We are spending Christmas with my in-laws and we will be flying. Last year we spent it with my parents, and we drove and packed the car to the brim. I am really about making Christmas morning magical and creating that "wow" moment but I am having a hard time thinking of gifts that will be easy to transport (or ship) home. Any ideas? LO will be a bit over 3.
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At that age we got my daughter an American girl "bitty baby" doll. Also got a few outfits & accessories for her as well as the diaper bag to keep it all in. It was a huge hit & she still plays with it daily almost 2 years later. Would be easy to bring back, she could even carry it on the plane.
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@MommySLP: This is something I am seriously considering for her Santa gift! She has several baby dolls and some accessories, though, I wonder if it would be a huge "wow."
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@daniellemybelle: I was thinking the same thing when we did it as our "santa" gift too, but it went over so well. The biggest "wow" for her was I got the matching PJ's for her, so she & bitty baby matched. She thought that was about the coolest thing ever. This year she's asking Santa for the bitty baby twins.
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I'm following as we are in the same situation this year and DS is roughly the same age.
I have no ideas so far and would like to avoid shipping/checking extra luggage if possible.
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I love Stomp Rocket and also personalized books. I got books from I See Me for my niece and nephew and they seemed to be a hit.
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Does she have a doll stroller?
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@MommySLP: @daniellemybelle: American Girl just came out with a new line of junior dolls called WellieWishers- they are a bit smaller than traditional AGs and they have matching outfits that will fit a size 4 and up. They are less expensive than the full size dolls too. My DD will be 3 in October and she has been drooling over the "big girl dolls" at Target.
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@MommySLP: @caterw: the Wellie Wishers actually replaced the Bitty Twins this summer. They're really cute, but they're less soft as they're bodies are all vinyl instead of stuffed. We have a pair for my DDs for Christmas this year. I think my then 4 year old will prefer it to her Bitty Baby. I think my 2 year old will be on the younger side for it.
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Calico critters (or their Target counterparts) - even the single room scenes are reasonably small.
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My husband is adamant that we spend Christmas at our house so we don't run into these types of issues and so DD can experience Christmas morning at her own house. Any chance you can get your family to start traveling to you instead?
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Is the wow moment for you or your daughter? I hate to say it but she won't remember every big gift, especially at a young age. What about a piece of big girl jewelry or some fancy dress up clothes?
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I can't edit my post, but I wanted to let you know that just because you are travelling doesn't mean you can't have a WOW moment.
Last year when we were abroad, we had my parents set up the gift in the living room and then via our video surveillance cameras, showed our son that Santa had in fact delivered him a present, to his house! It was great, lol. You could also do it yourself, just take a picture and send it to yourself. So many ways to continue creating the magic.
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@alphagam84: This is an ongoing topic of conversation and we are definitely traveling this year but thank you
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@youboots: It's for her and for me to enjoy her joy - one of the main perks of parenting! I definitely won't be waiting until LO can remember to have joyful exciting moments with her.
Last Christmas was a HUGE hit (we did a kitchen, shopping cart, food, etc.) and she still talks about it and is very excited for Santa to come again.
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@daniellemybelle: Oh, thought of another! we gave my daughter this light-up Sofia the 1st amulet necklace for her birthday. It isn't large in space, and was definitely a huge hit!
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@looch: that's a great idea! It looks like DH will be working on Christmas this year (firefighter) so we need to figure out our new Christmas plan to make it magical even without papa there. Including doing it on Christmas Eve or extremely early Christmas Day!
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@birdofafeather: my SIL and brother have taught their boys that Santa comes early for kids who parents have to work on Christmas. When he has to work Christmas morning, they know Santa comes Christmas Eve morning instead.
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Last year we got her a duplo farm set and built it and set it up for her to find. We were then able to take it apart to bring home and she was then able to help put it together once we got home. You could even build like 80% then leave a letter from Santa saying he didn't have time to finish or something like that?
If you do a bitty baby maybe you could get a bed too (Ikea has inexpensive ones) and set up a little scene, or maybe spread out a blanket and have the bitty baby sitting at a tea party?
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We traveled last year and opened all gifts from us before we left home. Then on Christmas day at the in-laws, we just opened the few gifts we exchanged from the inlaws.
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@yoursilverlining: Oh, LO is a huge Sofia fan! Great idea
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@Anagram: This idea was in the running... but I think we've decided Santa will come to Grandma & Grandpa's house so I do want to have something really exciting there!
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@Cole: All great ideas! Love it! We just have regular Megablocks - I forgot about all the fun scenes they have with Duplos!
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@looch: That's so great! We decided Santa is coming to Grandma & Grandpa's though.
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@yoursilverlining: Ooh, I bet LO would love that!
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@rattles: @caterw: I am going to check out Wellie Wishers for sure - she has baby dolls already so a "big girl" doll could be really special!
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@ALV91711: I know we'll have to ship a few things but I don't want to spend more than we do on our plane tickets!
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@MommySLP: So cute!
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@hummusgirl: Fun! I feel like LO is still a little young for a Stomp Rocket though.
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@daniellemybelle: Maybe so. My LO got one for his 3rd bday and was able to use it pretty well after a little practice.
ETA we have the junior version which is really lightweight.
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The Willie wishes dolls are super cute! I like the idea of a doll some outfits and a little carrying case because it could easily pack up and be taken on the plane. My daughter was four last year when we were traveling. We got her a fun purse with dress up jewelry which she loved and a fancy dress up princess dress. we did a set of princess dolls. The package was big but once they are all out of the box they were easy to pack.
We travel every other year for Christmas so this is a pretty normal routine for us. We order on Amazon and have it delivered to family and just plan on things that can be taken out of packaging and put into a suitcase. Sometimes we take an extra empty suitcase to fill and take home.
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