It's time for the annual Christmas gift HITS and MISSES thread! Post yours here!

[Cindyz]

Surprisingly one of the biggest hits is this awesome Melissa and Doug Magic Set. It's so very well made and simple enough for my 7 year old. We LOVE it!

 

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0001YNLLK/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=whispesprin0e-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B0001YNLLK

 

He is also really loving this lego set:

 

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004478GME/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=whispesprin0e-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B004478GME

 

I'm thankful we got it as a doorbuster at Target for $64.99 because in my opinion it's not worth $110!

 

We haven't had time to get into the Snap Circuits yet. I can't wait!

 

One big miss was this Disney Wii game. :(

 

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0051873RE/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=whispesprin0e-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B0051873RE

 

Edited December 27, 2011 by Cindyz

[SweetMissMagnolia]

no real misses here yet-big hit has been the trakr spy gear thingie...and roboni-i but we haven't really played with the other things yet...

[Carol in Cal.]

All hits. Sparse, but great.

 

DD LOVED the leather bound notebook with the handmade paper. For the first time ever, she can't think of anything to write that is good enough for this superb setting.

 

DH loved one of the updated ties I bought him, but not the other one, but it looks SO good on him that I know he will get a ton of compliments and then he will like it. Thus his wardrobe is finally joining the century now in progress.

 

I now have a little Bose radio/CD player, which is great. It doesn't take up a lot of room, but finally I have music functionality other than on my computer with its tinny little speakers, for the first time in several years.

 

My cousin loved her dog biscuit cutters--a big hit!

 

And I brought three desserts to the family Christmas party, all of which were consumed with great delight. The dilemma was which to eat more of, not which to eat. I love to cook, and it is deeply satisfying to delight others with my cooking. (for the curious, the desserts were apple crisp, French silk pie, and Beverly Hills cheesecake).

[Gentlemommy]

Hits-

 

DH-he picked out a grill, so that was a hit lol. I got him some stuff to go with it, spice rub, tools, and a fire pit since he loves building fires.

 

Me-a kindle, and a kitchen aid stand mixer with a bunch of the attachments!!!!

 

Dd(6)-a microscope, new bike, science experiment kits (she got three!!!), the last Narnia movie, a nutcracker doll, a marble run, some dolphin and penguin figurines, and some make up/lotion stuff.

 

Dd(3)-a plasma car, a bike, a Rapunzel dress and doll, a leapster, play doh, a digital camera, and a TON of make up, lotion, bath soap, and hand sanitizer (lol, that is her favorite stuff!)

 

Dd(1)-slide from Ikea, pop up tent, bath toys, and a bucket swing for the front porch.

 

Misses-

 

Dd(3)-a spongebob pinball game and a cheap art set with dried markers from the in laws. We don't allow spongebob anyway, but the pinball thing was clearly for older kids, and the art set was so cheaply made, they couldn't use any of it.:confused:

 

Oh, and they got dd(1) a stocking that says Baby's first Christmas, even though it's not.:confused:

 

[Georgiana Daniels]

Hits:

 

Angry Birds stuffed animals for kids, Nook e-reader for oldest daughter, Under Armour sweat suit for hubby, Michael Kors handbag for me.

 

Misses:

 

Only one....the Polaroid Digital Instant Camera for hubby. The screen doesn't work so I am working on sending it back to Amazon today. HOPING/PRAYING they give me full refund. :glare:

[Rivka]

Almost all hits! We got the kids a small bounce castle as a joint present and they were super excited. Sadly, we've been traveling since Christmas afternoon and haven't been able to play on it.

 

6yo loved her AG doll, but has actually been more captivated by her Avatar: the Last Airbender graphic novel. She's read it several times, including aloud to her cousin. My brother gave her a 200-piece 3-D Eiffel tower model and I was dubious, but she put it together and it looks great! She adores the rock collection our friend gave her and the chemistry kit from us.

 

2yo had one miss, a Sit and Spin from Santa to even out the gifts. He is kind of wary of it. He loves his little wooden toolbox set and a Melissa and Doug car carrier from our friend. His sister gave him a fluffy stuffed cat that he adores.

 

Hit for me: MY IPAD!!!

 

I gave my husband two RCA helicopters. He's excited but hasn't been able to take them out because of our travels.

[Grover]

Hits:

DS - chess set

DD - Camelot Jr

DH - new books

Me - swimming concession card

 

Misses:

Both kids got fed gluten by my mother

DS is not fussed on his lego

Neither kid likes their snorkel and mask set (but I'll keep working on that)

[Cassy]

Hits:

 

DS4 and DS7 - Dr Who outfits I put together for them - tweed jackets, striped shirts, bow-ties and black trousers - they looked amazing.

 

DS10 - 3 Nerf guns, used in a multi-generational Nerf war on Christmas day and this morning.

