1. A live animal: In most cases, getting a pet is an event all on its own-and one of the best ways to find a family pet is to see how a particular animal you have in mind reacts to children. Showing up with a little puppy or cute kitten on Christmas morning is a surefire recipe for chaos! If you are set on giving a pet as a gift, pick one out well in advance, and make sure it is comfortable in the new settings before the excitement of Christmas morning.

2. 5,000 piece puzzles: Unless your child or the intended recipient is a puzzle fanatic, and has completed large puzzles before, giving such a huge puzzle with many pieces will not go over well. Even if the child has expressed an interest in the scene or character of the puzzle, giving a gift that is well beyond the basic skill level is setting him up for failure. Puzzles are great-just choose one with an appropriate skill level for the recipient. There are puzzles with bigger pieces, so they don't get lost or eaten!

3. Money: A load of cash just screams "I didn't have time to shop for you." With an exception of older teens, most kids will not be thrilled with a handful of cash-even a gift card is a better choice!  You must remember children want something to play with on Christmas morning.

4. Something you think they should want: A football is a great gift-to a boy who is interested in sports. The same football may be ignored, or even resented by a music lover. Try to buy gifts that reflect a child's interests, not the things you think they might like.

5. Mature content items: This one should be obvious.  Ratings were created for good reason. Most parents know to check for ratings and reviews before buying a video game or movie, but grandparents and other family members can easily overlook ratings. If a child you know has requested a hot new game or toy, and it has a questionable rating, check with the parents before purchasing, or choose a more suitable game.

6. Things that make a lot of noise: If you enjoy peace and quiet at home, a drum set, keyboard, or electronic noisemaker is probably not the best choice. Some electronic toys for toddlers blast Barney or Elmo at top volume to encourage play-this is cute the first three or four times, but after the hundredth time, it gets a bit old. Buy these for your kids at your own risk, you will be hearing them until the batteries die. Not to mention having to spend extra money on new batteries about every week!

7. Things that can make a mess: Clay, tiny beads, paint, chemistry sets, and pottery kits are tons of fun, and make tons of messes. These are great gift items-for your own kids, but probably not the best things to give to other people's children, unless you want to cover the cleaning costs!

The Amazon Toy Box hopes this helps a little for the the gift buying season.  We have all the hottest selling toys and games for boys and girls at the best prices!  Thanks for shopping with us and Happy Holiday!

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