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What can parents buy for spoiled 13 year old that really doesn't appreciate anything??

Candice's picture

As most of you know, my ss is so spoiled, that it has ruined my inner desire to buy him too much. But nonetheless, I want him to enjoy Christmas morning, and every year it is getting more and more difficult. He already has guitar hero, an ipod, and a razor cell phone and would be enraged with anger if clothes were purchased for Christmas (although I might do that anyway). He has stated his mother is buying him nintendo wii for Christmas (which we are not interested in buying). SS wants a snowboard for Christmas and we are planning a ski trip over New Year's Eve for our family Christmas trip, but dh and I do not want to store a $300 item in our garage that might be used once this year, and ss will grow out of.

Any ideas? If anyone else has a spoiled 13 year old son, your ideas would be greatly appreciated! Thanks in advance..

Candice

Comments

Nise's picture

If his mom is buying the Wii…maybe you guys could get him some games for the system….isn’t he over weight? Maybe get him something that could sneak in some exercise like a bike or in line skates or something…

Make a GREAT Day!

Nymh's picture

Actually, the Wii itself is a form of exercise. The controllers are just sophisticated motion sensors, and almost every game incorporates physical body movement. There's a "Wii Sports" game that comes with the system which you can bowl, box, play golf, tennis, and baseball. After a good night of playing, our arms are sore the next couple of days! It's really a workout itself. I'm not trying to shoot down your idea, I still think it'd be great to get him other things that encourage him to exercise. But a Wii is actually a really fitting gift for an overweight kid.

*~So sayeth Nymh~*

Nise's picture

I heard about that on the radio…I guess I really didn’t fully understand what they were saying but from what you are saying and what I heard, if you want to punch on the game then you have to actually punch with your arm or if you want to throw something then you have hold the controller and make the throwing action…is that right? Is there a way to “cheat”? I think that is a GREAT IDEA to mix fitness and video games (especially the way they talk about childhood obesity!) how young do you think that kids can play? It seems like it would be more “natural” for little kids to pick up on it b/c I know that the girls have a hard time making the controller do what they want it to do….

Make a GREAT Day!

Nymh's picture

You've got it right. We haven't found a way to cheat it yet. It's definitely a work out! SS picked up on it right away and he's 8. I'd say no younger than 5 because while the movement is pretty easy the coordination might be difficult, sometimes you have to swing your arm while pressing and releasing certain buttons, plus the controller itself is about the size of a remote control and might be a little large for a small child's hand. We absolutely love the Wii, and so does SS, so it's definitely more of a "family" entertainment system than any other gaming system I've ever seen.

*~So sayeth Nymh~*

Candice's picture

I'm sure his mother will buy that for him if it is available, and that is really cool. I wonder if dance, dance, revolution would be a good gift for a boy. At our gym they have that for the teen room, and I have seen both boys and girls work out on it, and we already have the ps2.

Maybe I'll probe him questions to see if that would be a gift he might appreciate.

Oh and he already has a bike and roller blades....the blades made it over to his mothers house and we haven't seen them since, and the bike, well let's just say everytime we go for a bike ride, all we hear from ss..."my feet hurt...my back hurts...I'm thirstie...are we done yet?" we even made a bike ramp for him, and got him accessories for his bike (and let me add...it's a Specialized bike...) and to no avail, he doesn't ever bother to take it out after school or on weekends. He is so lazy, that sometimes he doesn't even lift the toilet seat to urinate, but rather stream it over the toilet seat. Thank God my dh won't put up with that.

I struggle with his laziness and I'm okay with some video games, but when a kid doesn't even ride his bike during summer days, or go out and play outdoors some times with friends...I just want to scream!!!

I'm just at a loss, I know I can't make ss happy to save my soul, and even if we totally got him the #1 gift on his list, we would still be the jerk parents that he talks shit about, and he would still refuse to get off the couch.

Thanks for the info:)

OldTimer's picture

With a stocking.

... but that's me.

Anne 8102's picture

I don't even try to please my teen skids, anymore. I get them a couple of things that I hope they will like, then do the rest with gift cards. I'll get them gift cards to their favorite stores, then wrap them up in big boxes with ribons, bows, etc. As it turns out, my no-stress gift card idea turned out to be their favorite of any gifts I've given them in the past.

Maybe you could do iPod accessories, an iTunes gift card, magazine subscriptions, etc. To me, it sounds like this kid needs some kind of activity or hobby, though. Would he be interested in karate lessons or someething like that?

You're not going to change his attitude or impress him with the perfect gift, though, so I wouldn't treat him any differently at Christmas than you would any other kid. He's at "that age" and it sounds like he has quite the personality, anyway, regardless of age. He might grow out of it, he might not, but I wouldn't go broke buying him gifts he'll never appreciate. What I tell everyone in my family is you get what you put into it.

