It was my 40th this week and I got given a proper Italian pasta maker for my birthday. Top notch! Maybe sometime I'll have an expats pasta night at my house?

What's the best gift you've ever received - comic or genuine?

When I was 6 I was given a Major Morgan for Christmas.

It wasn't so much the present that I enjoyed but the fact that the Christmas label said it was from Mr T!!!

One that stands out was the set of air horns I got a couple of years ago to put on my Spitfire. Some of these big trucks just don't see little things

The missus got me a back scratcher a couple of years ago. It's brilliant.

(I give this thread 2 pages before it descends into sex boasts)

The gift of life

When I was 12 I think. I got a portable colour TV for Christmas to have in my bedroom. We'd only ever had the one TV for the whole family so this was something a bit special!

On the comical side, we had a great aunt that used to come and stay every Christmas and I can remember one year she gave me a nightie. Now, bearing in mind I was about 10 years old, this was a UK size 18 nightie! I wasn't sure whether to try it on or pitch it and throw a sleeping bag inside! This was the same Christmas that she gave my sister a box of jelly sweets that were a year out of date and my brother some oven gloves with a burn hole in them (he was newly engaged!).

Ralph Harris "Stylophone", and I still have it in its original box.

I only knew the one tune, "Amazing Grace" which I played at the school assembly on my return from the Xmas break.

It was at that point a sudden realization I was going to have to work a lot harder to make it to the top of my game but unfortunately the batteries ran out!

That was the end of my musical career.

I think we share the same aunt! My hubby got a string of christmas lights for his 40th (in April!) that didn't work!

sickeningly enough I will say that the best gift I ever recieved was my hubby

Failing that it will be this years present (for my bd this week) which I stumbled across about an hour or so ago - a Canon Rebel t2i I mentioned when we went hunting that whilst killing things is all lovely and stuff, i'd prefer to go along and shoot the wildlife in a different way.

So I found my surprise and can't wait to use it (though not til he officially gives it to me )

MMC were you snooping?

My OH is either really crap at gift giving or really brilliant, more often than not brilliant

T'other week whilst at the swap meet, he went wandering off and came back chuffed to bits, look what I've just found you! It was a Capri money box, I mean where would you usually find one of those? And then a couple of nights ago he came home and said I got something for you and handed me two double deckers (choccy bars not buses), he then said I got you something else tonight too, it's being delivered tomorrow. I got a BMW convertible AND it's not even my Birthday. The first car he ever bought me was a BMW Convertible. I tell you we need an acreage

The best gift I got was this year when hubby surprised me with a iPad, it's the best thing ever and I love it.

In all honesty it's the most extravagant gift I've ever been given

No I honestly wasn't - after getting bugger all for my 40th last year the bar was set pretty low

He's making up for your 40th too PP - oooh a beemer convertible you flash get! Brownie points to Mr PP.

Yep I think your right, they both must have sensed our displeasure for the gifts (not) received on our milestone Birthdays.

So far I've only seen the beemer in the dark and the outside of it at that too, it was taken to work on Sat am and left there (we have a few too many cars sitting around) apparently it's going to come home on Monday.

(He's trying to convince me that bidding on 145 acres on Wednesday is a good idea)

145 acres!! ****ing hell, I hope it isn't all lawn.

That would take some cutting wouldn't it?