given my old digital camera to them at this age. We use rechargeable batteries in the camera and we go through stages where were are recharging them frequently depending on use.
I have saved my old digital camera and when I feel like they are a bit more trustworthy and careful, I'll let them have it. They do take pictures with my newer camera, but I make them put their hands through the wrist strap or I hold the camera, etc.
So, for a toddler/preschooler, I think the FP camera is great.

And Annie, they do still make pretend cameras. Or, at least they did within the last couple years. We have a princess one. You click the button and it changes the Disney Princess shown in the place you look through (okay, I'm so used to LCD that I can't remember what it's called...viewfinder?) and I think it used to say something too. We've had a couple different ones, one was Disney, the other one was more generic. My little one still uses them sometimes too. They also have toy cell phones that have pretend cameras on them. I think I got those at Walmart in the checkout lane.

[AnnieW625]

Oops this post is becoming a FP bash. Have to agree with pp it is junk. Back to the original thread, I am interested to hear about the top "it" items as well. I saw a youtube about the hamsters ... it isn't on my list but I can see the attraction.
/hillary

:yeahthat: & to all of the other FP posts; thanks so much. See another reason I don't need to buy a real camera for a 3/1/2 year old. It was much easier when you could play pretend with a kid, which is really what you should be doing with a three year old IMHO. Maybe I'll look and see what Parents Magazine toys has in the pretend camera dept.. We are still quite happy with the play cell phone.

[Corie]

My DH wants an iPod Touch.

For his BIRTHDAY.

Which is in 3 weeks.

I have no idea what he wants for Christmas yet, but he's started shopping for me, apparently. (And I haven't asked for anything.)


I'd make it a combo gift and be done. :)

(DH got me an iPod Touch for our anniversary. I noticed the other day that alot
of my music was gone and replaced by HIS music. I don't mind sharing my iPod
but I think he bought it for himself. I told him that he'd better get my "Hit Me
with Your Best Shot" and "I Love Rock-n-Roll" back on there.)