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...... top tips from a savvy lady!

Hi - I am Afra from http://www.madmumof7. delighted to be guest blogger here today. Yes we have seven children. Yes- we have a TV. 

One of the perceived downsides of having seven children is the fact that every year you have not just seven birthday presents, cakes and parties to organise, but at Christmas Santa has to sort out seven stockings too! I say perceived because it’s not as bad as you’d think! 

I’ll admit, once I got past four children it became increasingly difficult to help Santa with the little gifts that my children love to unwrap on Christmas morning. (He’s getting on a bit - he needs quite a bit of help!) 

It was hard to avoid repeating gifts, year on year. And to be honest we have toy boxes already filled with the “usual” stuff and there really is only so much Lego and Brio you can play with. And only so much room for new toys in our too-small-for-7-kids home! 

So I abandoned my usual system, became a bit creative and thought I would pass on some of my top tips to you lovely readers. 

Firstly - disposable is good. Not all gifts have to last past Christmas. Think how much children love the tat from fast food restaurants and out of crackers. Cheap and cheerful is a good way to go for all ages.

Bubbles, chalks, nail varnish, bath crayons, scratch-away picture kits, lip salves, face masks (even very young girls love a bit of a pamper.)

Novelties like this will keep them happy and entertained over the festive period and you won’t have to make loads of room for new stuff. 

Food is another good choice. We live on quite a tight budget and I felt guilty that even at Christmas I couldn’t really afford to buy the tins of chocs, biscuits, fizzy drinks and snacks that were being paraded across the TV screen more and more frequently the closer you get to the big day.  You know -“It’s not just a sausage roll, its an overpriced, gaudily wrapped, cranberry-scented sausage roll being caressed by a C-list celeb....”

So now in their stockings they each have a few of their top treats. A pack of “luxury” biscuits, a couple of bottles of their favourite fizz or milkshake (or beer for my older boys!) 

And the normal rules are suspended for the days over Christmas and the children are allowed, within reason, to eat and drink their treats when they fancy them. I bought my 8 year old a couple of those mini cans, like you get in mini-bars, and I seriously think they were his favourite gift! 

Don’t underestimate how much children love new clothes. Mine always have a new outfit, to wear on Christmas day (including socks and knickers/pants) in their stockings and generally a new pair of PJs too!

And lastly - think outside of the box. High street shopping is fun and I love any excuse to indulge in a creamy flavoured coffee out present-hunting with my friends, but don’t forget to look at your little local stores and check out online for smaller retailers offering unique imaginative gifts- If you are lucky they might even wrap your gifts saving Santa a job!