Yup, way off topic.
I'm taking a trip to the mountains this week and I'd like to take my 8-year-old nephew a cool present. Thing is, I don't have kids and I'm rarely around kids, so I'm way out of the know.
I don't want to get him a 'toy' exactly. He's pretty set on toys, anyway. My first impulse is a pocket knife - thinking back to what id've thought would be awesome at that age. Sis says 'nah' on that idea. Pfft, moms ...
Quote from: jubal81 on November 03, 2014, 04:01:16 AM
Yup, way off topic.
I'm taking a trip to the mountains this week and I'd like to take my 8-year-old nephew a cool present. Thing is, I don't have kids and I'm rarely around kids, so I'm way out of the know.
I don't want to get him a 'toy' exactly. He's pretty set on toys, anyway. My first impulse is a pocket knife - thinking back to what id've thought would be awesome at that age. Sis says 'nah' on that idea. Pfft, moms ...
What about a wicked cool compass and you can show him how to use it. If you have a REI or another large sports/camping/outdoors store, just take a walk through it and I am sure something will pop out.
Cody
Squier Strat?
You want to be the cool Uncle now, or the cool uncle when he's older and he's glad that you got him something useful?
It really depends on what he's into, but if he's a science sort of kid, get him something will inspire him to get into electronics, like a science/electronics experiment kit of some sort. If he's more of an sporty kid, get him some new equipment that he needs or doesn't have, like a new Ball glove or Hockey Stick. If he's more of a Reading kid... well the list for that category is ridiculous, but one of my favourite books at his age was the Hobbit. If he's an outdoorsy kid... well, a knife or a compass is rad for sure, but even getting him a nice nalgene water bottle is helpful for kids these days. I try hard to get my kids to drink water, and having a water bottle around is good. But that's not a cool gift so... I dunno.
Jacob
Might be a bit cheesy, but a nice watch could work. He might not appreciate it now, but he'll appreciate it when he is older. Maybe a G-shock or a Seiko 5. The g-shock would probably be more appealing for him (the seiko 5 is nice too, just not very interesting for an 8 year old).
Sometimes mountains have tourism shops nearby, maybe you can pick out a souvenir with him after the trip
I bought an 8 year old a kit for a solar powered car that he built up and loves it. It was a nice model, not badly made at all.
Night vision goggles? Dunno what they cost....
Pair of walkie talkies for himself and his mate across the road.
What about a card game that is fun for the whole family to play? It doesn't use batteries or need to be charged, my 5 year old daughter loves to play WaterWorks and is constantly challenging me to a game.
I am almost 30 years old and I bought my first flying kite like a couple of weeks ago. I went mental over it and regretted a lot not having it as a child. That might make for a cool present that you both could enjoy outdoors. (http://www.muzicki-forum.com/forum/images/smilies/mfsmajli-pivo.gif)
Legos ;D
Fishing pole? Love the pocket knife idea, could be a very small pen knife that your sister might approve of ie small enough to stay out of trouble
Not sure what part of the mtns. but if near Aville then a trip to the WNC Nature Center is usually a hit. My seven year old loves Mine Craft and outdoor type stuff. The compass sounds cool, or some nifty other hiking/camping gear. There's a Mast General Store in most of the towns in the NC mtns that carry that kind of stuff. Both of my kids like science based books.
on the idea of a book, I grew up reading this:
The American Boy's Handy Book: What to Do and How to Do It, Centennial Edition
but the same authors have this: The Book of Camp-Lore and Woodcraft (American Boy's Handy Book)
Anything remote controlled!!!
Tom brown's guide to wilderness survival
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My (almost) 7 year old learned how to use a knife this summer, but I wouldn't trust giving him one just now, so I can understand your sister.
Don't know if this is an option, but I always found that a special trip is also something he'll remember, like a boat trip, hike, visit an water park (with lots of slides of course... if you're honest: you'll like it just as much as he will), cinema (the new madagascar penguins movie starts in november :D),...
if it has to be a "regular" gift, iow. something you'll give to him, it could be an audiobook CD (loved those when I was that age).
Also, I think the solar car is an awesome idea!
As I collect knives like guitars, I'm all over the knife idea, but you need to get buy in from your sister first (trust me on this one).
You can actually get a Swiss Army knife with a blunted end on the blade (designed specifically for kids), so they can still cut things, they just can't stab anything. bladematrix.com used to be the place to go for stuff like that, but I haven't bought off them in a long time.
Quote from: gtr2 on November 03, 2014, 02:32:20 PM
Anything remote controlled!!!
I know when I was 8, remote controlled off-road vehicles were just amazing. So that's a great thing to look into.
Yep. A remote control car was my favourite toy around that age.
It was an offroad thing, like a big monster truck.
I bloody well loved that truck.
Worst bit used to be waiting for the battery to charge (kids don't know how lucky they are with their fancy lithium batteries eh ;D)
Quote from: raulduke on November 04, 2014, 09:48:08 AM
Yep. A remote control car was my favourite toy around that age.
It was an offroad thing, like a big monster truck.
I bloody well loved that truck.
Worst bit used to be waiting for the battery to charge (kids don't know how lucky they are with their fancy lithium batteries eh ;D)
^^^This ^^This and ^This ....
If you want to encourage his creative / Technical side and buddy up to him you could buy him a Radio controlled car that needed building up with your help ....like my Tamiya Beetle of old. Me and my dad spent all of xmas day building that bad boy up <sigh>
Yep mine was a Tamiya too!
My Dad also helped put mine and my brothers (he also had one) together on Xmas day.
