#  >  > Living And Legal Affairs In Thailand >  >  > Living In Thailand Forum >  >  > The Family Room >  >  what did you get your kids for christmas?

## ChiangMai noon

i was stumped

my eldest (just turned 3) doesn't really like anything other than her android pad thing and i don't like toys that have pieces because they make an awful mess around the house.....bits everywhere

i decided to buy her a fish tank with quite a few little fish in it

it's hiding in the spare room until tomorrow morning

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## Pragmatic

I asked my son what he wanted for xmas and his reply was "I'd like something to wear and something to play with". So I bought him a pair of trousers and cut the pockets out.

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## ChiangMai noon

the little one got one of her presents early

it's a leopard that makes a noise

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## alwarner

A new bike.

He's in school on xmas day so he's already had it.  Really enjoying taking the bike up to the school and watching him ride home on it.

 :Smile:

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## ChiangMai noon

i'm not sending mine to school tomorrow

i'm going to force her to enjoy christmas

have a marathon movie day lined up starting with mary poppins at 7.00 a.m

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## Satonic

I bought my dogs a couple of bones if that counts?

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## alwarner

> i'm not sending mine to school tomorrow
> 
> i'm going to force her to enjoy christmas
> 
> have a marathon movie day lined up starting with mary poppins at 7.00 a.m


I was hoping to do similar, but, they Mrs. wasn't buying into it.  Probably not a bad idea as I'll be suffering tomorrow.

"There's your bike - don't come back til it's dark"

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## Loy Toy

I really hate the commercialization instigated by the big retail corporations of Christmas and fear this time of the year has lost it's real meaning.

My daughters and son have not asked for anything but I will reward them with a gift for being great kids during the year.

Daughter 1= an "I" phone.
Daughter 2= Clothes
Son 2= Clothes and something else as it is birthday as well.

I hope everyone has a great day with their families as that is what Christmas Day is about. Giving and receiving mutual love and respect which actually costs nothing..

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## Dillinger

3 furbies,2 laptops, green machine, karaoke machine, scooter and 500 quid.
Wish i could get away with a fish tank  :Smile:

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## charleyboy

I've just sent Loy Toy a green for Christmas...Xmas, fookin' heathens! 

I've given the Thais fook all because they're Mormons or summat?

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## somtamslap

Just went to Tescos to buy them. There's nothing in there apart from tinsel and lithe brown flesh sparsely covered in shades of red and white. I got an instant boner and had to leave so as not to make a beeline for the bog and yank like mad for 30 seconds. 

Ended up getting the pressies in town. 

Books, DvDs, toys, clothes, chocolate and a bottle of whiskey.

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## TizMe

I bought my daughter 1,000 shares in Cash Converters.

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## Satonic

> Just went to Tescos to buy them.


Kids?

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## somtamslap

> Originally Posted by somtamslap
> 
> 
> Just went to Tescos to buy them.
> 
> 
> Kids?


Indeed. They're doing quite the line in Papua New Guineans.

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## reinvented

> furbies,2 laptops, green machine, karaoke machine, scooter and 500 quid. Wish i could get away with a fish tank


how mant bloody kids
mines getting an ice cream maker and some milk
actually all sorts

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## charleyboy

I've just had a ghostly apparition and changed my mind.

Bought these little beauties for the wife and daughter...

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## OhOh

> the little one got one of her presents early
> 
> it's a leopard that makes a noise


It seems she like here new swimming pool.

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## 9999

> i don't like toys that have pieces because they make an awful mess around the house.....bits everywhere


Noob parent here. I got leggo for my daughter. Cheapest leggo in the world duty free on Norfolk Island.

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## MeMock

> the little one got one of her presents early
> 
> [/IMG]


I thought you got her a fish tank?

Very cute  :Smile:

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## nevvr

the bucket person has it figured out. no doubt jesus gets a percentage of all the gift revenue. lost its meaning it has.

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## nevvr

for kids its fun, the tree, the floss, the gifts. nice pics op. btw, are those siamese fighters in that tank?

will eat each other for breakfast, may upset the poor child.

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## bsnub

I gave'em these and told'em to go outside and play.  :Smile: 



Just kidding. I don't have any kids.

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## somtamslap

> I gave'em these and told'em to go outside and play. 
> 
> 
> 
> Just kidding. I don't have any kids.


Anyone that did have kids would at least know to get them an accompanying box of fireworks.

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## ChiangMai noon

> I thought you got her a fish tank?


the eldest got the tank

that's the little one

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## Marmite the Dog

It's a surprise, much to my kids' disgust. They'll find out tomorrow.