~ Anne ~

Candice's picture

I think I'm going to do the gift card to itunes. I have offered to pay for sports but when we do enroll him in sports, he really doesn't put any effort into it...he only likes achievement if it is handed to him or comes extremely easy without breaking a sweat. He has zero interest in karate, he fights us on going to the gym when we go, I have also offered to restart guitar lessons, he does like to play the guitar, but part of the deal is that he must ride the city bus to his guitar lessons (we are small business owners and we aren't always available to transport him). He has such a sense of snobbery that he feels he is above riding the city bus, and would rather not have guitar lessons all together than to just take the bus.

I do totally agree with you Anne, you get what you put into it, and my ss's attitude isn't just from being 13, it is 90% of the way he has been raised.

I am planning a family ski trip, and it isn't cheap, so I think that will be the big gift to him as well, with a couple of hats, sweatshirts, and some gift cards, and to be funny coal like Step Mom suggested;)

Thanks for the support.
Candice

Candice's picture

my dh and I called bm, she isn't getting him the wii, and is a little frustrated herself with ss's attitude about his sense of "entitlement". Anyhow, we probed her about what we should buy him and she gave us some ideas...and we went with it.

He was previously in guitar lessons, and after the new year, we are signing him back up. We went to Ted Brown music store and bought him an amp, a guitar rack, and some picks. We will probably get him a ps2 game as well. The amp is pretty nice, and we did purchase headphones so that we don't have to listen to him while he practices.

So thanks all! Thanks for listening...

Oh and thanks for the humor...the lump of coal was on my list, and when I told dh someone suggested here...he laughed! Actually..we both laughed...so thanks again!

Candice

OldTimer's picture

That's what my house lives for... humor! ;0) We play pranks on each other all the time.

One of the best ones is for April Fool's Day. Take a raw egg, and a very small thumb pin. Prick the top of the egg, and use a syringe (also an empty fine tip nail glue bottle will work to, the kind with the very long and thin tip. Just squeeze the bottle before sticking the tip in the food coloring, and then let it go to fill it.) filled with a little green food coloring and empty some into the egg. Place it back in the egg carton. On April Fool's Day, have the kids help you with breakfast pancakes... let them crack the egg into the batter, Uh OH! boy will they be surprised! Green Eggs and Ham anyone?

Candice's picture

we are like that too, except usually the pranks are on our adult friends...like if they leave their shoes in our hallway (if they stay the night) my dh will open a can of refried beans and pour it into their shoes...it looks like dog shit if you do that..and no one is going to do the smell test:)

A few years ago, we got one of our close friends a lump of coal for Christmas..and ss was only 5. He was helping me wrap gifts..and he asked why our friend was getting coal from Santa...and I told him that Santa thought he had been a bad boy, so that is why he got coal...and for the life of this poor kid, he couldn't understand what our friend had done to piss Santa off...so at 5 this is the repsonse from ss..."Oh I know why Santa is giving Darin that lump of coal....it's because he chews that smokin stuff..." I thought that was the funniest thing ever!

OldTimer's picture

that's HIIILLLARIOUS! ;0)

OldTimer's picture

Give him some two year old blues clues, or barney, or something like that underpants- since he wants to act like such a 'big' boy! ;0)

Can go with those socks...

Oh, another thought... I know at Target they carry those flannel pjs with the footies, you know the ones in The Christmas Story... (you'll shoot you're eye out). Anyway, they have some adult sizes, so I'm sure you could find some to fit him. That would probably be hillerious. lol.

My grandmother always bought everyone a pair of underwear and socks for christmas... didn't matter how old you were, you all got underwear for some reason. Well, one year, I got a rabbit jumpsuit pj set... no kidding. Had ears, tail and nose with whiskars on the hood and everything! I was 13. She made me put it on and model infront of everyone. Talk about humilation! lol. (I think she got it because of The Christmas Story, but I never did understand the joke behind it. All the adults were laughing. Of course today, I get the joke!) And another year, remember the under-roos? I got a set of Wonder Woman, yep, same thing. Had to go and model for my family. That's gramma... lol.

Sita Tara's picture

As my DH always says, "Nothin's too good for our kids so that's what they're gettin'."

"Parental love is unconditional, relationships are reciprocal." ~Zen

Biological Stepmom's picture

Same problem here the BM buys him everything it's very very weird but she does not say anything very often about being reimbursed because she does this all by her choice, like if anyone else buys him anything he might like them better than her.
Hell we are almost the same size i'm like hey those carhart hiking boots are to small? pass them on over to your stepmama please. Sorry but i'll take advantage of her overspending when it ends up over at my house.
But still the same problem with what do you get a kid that has everything?
Experiences we try to give him plenty of outdoor experiences, hunting, fishing, camping,rockhounding, motocross, gas money, time and energy.
Have not heard any complaints as of yet, he's 13 now. We will see what happens.
Have a great day all, Crystal (biological stepmom)

Tx mommy of 3's picture

We have that problem but we don't cave in. Ss is ridiculously spoiled by bm and his grandparents. He is unappreciative and feels entitled. We don't compete. We give ss a gift card or one 'big' gift. If it were us, the trip would be the gift- period. Nothing else. Like I said- one big item and nothing else. We don't add to the spoiling.