One of my favourite toys ever.
Aaah those were the days.... :)
Thanks for all the input, guys!
>He actually has a drum set he doesn't play with. I'm seriously considering taking my guitar setup with me so we can 'jam.'
>You're right, he LOVES legos and I'm afraid I'd get him something he already has.
>I love the outdoors suggestions, but it's going to be winter soon and I think I should save that for his b-day in April. In the spring, I took him to Looking Glass Rock trail, which is about 4 miles each way up a really steep mountain and he did great. Since it was tough, it made for a nice adventure.
>Asheville indeed! That's my hometown. Mast general store is the best.
Remote controlled vehicle does sound awesome. I think I'm going to check in to that.
Looking Glass/Shining Rock Wilderness is awesome! Good uncle!
Quote from: GermanCdn on November 04, 2014, 12:10:22 AM
As I collect knives like guitars, I'm all over the knife idea, but you need to get buy in from your sister first (trust me on this one).
You can actually get a Swiss Army knife with a blunted end on the blade (designed specifically for kids), so they can still cut things, they just can't stab anything. bladematrix.com used to be the place to go for stuff like that, but I haven't bought off them in a long time.
We got my son that Swiss Army knife as his first knife. One warning is that they are still very sharp! That's good though because the accidental little cuts are nice and clean and heal easily ;) -- that really is a selling point to mom.
For outdoors kinda stuff, a set of binoculars are nice. If you are thinking the software/game side of things, Kerbal Space Program is mega cool.
I bought a couple of those SAKs for my nephews, but was told to not give it to them until such a point as they were responsible enough for them. The following weekend they came over to visit, and while I thought I had hidden all my knives, there was a Ken Onion (pretty sure it was a Speedsafe Kershaw, and they figured out the lock in like two seconds) knife that slid between the couch cushions, which of course they managed to find, play with, and cut themselves (had to explain to the SIL that sharp knives were better than dull knives, and that chicks did scars, neither of which won me any points). At that point it was deemed they would never be responsible enough for knives.
So I gave them each a guitar and an amp. SIL wasn't too impressed with that either. Told her I could sell them and buy a drum kit if she wanted. That ended the discussion.
Quote from: GermanCdn on November 05, 2014, 02:08:51 PM
I bought a couple of those SAKs for my nephews, but was told to not give it to them until such a point as they were responsible enough for them. The following weekend they came over to visit, and while I thought I had hidden all my knives, there was a Ken Onion (pretty sure it was a Speedsafe Kershaw, and they figured out the lock in like two seconds) knife that slid between the couch cushions, which of course they managed to find, play with, and cut themselves (had to explain to the SIL that sharp knives were better than dull knives, and that chicks did scars, neither of which won me any points). At that point it was deemed they would never be responsible enough for knives.
So I gave them each a guitar and an amp. SIL wasn't too impressed with that either. Told her I could sell them and buy a drum kit if she wanted. That ended the discussion.
Doh. OK, that's definitely out of the picture. thanks for the story- just what i needed.
Not sure if you have a lego store near you but you can buy bricks by the pound :) Although, a bit pricy. Mom's keep pretty good tabs on the sets they have gotten.
My son loves anything remote controlled and he is 8, hence my suggestion haha....you can't go wrong with that IMO.
Josh
I carried an Emerson mini-commander every day until I started going into jail frequently... And wearing a suit every day.
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Quote from: playpunk on November 05, 2014, 03:10:47 PM
I carried an Emerson mini-commander every day until I started going into jail frequently... And wearing a suit every day.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Number of years ago my wife was summoned for jury duty, got through the security check into the court house was going through her purse for something and there's the knife she's had for years...
I remember as a six year old getting a watch from my grandfather, felt pretty proud and all grown up with that, i can tell analogue time man! Not sure what value kids now would place on such a thing but was important and memorable to me.
dave
When I was 9 the only thing I wanted in the whole world was a wristwatch. I saved my allowance ($1 a week) and got a sweeeeeeeet Casio. I slept with it on until my skin started to get all red and bubbly.
I also wanted a knife. Just get them a knife.
Quote from: playpunk on November 05, 2014, 03:10:47 PM
I carried an Emerson mini-commander every day until I started going into jail frequently... And wearing a suit every day.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I carry a Spyderco Matriarch wherever I go (except the airport), regardless of whether I'm wearing a suit or not. I find it does the best job for opening up letters and packages. The fact that it was designed to be able to disembowel an attacker without any specific training has nothing to do with it 8).
(This is also why gun control is a good thing for me in Canada. Given that I've probably got 300 knives, it's a safe bet that if I could, I'd probably have an arsenal large enough to equip a small army if it was legal. Cause I like collecting things, you know).
Leatherman multi tool, my boys are fascinted with mine. your nephew will be looking for things to fix
I agree about leathermans/swiss army knifes.
Thought my Swiss Army was coolest thing ever when I got it.
8 years old might be a bit young for wielding a blade though ;D
Quote from: raulduke on November 06, 2014, 02:59:23 PM
I agree about leathermans/swiss army knifes.
Thought my Swiss Army was coolest thing ever when I got it.
8 years old might be a bit young for wielding a blade though ;D
At 8 years old, I actually had a air rifle. For a bit. Then I blew the window out of my dad's van. Didn't get the gun back for a couple of years. :-[
Quote from: gtr2 on November 03, 2014, 11:55:23 AM
Legos ;D
Damn right can't go wrong with Legos. Boy/girl. 5 and up you will find something appropriate.
Pick up the lego movie too.