I got a wedding ring.

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## NickA

> and i don't like toys that have pieces because they make an awful mess around the house.....bits everywhere


I'm feeling you bro'






> i decided to buy her a fish tank with quite a few little fish in it


it's a good idea.... our little ones have loved looking at the one I bought last year

send your wife out to the field to catch a red clawed crab.... we had one in and it was great fun.... should really have a little island or piece of wood to stick out of the water though



he lost a claw during a molt.... he'd lost a leg earlier and it had grown back, but he didn't survive the molt after this.... just kept turning over on his back


I've got the little ones a balance bike (£12.80 from ebay) and a few other books and toys, the bigger ones have got an xbox controller and a few magazine and books

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## NickA

your fish tank looks a similar size to ours... careful not to overstock it and you should really build up the number of fish slowly

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## ChiangMai noon

> careful not to overstock it and you should really build up the number of fish slowly


there's enough in there i think

we'll just replace them when they die

think it's 35 litres

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## NickA

Stocking levels

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## NickA

> there's enough in there i think  we'll just replace them when they die  think it's 35 litres


the tank needs time to build up bacteria that help to break down the fish shit.... it's called cycling

How to Cycle a Fish Tank

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## ChiangMai noon

> are those siamese fighters in that tank?


no..they are little 10 baht jobbies

not sure what they are called





> the tank needs time to build up bacteria that help to break down the fish shit.... it's called cycling


do i need a few more fishes?

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## NickA

> do i need a few more fishes?


no, start off with less and build up

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## NickA

get a crab though.... it will eat your fish when they get poorly or die... saves having to get rid of them yourself, or if you don't count your fish, you won't even know about it

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## NickA

> not sure what they are called


look like guppies

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## ChiangMai noon

^
yes

that's what they are

10 baht if they had a broken tail and 15 baht for a proper tail

got 2 of each

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## NickA

> 10 baht if they had a broken tail and 15 baht for a proper tail


wtf?

shrimps are another good idea.... and snails, they help keep the tank clean

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## Marmite the Dog

> i don't like toys that have pieces because they make an awful mess around the house


I tell my lad to keep the toys in the bedroom and if they're left laying around they go in the bin.

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## NickA

> I tell my lad to keep the toys in the bedroom and if they're left laying around they go in the bin.


doesn't work with 1-2 year olds though

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## Marmite the Dog

> Originally Posted by Marmite the Dog
> 
> I tell my lad to keep the toys in the bedroom and if they're left laying around they go in the bin.
> 
> 
> doesn't work with 1-2 year olds though


1-2 year old shouldn't have toys comprised of lots of little bits, so it's not an issue.

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## ChiangMai noon

stop the pedantry
i don't mean tiny little bits

my older daughter loved those wooden alphabet things and other jigsaw puzzle type things when she was two

people kept buying her more and bits went under the sofa and all over

even pencils are a ballsache

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## ChiangMai noon

this sort of stuff

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## ChiangMai noon

these things get every where

a perfectly decent toy for an 18 month old

was more manageable when we only had the one

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## peterpan

I got nothing, they have my love, and I am not encouraging mindless materialism for a Pagan ritual.

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## ChiangMai noon

bah humbug

i'm buying them gifts in honour of our sweet baby jayyzuss

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## rebbu

> Books, DvDs, toys, clothes, chocolate and a bottle of whiskey.


Who is the lucky child getting a bottle of whiskey?

New camera for the daughter and Playstation3 for the boy.

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## nevvr

you'd have a problem finding three wise men and a vergin these days.

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## S Landreth

While in New York last month I asked her if she would like a coat from a place I had one cut. She told me she would like either the Gabby/Black or the Rosalie/Honey Frost (with hood). I purchased both for her, but had the Gabby cut full length.




she's happy and warm

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## nevvr

looks a treat, what's the fur?

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## ChiangMai noon

the three year old has now grown out of blocks and letters and got a tesco hudl off her grandmum

replaces the shittily constructed and specced acer iconia that i bought for her birthday

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## Rural Surin

> ...._[sic]_ has lost it's real meaning.
>  Giving and receiving mutual love and respect which actually costs nothing..


Half the world that celebrates and observes their festive time have lost the plot, as most still practice the opposite of what is supposedly promoted.

Nothing but a ruse.

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## ChiangMai noon

> Nothing but a ruse.


whatever

it's a whole lot of fun and we don't have work

i'm all for it in spades
 :pullsleigh:

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## nevvr

group hug.

