It's not that unusual for kids to get big piles of presents at Christmas. Most kids I know get a big pile of wrapped goodies. Sometimes it's over the top, but sometimes it's not. We often had big piles of gifts when we came downstairs on Christmas morning when i was younger and it was amazing. We had nothing through the year and my Mum saved hard for us to get the same (parcel height wise) as everyone else. Alright our pile including things like a new coat, new shoes and new underwear alongside toys and books which most people's didn't, but for one day we weren't the poor family in the street. We were the same.



It's alright having principles and sticking to them, but sometimes kids just want to be the same. Christmas was our turn. We appreciated every single parcel and I think that is what is important. The three of us sat in a circle and my Mum watched (usually in tears) as we each opened one gift at a time. It took hours as we'd get sidetracked by my brother's new car or my new shoes. It was wonderful though and made up for the birthdays when we had no electric never mind presents and the school trips that there was no way we could go on.



It's the ungratefulness that is the biggest problem with kids getting loads now imo. I have a friend whose brat cribbed on Christmas day that he "only" got 6 parcels. He got a Wii, various games and gubbins and £100 football boots. I'd have taken the lot of the wee sod, but he's used to getting 4 or 5 things each weekend when they are out so to him 6 parcels was 'hardly anything'.

I've got about 20 kilos of Meccano, of various vintages that I acquired at boot sales. That reminds me, I'll have to get in touch with the Scottish fella who usually buys all I can find before I put it on eBay

What joy? Where is the joy of building a crane, looking at it and going "wow". Then what are you supposed to do?. Quite rightly, kids would rather be killing insurgents on MW3

Obviously, you pick stuff up with it.





If you don't understand what a crane does I suggest you put the games consol away.

You swivel it around to its left so its hanging over the edge of the desk using the little winding handles and watching all the pulleys work, then you drop down the bucket or hook using more little handles and you pick something up off the floor and lift it back up using more little winding handles while all the time making the noise "vvvvvvvv-vvvvvv-vvvvvvvv" with your mouth.



Hours of fun.

Teenage Mutant Hero / Ninja Turtles - now they were some cool action figures in the day!







Hey anyone remember Teddy Ruxpin from the 80's? (talking teddy bear that reads out a story and you get the book to read along IIRC). Noticed at work a while ago that that's made a comeback in the last few years.