Present for 13 Year Old Son on a Credit Crunch Christmas

FluffyFiFi

We are really stuck with ideas what to buy our son this Christmas. We haven't got the money to go over-the-top and buy expensive presents. Any ideas would be appreciated as we are quite stuck. He has a PS2 which is on it's last legs so games for that are probably not a good idea. We have a Wii which is shared between him and his sister so games for that might be a good. He no longer wears football shirts but he does quite like Fat Face and Animal clothes. When I asked him what he would like he said PS3 or a laptop and there is no chance of anything like that. We are probably looking at spending no more than £40/50.

Any suggestions would be great.

whitewing

My DS's 12th birthday is coming up.

He keeps saying, "Brrringg, brrringg, love you mum!" and "Brrringg, brrringg, would you like a cup of tea, mum?" "Beep, have you seen my school bag?"

I'm guessing that he wants a mobile phone!

whitewing

What about a movie hamper - my DS loves Mr Bean DVD's, microwave popcorn, a bright plastic bowl to put it all in, some choccie bars, maybe cinema tickets, fizzy pop and other snacky things (helps if you deprive your children thro the year so this is a rare treat!)

Also DS likes shower gel and other toiletries (although he still gets cross if you actually suggest he gets in the shower!)

Electric toothbrush?

FluffyFiFi

whitewing wrote: »

What about a movie hamper - my DS loves Mr Bean DVD's, microwave popcorn, a bright plastic bowl to put it all in, some choccie bars, maybe cinema tickets, fizzy pop and other snacky things (helps if you deprive your children thro the year so this is a rare treat!)

Also DS likes shower gel and other toiletries (although he still gets cross if you actually suggest he gets in the shower!)

Electric toothbrush?

Like the idea of a hamper, especially with lots of edible goodies in it. Thanks for this I will have to look out for some movies that he would like.

As for the taking a shower, what is it about teenage boys and using soap. Mine will just about get under the water if I nag him enough, but the using of soap seems to be beyond him. Although he does like using his Lynx bodysprays !

bluenose1

You can get some Animal t-shirts for a reasonable price from
http://www.mandmdirect.com

I have a 15 year old and a 12 year old boy.
So far I have got them Lacoste Aftershave which cost £12 from TJ Hughes, they do quite a few decent ones
http://www.tjhughes.co.uk/Fragrance/Mens_Fragrance?search_input=&sort_order=1

I also do them the retro sweet boxes which costs about £4.00 complete which they both love.
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=296799

I've bought them both books from Amazon and Play, one likes footy books and one likes Adventure stories.

MP3's can be quite reasonable if he doesn't already have one.
However where we live there is peer pressure to have ipods as they are the trendy accessory.

It's really difficult when you can't buy them what they want, I would make sure he understands before Christmas that you just can't afford it so he is not expecting PS3 etc on Christmas Day.

Would it be worth asking him if he wants mostly money and to ask people who normally buy him presents to give him money so that he can save up for what he wants?

FluffyFiFi

bluenose1 wrote: »

You can get some Animal t-shirts for a reasonable price from
http://www.mandmdirect.com

I have a 15 year old and a 12 year old boy.
So far I have got them Lacoste Aftershave which cost £12 from TJ Hughes, they do quite a few decent ones
http://www.tjhughes.co.uk/Fragrance/Mens_Fragrance?search_input=&sort_order=1

I also do them the retro sweet boxes which costs about £4.00 complete which they both love.
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=296799

I've bought them both books from Amazon and Play, one likes footy books and one likes Adventure stories.

MP3's can be quite reasonable if he doesn't already have one.
However where we live there is peer pressure to have ipods as they are the trendy accessory.

It's really difficult when you can't buy them what they want, I would make sure he understands before Christmas that you just can't afford it so he is not expecting PS3 etc on Christmas Day.

Would it be worth asking him if he wants mostly money and to ask people who normally buy him presents to give him money so that he can save up for what he wants?

Thanks for this, money is a good idea as he is saving up for an Xbox. We have told him that he is not going to be getting anything expensive and he has to realise that we are on a tighter budget this year. I think he knows but he is still hoping that we are just kidding.

rubydoiwannabee

As a mother of a 13 yr old son, I felt I just had to reply to this thread.

On the present front my DS has asked for a Wii or xbox 360, pants and a 1KG bar of cadburys choc!!!

I am planning on do a sweet/choc stocking this year rather than the normal hawkins bazaar stuff because I feel sure he will love it.

On the subject of washing!!! It is reassuring to hear that other boys are as allergic to soap and water as mine. Only this morning at a hospital appointment I was horrified when he took his shoes and socks off!!

Suggestions:
Chocolate
mp3 player and itunes card
book token
cinema token
bowling voucher

Best of luck

DCFC79

Find out wht music he likes and get him some cd's, re the soap i never used much soap when i wa syounger, i dont use much these days although i should do

globalds

The most bang for your buck would probably be with a game for the Wii .
Between now and Christmas I reckon by shopping around on line you could pick up a couple of good games for £20.00 a piece .
It will take some searching but something like FIFA 09 or Mario Galaxy will be dropped to about this price in a month ,maybe even Quantum of Solace.
Hotukdeals is always good to keep an eye on, and a web site called Boffer may well have some cool stocking fillers for dirt cheap prices between now and christmas

Sharon87

globalds wrote: »

The most bang for your buck would probably be with a game for the Wii .
Between now and Christmas I reckon by shopping around on line you could pick up a couple of good games for £20.00 a piece .
It will take some searching but something like FIFA 09 or Mario Galaxy will be dropped to about this price in a month ,maybe even Quantum of Solace.
Hotukdeals is always good to keep an eye on, and a web site called Boffer may well have some cool stocking fillers for dirt cheap prices between now and christmas

And don't forget to go through Quidco if you can! Earn a bit of extra money there!

Have you tried ebay? They usually have some things for a reasonable price, especially CDs. Just make sure you buy from a reputable seller from the UK (don't want to risk custom charges!).

FluffyFiFi

globalds wrote: »

The most bang for your buck would probably be with a game for the Wii .
Between now and Christmas I reckon by shopping around on line you could pick up a couple of good games for £20.00 a piece .
It will take some searching but something like FIFA 09 or Mario Galaxy will be dropped to about this price in a month ,maybe even Quantum of Solace.
Hotukdeals is always good to keep an eye on, and a web site called Boffer may well have some cool stocking fillers for dirt cheap prices between now and christmas

Is FIFA 09 as good on the Wii as it is on the PS2. He has had the FIFA games every year for the past 3/4 years but he says it's not that good on the Wii.