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## aging one

16 year old twin girls prefer money. Still Christmas with a few things under the tree, but what can you do? Merry Christmas all.  :Smile:

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## NickA

> the three year old has now grown out of blocks and letters and got a tesco hudl off her grandmum


I'm really not sure about that one, seems too young to me

I bought my son a tablet last year, but to be honest I take it off him most of the time because it's so anti-social.... he's also a boy of "that" age

I'm thinking of giving him my old mobile because he starts secondary school next year and it would be useful to keep in touch when he's playing football, at clubs etc... . Still not sure it won't be more trouble than it's worth though

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## ChiangMai noon

> I'm really not sure about that one, seems too young to me


not at all

within days she was able to navigate to the play store..watch the youtube flick and install it
she also deletes stuff she dislikes

she's especially keen on the 'baby bus' stuff

she managed a score of 290,000 on subway surfer...my best is 103,000

she might well have asbergers though
it's something i have been seriously looking into

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## NickA

In the end.... (here anyway).... it's cold outside, everyone's on holiday, there's football on the tv, my son's birthday is the 26th so he'd be having presents anyway, I'm veggie so couldn't give a feck about christmas dinner anyway, we have a 2 foot tall crappy plastic christmas tree.... 

not sure what my point is or was, but there you go

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## NickA

> not at all  within days she was able to navigate to the play store..watch the youtube flick and install it she also deletes stuff she dislikes


oh, I've no doubt of the skills that can be gained for kids

but how do you police the usage?

they've got my old laptop, but there are parental controls on that, so I can limit the apps they use, the amount of time they spend on it and check the websites they visit

couldn't find an easy way of doing all that on a tablet

still, for a 3 year old the problems are slightly different, but there are still some issues

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## ChiangMai noon

> I'm veggie so couldn't give a feck about christmas dinner anyway


you could have carrots, mushroom stuffing and broccoli?

my wife has ordered me to cook lasagna for her and guests

i don't eat carbohydrate but will comply

i'm going to have a big ham leg and lots of veg...no potatoes

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## ChiangMai noon

> but how do you police the usage?


the odd glance now and again
it's never been a problem to be honest
at least not yet and she's been using a tablet since last march

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## peterpan

Here ya Nick, Mrs said we should buy our 12 yo a mobile, I said no but now its 7 pm, and I don't know where she is. 
Although i know she went to a shopping center with girl friends  and her friends Mum.

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## NickA

> you could have carrots, mushroom stuffing and broccoli?


I'll have roast potatoes, yorkshire puddings, carrots, sprouts and gravy probably

we don't bother with a turkey anyway, an aldi chicken for £3 will do

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## ChiangMai noon

> we don't bother with a turkey anyway


i've never really rated the bird

and at 250 baht a kilo, you can forget it

rimping has parsnips 
i love them, my favourite vegetable in the world but at 95 baht each....:shudder:


vegetarian gravy?

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## NickA

> Here ya Nick, Mrs said we should buy our 12 yo a mobile, I said no but now its 7 pm, and I don't know where she is. Although i know she went to a shopping center with girl friends and her friends Mum.


Yeah, similar age and problem.... would be really useful to be able to contact them sometimes, but mobiles can also cause trouble

I'm going to give it a go, but like the tablet.... if there's any trouble or misuse I'll just confiscate it... I've got a sim where I can check the usage online and it's PAYG so he won't be able to overspend

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## NickA

> vegetarian gravy?


I'm probably the slackest vegetarian on the planet... i eat jelly and sweets with pig's hooves in and thai food with fish sauce and stuff in and gravy and all kinds of stuff

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## ChiangMai noon

just checked and the life span of a guppy in captivity is between 1 and 3 years

i presume they reproduce

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## Jofrey

> I'm veggie so couldn't give a feck about christmas dinner anyway


poor trist. 

having the full xmas dinner at my mum's house tomorrow. 

the kids will be flooded with pressies no doubt.....don't see how we can bring them all back in the 2 suitcases though!!

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## NickA

> i don't eat carbohydrate but will comply


wtf???

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## ChiangMai noon

> don't see how we can bring them all back in the 2 suitcases though


put one kid in each?

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## NickA

> my wife has ordered me to cook lasagna for her and guests


yes, that christmas classic....

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## ChiangMai noon

> wtf???


stopped carbs again

went from 80 kilos to 65 in 3 and a bit months but i run 8 km a day except saturdays

don't dare risk it

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## Jofrey

> put one kid in each?


good idea.

