lollie010 Posted November 28, 2015 Share Posted November 28, 2015 This child will not provide a list, because he wants it to be a surprise. He's also not quite ready for a clothes and shoes kind of Christmas. He has plenty of Legos and Nerf guns, so I'm pretty much out of ideas. He likes soccer, crossfit, video games, ancient and medieval history and audio books. I'm sure he would like a new video game , but I don't know which one to grab and he's not saying. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alice Posted November 28, 2015 Share Posted November 28, 2015 Board games or card games...so many to choose from. An experience of some kind...tickets to a sports game, tickets to a play...This is usually our big present for our kids as they have too much stuff and grandparents that insist on buying a ton more. We've done: Special reptile tour at the zoo, trapeze class, tickets to see Julius Caesar, weekend away snow tubing (family present), tickets to see Matilda (this year's present for everyone), tickets for both boys to go to Medieval Times (the dinner and reenactment place, kind of cheesy but they LOVED It.) My 12 year old son loved the book What If? last year. He still reads it regularly. I got him Things Explained by the same author this year. Any items for his sports that he would like but that are usually too expensive for you to want to do...I know around here boys all want these crazy expensive Nike socks. ipod Shuffle for listening to music and good headphones 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lollie010 Posted November 28, 2015 Author Share Posted November 28, 2015 My 12 year old son loved the book What If? last year. He still reads it regularly. I got him Things Explained by the same author this year. Any items for his sports that he would like but that are usually too expensive for you to want to do...I know around here boys all want these crazy expensive Nike socks. ipod Shuffle for listening to music and good headphones I just put the book in my cart. He will LOVE it. And yes, he would love another pair of those crazy $18 socks. And an MP3 player loaded with audio books. That just might his perfect Christmas! Thanks for the ideas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted November 28, 2015 Share Posted November 28, 2015 I know nothing about video games, but I'm sure there are some set in fake-y Medieval times--would he like that? We've done fun things to reveal gifts--once we buried ancient coins in the backyard and gave our boys a metal detector. They found most of them, then scrubbed them up (you let them soak in olive oil then use a wire brush). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lollie010 Posted November 28, 2015 Author Share Posted November 28, 2015 I really am not good at Christmas or birthdays. I just have no creativity for making things special. So I appreciate the help. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted November 28, 2015 Share Posted November 28, 2015 I think I'd find a moment to ask his friends what video game they think he'd like. Do you see his pals regularly? Or does he have a phone and you could maybe text one of the friends? 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soror Posted November 28, 2015 Share Posted November 28, 2015 (edited) My eclectic 11yo has asked for Klutz books (I have the Encyclopedia of Immaturity in my cart now), graphic novels (Marvel Oz for the family and a couple of Studio Ghibli ones and some others- I'm not sure), books -he reads everything- so far I have Howl's Moving Castle. Oh, and miniature models of cities and famous landmarks. A minature pinball machine. Random collectibles- he is an aspiring museum owner, tech lover and bibliophile. For our family game this year it will be Forbidden Island- aside from the graphic novels I'm also buying some poetry books as they are all taken with poetry lately, especially ds From my mom he asked for a Quad- AKA Drone Copter From my MIL he asked for the Wii U game Splatoon- Assassin's Creed and Call of Duty are popular here but got a no from us Edited November 28, 2015 by soror 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JFSinIL Posted November 28, 2015 Share Posted November 28, 2015 (edited) kit to make his own trebuchet, Estes rocket kits, passes to local Medieval Times.... Edited November 28, 2015 by JFSinIL 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted November 28, 2015 Share Posted November 28, 2015 Do you think he'd like Backyard Ballistics? Does he have an adult who would build some of the stuff with him? You could buy everything to make, say, two of the items in the book and package it all together. That would be a fun gift! He wouldn't have to wait around for the "gathering of materials," and it would be a blast (get it? a blast!! lol). 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aaplank Posted November 28, 2015 Share Posted November 28, 2015 The Top Trump card games seem to be a hit with boys that age. My 12DS asked for some for Christmas so he could play with his friends. They have Greek mythology and other history ones, and tons of others, depending on your interest. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happypamama Posted November 28, 2015 Share Posted November 28, 2015 The quad copter was a huge hit with my nine year old son last year! