The Prepping Thread - A Newer Beginning ;)

euronorris

I don't know if it's a prepping type gift really, but I spent Friday making DDs main gift (whilst she was at Nana's). A teepee. I bought the pattern from 'Bear in the Hood' on etsy (she has a blog too) for £12. I wanted to move away from buying more and more plastic toys that she inevitably grows bored of very quickly. I'm hoping the teepee has a much longer lifespan, and can be a cosy nook for her to read some books, or just have some quiet time when needed.

mothernerd

Thriftygifty said:

I have spent the weekend trying to sort gifts for DS birthday rapidly approaching, I feel I have betrayed myself by using Amazon for 50% of the gifts and the other 50% from a family owned business.  I have Amazon prime for another 7 days and then it will be cancelled I love the convenience but it isn't a company that I want to majorly support going forward.  Our town is also rallying around for the free school meals, it's caused a huge uproar and I am also disgusted that it was refused, it is not a way to keep the country united. A delivery came and there were no baby potatoes I ordered 4 packs for our two house holds and they didn't substitute just said unavailable which is a first, other than that nothing majorly concerning at the min, ordered potatoes from Milk and More due to hopefully arrive in the morning.  The inevitable happened and Covid arrived at DS school last week, not his bubble for the moment but its here, I am hoping it might have shaken a few of the parents up and made them think about distancing from others.  One of my friends said her childs secondary school sent an email asking parents to tell their child not to share face masks with their friends as they over heard students asking to borrow their friends mask as they needed to go to the shop after school.

Can anyone think of anything from a prepping side of things for gifts for small children?  So far I have sleeping bags which will be handy but they will equally like.  I want to be careful with what I buy this Christmas. 

How small? I always went with things that were right to aid their development. So dolls/toys with the zips/ buttons/shoelaces etc to help them learn to dress themselves (when we were small the headmistress told the parents one of the most helpful things they could learn was to put their own shoes and coat on - from experience helping out at starter group, you can imagine how many hours teachers/ assistants waste if only half a group can manage that). Large buttons/ beads for threading, stacking ring toys, learning to sew a button on, interlocking cogs/ wheels, any sort of building toy (mine had large plastic dumper trucks which they built themselves - toddler sized screwdriver and spanner. All developing motor skills.

If you can afford it I would suggest all two year olds get their own brio (sorry for advertising) tools/ building set - a bit like meccano but the wooden bars are about 2.5 cm wide and 0.5 cm deep, The plastic nails are about 5 cm long and the head for hitting is about 3 cm across so can safely be held in little fingers. Any building things that can be put together in multiple ways (learning to make do and mend - use what is available to make what you need)

All children should have a doll and no stupid pink and sparkly for girls (I could have wept when helping 3 year olds making a C*r*s*m*s stocking collage of the things they 'wanted' and when I suggested roller skates, small child 'but is it a girl's toy?). The good toy guide (don't think it's available any longer) recommended small action figures for making up stories. Plain/ coloured paper and age appropriate crayons/ pencils/ pens (most of the cheap tie-in ones are rubbish - crayola are good for littlies, buy good quality ones when they are older). Learning to colour between the lines in a regular colouring book is okay for motor skills but plain paper and being allowed to use it however they wish (not being told to draw a house - all children learn to draw a 'house' and it's not the one any of us live in) develops their imagination (growing the future scientists, inventors and dreamers we need, not conformists working in cubes, making nuisance calls to everyone else).

Realistic play toys - pans, doctor set (DS2 got a mini Henry when he was 2 yo, DS1 got a wooden iron and ironing board - they did get other things). A child is never too young for his/her own backpack - DS1 only had his bucket and spade in his first one. When mine were older and I had to take them to the SM, I made a rule that if they asked for something and I agreed to it's purchase, they had to carry it home.

Things mine played with constantly - wooden rocking horse (2 - 5 years - I must have sewn/ remade it's mane 3 times), marble run (mum and her partner arrived from a round of visiting children to see what they had got, last child visited was bored and playing with empty boxes, DS3 was still in his sleeping suit as he could not be tempted away, fascinated by the marbles running round the course he had built. Lego (cheaper alternatives available but some of ours dated back to when I was small) - DS1 was 35 this year and he still wanted a lego death star model, if anyone had the spare cash. Books, books and more books - if they can read, they can learn about anything they want to. Dressing up clothes but not specific to tv/ film character - generic items like a builder's or firefighter's helmet.

If you are crafty/ handy and have the time, many things can be homemade - felt play food, matching games (look up quiet books on pinterest), mine had a toy kitchen made from their nappy boxes covered in sticky back plastic, a small washing up bowl to make the sink, some yellow drawer knobs for handles and cooker controls. All sorts of things can be made from cardboard boxes (and with us all so reliant on deliveries boxes are stacked up everywhere) - doll's houses, garages, tents, castles (for figures or child sized), swords and shields, dragon heads. I have also seen cardboard kitchens and shops for sale which fold up flat when not in use.