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## NickA

> stopped carbs again  went from 80 kilos to 65 in 3 and a bit months but i run 8 km a day except saturdays


nob

I'm 105kg+

lol

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## ChiangMai noon

^
plwch's wife was worried about me when i went up

thought i was sick

tried feeding me beer and spaghetti and cake

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## nevvr

show and tell is such fun.

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## NickA

> thought i was sick


did you have a beard?

you look a bit weird without a beard and thin

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## ChiangMai noon

> did you have a beard?


i think i did

a little one

i'm an ok mass for my height now but they had only seen me 2 stone overweight before

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## Dillinger

4 kids i have , to answer the earlier questionl. I also look back now at the cowboy suit and orange i used to get every year and thank god for the thai postal service this xmas time

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## ChiangMai noon

> I also look back now at the cowboy suit and orange i used to get every year and thank god for the thai postal service this xmas time


this has never happened to me before but my mum sent me a pair of brookes pure connect 2 running shoes for christmas....

every other time that she has sent anything over the past ten years they have just arrived

this time i had an import duty note and had to go down to the post office to collect them and pay a tax of 1200 baht

i was seething....i often seethe when i perceive an injustice

i tried to be all nice at first and ended up chucking the money at her when i realised that it was either pay or send the shoes back



i didn't do well

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## NickA

they're about £60-£70, so £25 tax is a massive rip off

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## NickA

the irony of the thing is... they're probably made in thailand

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## Albert Shagnastier

bought 4 fish tanks over the year but now skint.

but will buy them some thing nice tomorrow

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## ChiangMai noon

> they're about £60-£70


exactly that





> so £25 tax is a massive rip off


that's why i got all umpty and pissy





> the irony of the thing is... they're probably made in thailand


don't think so, but you can't buy them here


i love brookes trainers...feel some brand loyalty towards them

they are really nice though
wore my last pair into the ground and these ones are about half the weight....like running on air

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## NickA

not far away...




> All Brooks products are designed and engineered in the U.S. and manufactured in Southern China.

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## ChiangMai noon

they guesstimated the cost at 3000 baht

i told her to send them back as my mum was coming in january and could just bring them over for free

she said they could do that, but they might take up to 6 weeks to arrive back home
i got pissy as all shit and could tell that the lady hated me quite a lot

i won't have anything else sent in future

btw nick
we just had a look at your facebook thingy and can't see a christmas tree

the last image seems to have been uploaded yonks ago

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## wasabi

Christmas cards 0
Christmas presents 0

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## NickA

> btw nick we just had a look at your facebook thingy and can't see a christmas tree


jesus christ.... you've seen what my tree looks like, why the fuck would I post that?

I'll probably do some tomorrow with all the presents around it






> the last image seems to have been uploaded yonks ago


my wife (Tim) might have put some up, befriend her if you wish... I think our wives met briefly and I'm sure they'd enjoy discussing somtam and blue sticky rice

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## NickA

nice pics of Juno by the way... is she walking yet?

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## Marmite the Dog

> stop the pedantry
> i don't mean tiny little bits
> 
> my older daughter loved those wooden alphabet things and other jigsaw puzzle type things when she was two
> 
> people kept buying her more and bits went under the sofa and all over
> 
> even pencils are a ballsache


The pedantry wasn't intentional - it comes naturally.

As for pencils, not at that age. My lad had to make do with crayons (which are a bastard to remove from watered down emulsion paint.

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## ChiangMai noon

> is she walking yet?


not yet

she stopped trying after twatting her head on the ground

now she just drops to her knees and crawls

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## somtamslap

I won't bother next time.

Hours of choosing, buying and wrapping elicited a mere 6 billiseconds of interest.

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## somtamslap

I'll get them the Boardwalk Empire box set next year.

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## FloridaBorn

> for kids its fun, the tree, the floss, the gifts. nice pics op. btw, are those siamese fighters in that tank?
> 
> will eat each other for breakfast, may upset the poor child.


No, they're fancy guppies and a few mollies and such, no aggressive fish in there that I can see.

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## FloridaBorn

> Originally Posted by ChiangMai noon
> 
> 10 baht if they had a broken tail and 15 baht for a proper tail
> 
> 
> wtf?
> 
> shrimps are another good idea.... and snails, they help keep the tank clean


No, they'll take over the tank they breed too fast and eat everything not just algae and waste, get them a Plecostomus or Chinese algae eater.. The fish will eat your shrimp and the crabs will eat even the live, healthy fish, they slowly eat off their fins while they sleep until they can't swim and then eat them eventually, snails just take over and eat all the vegetation and overpopulate the tank.





