All I Want For Christmas...

...is to not spend money on presents for my children or grandchildren that they do not want.

And it's really hard when you live 2,000 miles away and really have no idea what they need or what their interests are. And the last thing I want is to get my grandchildren presents that their parents don't want them to have!

And though I always love the idea of surprising them all (the grandchildren and their parents alike) I think I'm gonna need some guidance this year.

So... given that, here are a couple of things I've found. Some input please?

Smart Snacks has several fun learning toys that I thought were pretty cute.

Sorting Shapes Cupcakes

Counting Cookies

Alpha Pops

Rainbow Color Cones

And Learning Resources has the cutest set of vegetable cans for learning how to count...

But a choking hazard possibly?

I love this little Laugh and Learn Tea Set by Fisher Price and this little Picnic Basket by Leap Frog for learning how to share and identify shapes, and plus the tea pot makes sounds when it pours as well as the basket lid when you lift it.

And how cute are all these little wooden food toys by Melissa and Doug?

Fruit Slicing

Sandwich Making

Pizza Building

And whatd'ya know? Sushi!

(I can't imagine any of the kids would want that but maybe their parents wood? :)

And now for the tricky ones... But what little boy (or girl) wouldn't want one of these sturdy toys by Melissa and Doug?

Pounding Bench

Pound and Roll Tower

With the "tricky" part being how to teach them not to "pound" on each other or their younger sibling with the mallet... or find that their favorite time to play with it is when baby is sleeping. But still, it could provide for some great teaching/self-disciplining opportunities.

And then there's the toy that even their parents might enjoy... for those times when they feel they just need to "get away" from things for a few moments.

6' Dinosaur Tunnel by Pacific Play

And for those with discriminating culinary tastes...

It might not improve the pickiness, but it might keep them at the dinner table a little longer...

...before they run off to get back to this.

Perplexus by PlaSmart

Check this out!
I want one!

So anyway, there you have it. My ideas.

To My Kids... Please feel free to browse Amazon and check out all the details and reviews. And while you're in there, if you see something else you feel your child(ren) can't live without, please let me know asap.

And if you find something that you'd like for yourself, letting me know that too would be very helpful as well.