Some charities sell sets of cardboard play people (rather than plastic) and don't forget to mooch round your local charity shops - the children are too young to care where you got it from or how much you didn't pay and things like duplo and the fisher-price toys are built to last.

Hope this is helpful (not that I'm a frustrated wanna be grandma or anything)

DigForVictory

One addition to that splendid summary - if you are thinking of dressing up stuff, Please also think about flameproofing. The pretty colourful gauzy Disney shells are pure nylon and, if they get hot enough to melt, they Cling. Which really does bring most parties to a nasty halt, plus anxious debates as to who goes with child to A&E & all subsequent treatment, isolation etc etc. 
Whereas pure cotton & wool burn differently and are (in my opinion) far more versatile. A big bandanna square can be a head dress, a small shawl, a splash of colour or just twisted into a belt. A hooded cloak of wool, even if it trails behind on the floor, can still be used, washed (it's not like you're putting someone's best suit into the machine, indeed I usually chuck any blanket that has a new future into the wash) even waterproofed up to a point (Nikwax TX10 is amazing stuff but you may want to apply it to school coats etc first) and the lucky wearer can still stand near an open fire with less risk.
The petticoat has fallen right out of fashion, but miword when you see the princesses in their nylon shell frocks huddled on the playground, you realise that Little Miss Muffet in her woollen skirt & petticoats, her shawl wrapped around her & a bonnet to keep the wind off her hair & neck can stand there fine for 10 minutes while the rest of her playmates need preliminary treatment for hypothermia. The petticoats can go under Any dress or skirt & lend both a better look & be better to wear, plus the daft romances where our heroine shreds a petticoat to make bandages? Isn't pure fantasy & knowing you have part of a first aid kit whooping & bouncing around is an odd comfort, but it does mean that if you need a length of cloth to make a sling or indeed rip for bandages - there it is.
Never underestimate the joy of hats for dressing up, nor of course broaches & rings & necklaces (just try to break them before you hand them over - if you can't, they may be a choke risk). I find fruit pastilles applied with glue & covered in varnish make stunning gems & other theatre props departments use the same scam. Dresses up a cereal box crown a treat, specially when there is grump that it is silver (foil) not gold... 
Please, before you buy or repurpose the blanket though, look for a label saying 100% wool. If it doesn't, ask for a thread from the piece & find a smoker - you may need a lighter to burn the thread. If you get a globule, you have a nylon mix: if it just goes to wispy crumble, you have lovely safer wool. We've shocked traders & charity shops rigid by asking to do a burn test, but when they hold out a blanket for the dog for sale, they never think your cherished child might get close to a fire in it.
Safe & happy playtime!

Nargleblast

As a child I used to like those cardboard cut out dolls which came with paper outfits that you attached to them using paper tabs. I often drew round the clothes and made my own outfits for them.

Mrs_Salad_Dodger

I remember those. Hours of fun & so very MSE. Am I correct in thinking that they used to come in comics? So not only kept us quiet reading the comic but then entertained ourselves. Two activities for the price of one, so very MSE. 

Suffolksue

The well to do maiden ladies next door when I was growing up in the 50s ,used to have ( I think) woman and Home ,it had those cut out paper dolls with outfits and a story .Passed over the fence monthly.
Norah and Tilly  Eventually they had a little brother Paul 
I waited each month ,can’t see my grandchildren being the least bit interested 🤣

missychrissy

elaine241 said:

Well the worst has happened re my mother and father in law, they are both positive for Covid. FIL is very bad, can hardly stand and hasn't eaten anything for days. MIL was up, looking after FIL who has been in beds for days,  today but is only just going down with the virus. As I said before both are vulnerable, MIL has v bad lungs . We haven't told the kids as both have GCSE assessments most of next week and elder son has his tractor driving test. They will be besides themselves with worry but unable to do anything about it. As we are in Wales we know that a new lockdown is coming, although it hasn't formally been announced yet. One sons head of year seem to think it will be announced Tuesday and come into force from next Friday, after the assessments.

Sorry to hear your fil not well. I lost my appetite too and lost half a stone in the first week. I started to feel better on the 9th day and haven’t looked back since. I’m glad I’ve had it now as I don’t have to worry about passing it on or catching it.

MrsCD

Totally agree about toys not being just for girls or boys. Our DD2 asked for a Meccano set, (others are available) when she was around 6 or 7. She loved it and it was the start of her learning to do all sorts of DIY things for herself. DD1 and I once made a gypsy wagon for  her little pony from a shoebox, lollipop sticks and circular cheese boxes for wheels. We painted it with flowers, and it was used for a very long time. She now is a very accomplished crafter/artist in her spare time. You just need to encourage what they are interested in.
Elaine, hope the family recover well soon.

r.a.i.n.b.o.w

Nargleblast said:

As a child I used to like those cardboard cut out dolls which came with paper outfits that you attached to them using paper tabs. I often drew round the clothes and made my own outfits for them.

Ooohhhh, there's nostalgia! I loved them!

Si_Clist

missychrissy said:

 ...  I’m glad I’ve had it now as I don’t have to worry about passing it on or catching it.

Errrm ... https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-54696873