 

DS12 - penknife, the idea for which I got from a thread here.

 

DH - a Gift Certificate for 'Special Favours' :001_wub:, the idea for which I got from a thread here :blushing:.

 

Misses:

 

Me - a jar of some seed mixture which looked like bird-food from my new SIL. Lovely :bored:. Thanks :thumbdown:.

 

Cassy

 

The biggest hit for me was going to see the pantomime at our local theatre last night - it was brilliant fun! Do you have pantomimes in the US?

[VeteranMom]

Hits for my family:

Me- Fiestaware from my Mom

Kids- ages 10, 10, and almost 9 - I'm shocked that my kids are using their $79. Kindles. I think the Kindles might help turn my boys into "readers".

 

Misses:

My boys- Air Hogs Hyperactives remote cars- they are broken and won't work

Edited December 27, 2011 by VeteranMom
forgot misses

[tmulcahy]

[quote

Misses: from my mother. LOL Ds received a heavy horse head that was supposed to be a stick horse, but there is no stick.

 

Oh my. Snort. I am still laughing at this. I'm sure it was not that funny to your ds:lol:

[delaney]

hits:

DH: new grill and Nike dry max shirts

Me: Kindle Fire, new dish towels:001_smile:, and PF CHang gift card

DS(16) paid for 1/2 of his Montreal ski trip

DS(12): headset for his PS3 and a Whirly Pop!

DD(11) TV for her room and Just Dance 3

DD(7): New bike and a starbucks gift card

DS(5) A Wii and the Kirby game

DS(3) a kitchen play set and the fact that all his stuff was wrapped in red paper

Misses: I got $75 in Starbucks cards and really don't like their coffee

[thenichols]

Dd9, hit & miss: electric scooter, he hated it at first, now he loves it!! :auto:

Hit: Kinect for family, I HATE video games, but this is a huge hit for everyone!

[jewellsmommy]

We have a 'surprise hit' which is hello kitty duct tape :lol:. It was in dd's stocking. We are now drowning in duct tape creations! Every stuffed pet now has a collar and matching hair bow. :D

 

The only misses were the bracelets (Christmas and bday) dh got me. My Christmas present didn't fit (too tight). So he brought out the bracelet he got for my b-day (Jan 3rd) hoping to make it better but it was too big!. :lol: So we will be returning 2 bracelets to the jewelry store soon. Poor dh.

[Rosie_0801]

Somehow I've gotten into the habit of buying dh a book he doesn't want, along with a present I actually do think he wants. My brother has a similar sense of humour so I found myself doing the same thing for him, and he did the same for me. Now in dh's family, there is a tradition of "togetherness presents" so I thought I was pretty clever to find a "togetherness present they won't want" for dh and my bro. When we were kids, we had one of those silly family sayings of "Woe is me!" which we got from some computer game and always said with a silly voice; so when I found a grammar book called Woe is I I just knew I had to buy it for him. When I found The Deluxe Transitive Vampire grammar book, I knew I was on a "winner!"

 

Poor dh didn't appreciate the joke,:001_huh: but my brother and I nearly wet our pants laughing.:smilielol5:

 

My brother responded with something truly tragic, a Sigmund Freud action figure, of all the horrible things to do to a person! :lol: I promised to keep only if he bought me a Jung next year. :lol:

 

I did buy dh a set of panpipes, which he desperately wanted. He bought me a rotary cutter which I desperately wanted, and we bought my bro Sister Wendy's art dvds, which he was delighted to have.

 

All's well that ends well! (And maybe you had to be there.:blushing:)

 

 

Rosie

[MorganClassicalPrep]

6yo loved her AG doll, but has actually been more captivated by her Avatar: the Last Airbender graphic novel. She's read it several times, including aloud to her cousin. My brother gave her a 200-piece 3-D Eiffel tower model and I was dubious, but she put it together and it looks great! She adores the rock collection our friend gave her and the chemistry kit from us.

 

If you don't mind me asking... what brand is the Eiffel Tower model? I was looking at a couple different ones for DDs birthday next month but I was worried about the level of difficulty. She would LOVE an Eiffel Tower, especially if she can put it together (at least mostly) alone.

[BarbecueMom]

Hits for the kids: More wooden trains and a collapsing bridge, Angry Birds board game, food dye-free lollipops, "The Monster at the End of this Book", Nerf disc gun. They were also thrilled with the box of toys I culled from the playroom to get rid of and make room for new stuff. :glare:

 

Misses for the kids: DS3 got Boggle Jr. and we were disappointed that it's more of a sight word memory tool than an actual game. He already knows all the words on the cards, so hopefully DS2 gets more out of it. And despite loving all their gifts, they are back to making blanket capes, upside-down chair forts, and cardboard box towers.

[Rosie_0801]

All hits. Sparse, but great.