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rockhopper Posted November 28, 2015 Share Posted November 28, 2015 If he likes video games and soccer, you wouldn't go wrong with a FIFA video game as long as it was for the right platform. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T'smom Posted November 28, 2015 Share Posted November 28, 2015 The Top Trump card games seem to be a hit with boys that age. My 12DS asked for some for Christmas so he could play with his friends. They have Greek mythology and other history ones, and tons of others, depending on your interest. I have never heard of these, but we love games at our house! Can you tell me a bit about them? How do you play? What ages is it geared toward? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
creekland Posted November 28, 2015 Share Posted November 28, 2015 Bet he'd be surprised by a pony. :coolgleamA: 9 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lollie010 Posted November 28, 2015 Author Share Posted November 28, 2015 You guys are awesome. Lots of good ideas to explore. The pony is especially a great idea!!! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
City Mouse Posted November 28, 2015 Share Posted November 28, 2015 What game platform does he have? I just got told by one of my kids that there is a new Pokemon that was just released. My son is excited about the amiibo figures that go with certain game for the wii u. The Harry Potter books are now on audible. I signed up for the free trial just to get the Deathly Hallows. Amazon has Kindle Fire on sale for $35 this week. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlsdMama Posted November 28, 2015 Share Posted November 28, 2015 This child will not provide a list, because he wants it to be a surprise. He's also not quite ready for a clothes and shoes kind of Christmas. He has plenty of Legos and Nerf guns, so I'm pretty much out of ideas. He likes soccer, crossfit, video games, ancient and medieval history and audio books. I'm sure he would like a new video game , but I don't know which one to grab and he's not saying. :) Loves history and video games? IMO he's the perfect target to get hooked on boardgames. Something like Dominion maybe? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slache Posted November 28, 2015 Share Posted November 28, 2015 Put nothing under the tree. He would be surprised by nothing. Then surprise him with the pony. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lollie010 Posted November 28, 2015 Author Share Posted November 28, 2015 What game platform does he have? I just got told by one of my kids that there is a new Pokemon that was just released. My son is excited about the amiibo figures that go with certain game for the wii u. The Harry Potter books are now on audible. I signed up for the free trial just to get the Deathly Hallows. Amazon has Kindle Fire on sale for $35 this week. He has a WiiU. He mentioned a game, but regrettably I didn't write it down quickly enough. I wish I would have grabbed the kindle. Somebody could have used it at that price. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlsdMama Posted November 28, 2015 Share Posted November 28, 2015 He has a WiiU. He mentioned a game, but regrettably I didn't write it down quickly enough. I wish I would have grabbed the kindle. Somebody could have used it at that price. :) If it helps, I looked up last year's sale on Kindle Fires. The sale was on the 8th last year so there is a decent chance they'll run another sale yet? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alice Posted November 28, 2015 Share Posted November 28, 2015 (edited) I have never heard of these, but we love games at our house! Can you tell me a bit about them? How do you play? What ages is it geared toward? I think they are the dumbest game ever created but my sons and their friends all love them. We've had them since my oldest was about 7 and he's 12 and will still play. They are just cards with rankings for different stats for different characters or things....for example the Star Wars ones have a picture of some Star Wars character or ship and have rankings for "Force Factor", "Intelligence", "Battle Skills" etc. Each one has a number by it. On your turn you choose a card from the top of the pile and pick which stat you think your card will beat the other players. So you say "Battle Skills". And then everyone says the level of the guy on their top card..."42", "15", "67". Apparently you must make comments like "Beat that!" "Oh, freeze!" etc. as you slap your card on the table. The one with the top number wins. The person who gets all the cards wins. They have them for just about every interest...Egypt, Greek myths, sports teams, etc. I refuse to play but my boys play all summer at the pool with their friends. You have to do something at swim meets, I guess. :) Edited November 28, 2015 by Alice 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanaqui Posted November 28, 2015 Share Posted November 28, 2015 He likes video games. Do you have any classic systems? If anybody got me a classic SNES and some games off of eBay, I'd be over the moon. And I'd definitely be surprised :) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mlktwins Posted November 28, 2015 Share Posted November 28, 2015 Lego Dimensions for WiiU. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IfIOnly Posted November 28, 2015 Share Posted November 28, 2015 Stilts Thinking Putty Yoyo 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T'smom Posted November 28, 2015 Share Posted November 28, 2015 I think they are the dumbest game ever created but my sons and their friends all love them. We've had them since my oldest was about 7 and he's 12 and will still play. They are just cards with rankings for different stats for different characters or things....for example the Star Wars ones have a picture of some Star Wars character or ship and have rankings for "Force Factor", "Intelligence", "Battle Skills" etc. Each one has a number by it. On your turn you choose a card from the top of the pile and pick which stat you think your card will beat the other players. So you say "Battle Skills". And then everyone says the level of the guy on their top card..."42", "15", "67". Apparently you must make comments like "Beat that!" "Oh, freeze!" etc. as you slap your card on the table. The one with the top number wins. The person who gets all the cards wins. They have them for just about every interest...Egypt, Greek myths, sports teams, etc. I refuse to play but my boys play all summer at the pool with their friends. You have to do something at swim meets, I guess. :) Thanks. I looked them up and was intrigued by the presidents one and the Greek gods one. And it sounds easy enough that my 8 yo and 5 yo could play together and be slightly educational! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Catwoman Posted November 28, 2015 Share Posted November 28, 2015 He has a WiiU. He mentioned a game, but regrettably I didn't write it down quickly enough. I wish I would have grabbed the kindle. Somebody could have used it at that price. :) The Kindle Fire is still on sale for $35, so you can still get it. Right now, they are listing the ship date as December 20th, but my experience is that Amazon almost always ships earlier than the listed dates, especially around Christmastime. :) As for the video game, take your ds to Gamestop or even the video game aisle at Walmart or Target and see what catches his eye. It must be so hard when your ds won't just come out and tell you what he wants! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
creekmom Posted November 29, 2015 Share Posted November 29, 2015 Fat Brain Toys website has great recommendations for toys for each gender/age. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wapiti Posted November 29, 2015 Share Posted November 29, 2015 Any items for his sports that he would like but that are usually too expensive for you to want to do...I know around here boys all want these crazy expensive Nike socks. Can anyone link to what these are? One of my ds12s asked about Nike shoes so maybe socks could substitute LOL Klutz books (I have the Encyclopedia of Immaturity in my cart now), I have absolutely no idea what this is, but it sounds perfect for my other ds12. Thanks for the ideas! Keep them coming! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
katilac Posted November 29, 2015 Share Posted November 29, 2015 Food can be fun, and it can be scaled up or down for the 'size' gift you want. I've done food gifts for my nephews and my own girls a bunch of times. For smaller extra gifts, I've given their own own container of Nutella, favorite sugary cereal, six-pack of soda. Or more expensive candy or mints that they like but rarely buy. Sam's Club or Costco can be good for giant amounts of a true favorite. My teen nephew got a ginormous box of Slim Jims one year and loved it, lol. World Market is my go-to place for more unusual items. I've done gifts themed by country - you can get tons of candy from all kinds of countries at WM, and usually soda, cookies, and other stuff as well. That's always been a big hit, and it has the plus of being able to rotate countries each year. You can do just food or add a durable item as well, a book or cup or whatever. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maize Posted November 29, 2015 Share Posted November 29, 2015 We've been having great fun with one of these: http://www.amazon.com/Holy-Stone-F181-Quadcopter-Headless/dp/B00SAUAP5C Flies much better than the smaller quad copters we have tried. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lollie010 Posted November 29, 2015 Author Share Posted November 29, 2015 Can anyone link to what these are? One of my ds12s asked about Nike shoes so maybe socks could substitute LOL I have absolutely no idea what this is, but it sounds perfect for my other ds12. Thanks for the ideas! Keep them coming! Here is one link that might give you the idea. My big guy likes Under Armor, but there are lots of brands. My youngest who wants to be just like big brother gets the ones from dollar general. :) They don't lose them like they do a 12 pack of white ones. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kareni Posted November 30, 2015 Share Posted November 30, 2015 A juggling set. Games such as Fluxx, SET, or Bananagrams. The mega Calvin and Hobbes set: The Complete Calvin and Hobbes [bOX SET] Regards, Kareni Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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