Probably a couple of the Chinese rascals as they're pretty small and don't get very large but only one good sized Plecostomus is needed. These fish are neutral and they won't bother anything (they're strictly vegetarian) and none of the other fish will bother them. The guppies do reproduce they're live bearers meaning live young and so do several others but the babies have to be quickly separated from the adults or they'll get eaten sometimes as they're being born so a good idea to get a separate small breeding tank to put the mother into a few days before she gives birth and have some fine grass floating around the top for the babies to hide in, after the babies are born remove the mother quickly as she'll eat then too if she gets the chance.

The black spotted Marble Molly in the back looks pregnant already actually and probably ready to deliver any day now, keep an eye out for some small black spots showing up, without nice fine grass around the top they won't last long though, the tank is too populated for them to last long without it..

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## Marmite the Dog

> I won't bother next time.
> 
> Hours of choosing, buying and wrapping elicited a mere 6 billiseconds of interest.


The youngest has been gagging to open the pressies for a few days now, but has to wait for the older lad to get home from skool.  :ourrules:

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## withnallstoke

Bit of a panic this morning.

Realised it was already christmas day and i hadn't got the kids anything, so i did the hangover dash to the local market that sells all sorts of stuff for kids.

Picked out a few things, some wrapping paper and bows, and retired to the nearest hostelry to wrap everything whilst enjoying a hair of the dog.

After a couple of beers i was well relieved when my mate the barman told me i didn't actually have any kids.

Anybody want an unused connect4?

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## nevvr

skool on crimbo day? poor kid. its difficult combining cultures/country specifics i guess.

my boys were up at the crack of dawn running around. no snow here but i got some flour late last night and made 'santa footprints' around the house just for fun. all kids love this time of year.

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## Dillinger



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## ChiangMai noon

my kid has already poured an entire bag of fish food into the tank

took over an hour to clean it out and refill the bastard

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## nevvr

5555555 wait until they turn up the thermo and cook them all.

got a cat?

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## ChiangMai noon

> got a cat?


3 of them

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## ChiangMai noon

we had a pond in the back garden....well stocked

got struck by lightning

well over 100 fishes floated

i buried them in the rice fields

unbelievably 2 massive catfish survived....i released them into the local river

since filled the pond with sand ...safer for the kids and sand doesn't attract lightning

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## nevvr

pussy lover.

i was never into cats before my helper found one somehow. now its the king of the garage, hate the hair on black clothes.

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## Marmite the Dog

We now have a half built lego model, 2 remote controlled cars zooming around the driveway and assorted games scattered across the sofa and living room. 

Back to normal tomorrow when it all goes into the bedroom. Luckily they know not to fuck with my office.

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## NickA

> The fish will eat your shrimp


mine haven't, but I've only got tetra






> the crabs will eat even the live, healthy fish, they slowly eat off their fins while they sleep until they can't swim and then eat them eventually


only had one crab and pretty sure he didn't do this.... has his own little cave under a piece of wood and kept himself to himself most of the time




> 3 of them


you might want a lid on the tank then

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## Rural Surin

Spoiled rotten brats....

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## Looper

> are those siamese fighters in that tank?


These are siamese fighters.

Just posted today in an article on dpreview

In photos: Flowing fins of Siamese fighting fish: Digital Photography Review

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## withnallstoke

If i had kids, i would do unto them as my parents did to me.


make them listen to Hawkwind.


And make up their own mind 'bout God and all that.

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## withnallstoke



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## NickA

> These are siamese fighters.


in other breaking news: momo has no clue what she's talking about, again

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## NickA

> make them listen to Hawkwind.


sounds like a reasonable plan

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## MeMock

> Originally Posted by MeMock
> 
> I thought you got her a fish tank?
> 
> 
> the eldest got the tank
> 
> that's the little one


Oh yes that's right. I forgot you had been breeding like rabbits.  :bananaman: 

My little one got a wind up little toy plane. My middle girl also got a plane (her choice) and a Little horse figurine with a fairy that rides on her back. My eldest girl also got the horse and fairy thing plus a family of Silvanians. 

My wife and i got nothing.  :Smile:

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## ChiangMai noon

the small one got this little car to shuffle around on

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## Jofrey

lots of superheroes costumes...

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## kmart

Toy drum kit, scooter, matchbox cars w/ car park.

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