Very Unwanted Christmas Gifts

Oh dear, oh dear! Well we had done quite well this year at Christmas, just filling our days slowly with good hearted people.
Then there are the presents. For some reason my mother in law always decides she is going to try to compete with me at all times over everything. Most of the time I ignore her, and that seems to make her more grumpy and I just let her get on with it. But sometimes I just can't get away from it. One of those times is Christmas.
Let me set the scene...
On the phone she asks what I'm getting one of the children for birthday/christmas, then no matter what I say she will buy exactly the same thing just 4 times the size and expense. Why tell her? I just can't seem to lie, and every time I think she's phoning to ask so we don't buy the same thing...

So this time I just didn't call her, and that was great. Now she also knows I hate certain things - things that are plain stupid, or sexualize children, or both.
Also she knows I hate it when she sends presents/cards late to make Granny's present special, and more remembered than anything else. Why do that, then tell me the reason why?

So for my lovely little girl we have a load of Barbies coming, and really that isn't so bad, as there is still room for her to use her imagination at play. But then there is also the DVD. Oh my goodness it is just horrid. They all look something like lap dancers, and all they talk about is looks and shopping, and I'm sure its very similar to a film mean girls that I saw a trailer for on the telly.

Anyway, it was Granny's present, so I felt obliged not to whisk it from under her nose and say she couldn't watch it.
So she watched it. The strangest series of events followed..
First she thought it was wonderful,
then she started to copy the behavior (!)
then she started to get upset (some of it a direct result of me telling her to behave nicely) and angry
and then, shock of shocks, she said she didn't like it.

She started to cry, and I sat on the floor with her and held her and asked her to explain. She was really pleased that Granny's present finally arrived, but she was really sad that she didn't like it, and angry at the same time.
She really wanted a present as the boys had received one.

We sat together, and then she told me what she would like, and for the next hour or so we made Walrus (her real doll) a summer dress.
It is not very neat, but she chose the materials, and told me how it should look, and for us it is just fine.

She has played with that doll for two days solid now, taking her to bed, and on picnics etc. And always she has played good hearted games, and smiled, yes smiled!! That didn't happen with the barbies, they just seem to tell each other off.

Even Daddy said to chuck that DVD out.