 

DD LOVED the leather bound notebook with the handmade paper. For the first time ever, she can't think of anything to write that is good enough for this superb setting.

 

A quote journal, perhaps? I was inspired by a thread on here a few months back to start my own. I should start a thread about 2011 quote journal updates...

 

Rosie

[Irene Lynn]

[quote

Misses: from my mother. LOL Ds received a heavy horse head that was supposed to be a stick horse, but there is no stick.

 

Oh my. Snort. I am still laughing at this. I'm sure it was not that funny to your ds:lol:

 

LOL! I don't think he really reacted much at all. His expectations were probably pretty low anyway. Last year he got a used robotic dog, whose legs promptly spread out too far on one side and fell over, where it continued to twitch and make random noises. On the plus side, it looks kind of cool. It just can't walk at all. We had a small Lego present to give to him, so he would have something fun at Grandma's house.

 

On the plus side, I am thrilled with the wonderful white elephant gifts that we have ready for next Christmas. :D

[sewingmama]

And despite loving all their gifts, they are back to making blanket capes, upside-down chair forts, and cardboard box towers.

 

Yeah, no kidding. My DD actually saved every box the gifts came in and has been playing with those non-stop :glare: Next year it's empty boxes for everyone :lol:

 

All our gifts were hits.

 

The biggest hit was the pop-up tent I got my DD who has been wanting one that was tall enough for her to stand up in. She moved all her doll things in there and hasn't come out for 3 days -she has even asked to sleep in there. The boys are in it a lot too so I am going to go out and buy them a boy version of their own.

 

The only miss is that my kids have already broken some of their new toys :glare:

[kolamum]

All hits here except one gift from a grandparent. ;)

[kalanamak]

I love my Smart Divide sink. :)

 

The only miss was the cat calendar. Perhaps kiddo is losing his cat passion. He LOVES his Dvorak CD. We are hearing the dances over and over.

And the boys are all sweaty from the Mashoonga Sticks.

[MorganClassicalPrep]

A quote journal, perhaps? I was inspired by a thread on here a few months back to start my own. I should start a thread about 2011 quote journal updates...

 

Rosie

 

Thanks for the reminder! I wanted to start one of these for 2011. I love quotes (as evidenced by my pinterest page :lol:) and would love to have a paper trail of sorts.

[CalicoKat]

No misses this year, and we were on a very strict budget.

 

Dd got some new to her roller skates. Ds saw them at the thrift store and when we opened the case, they looked barely worn, if at all. She has had them on non stop.

 

Ds 15 loved his guitar stuff (strings, slider, picks), but REALLY liked the vintage guitar dh's dad gave to him. He had bought it in the 60's and never played it. He could have gotten some good $ out of it, and instead chose to let ds have it.

 

Ds 17 liked the video game and hats he got.

 

My favorite from dh was an electric griddle so I can cook everyone's breakfast at once, lol. His stepmom got us a family bible, and we both loved it.

No misses, thankfully! The biggest hit was the Bazongi Trampoline for ds 6. :D He asked for it. It was a big pricey for us but we didn't have any other good ideas. He loves it.

 

It helped to get them to shop for themselves this year. I just didn't have enough energy to be creative.

[Rivka]

If you don't mind me asking... what brand is the Eiffel Tower model? I was looking at a couple different ones for DDs birthday next month but I was worried about the level of difficulty. She would LOVE an Eiffel Tower, especially if she can put it together (at least mostly) alone.

 

Ravensberger. The pieces are like jigsaw pieces, but they are numbered. There is still some challenge to putting it together.

[Jennifer3141]

The only miss was a pair of LL Bean knakis for DH that had a flat front but an elastic waist band in the back. He almost went to pieces... :glare:

 

DH gave me the go ahead to get an ereader for myself and I have the DX in my shopping cart but I'm vascillating. I don't want apps on my ereader so the Fire makes no sense, right? I have the latest iphone so I don't feel like an ipad would make sense and I really just want a very good ereader and I'm an Amazon Prime person. So I need to just check out with the DX, right??

Somebody tell me what to do, please. :001_smile:

[ereks mom]

battery charger for dh, Wii games for everybody. The only near miss we had was that one of the earrings dh gave me broke when I tried to put it on. But I can easily exchange it.

[Laura in CA]

"Top Gear UK" DVDs!!! A HUGE hit with the menfolk in the family. And ... I first heard about Top Gear right here on the General Board. Thanks! :001_smile:

 

(We don't have cable, so we're really out of the loop. :001_smile:)

[Splinter]

Our only "miss" this year was a snowboard for my daughter.

 

I bought one for each of the boys (and they loved them) and only got one for her so she wouldn't feel left out. It was pink and everything, but it still somehow caused tears on Christmas night because she thinks it's scary doesn't want to use it. I think it was moreso that she felt bad about telling me that she didn't like it, but really didn't want to be forced to try it.