Holiday Gift Guide: Tried and True Baby Toys
It's that time of year again, it is a time of gift giving. With all the different toys out there it can be overwhelming on picking the right gift, I mean sure the toy looks fun but will the child like it or will they like the cardboard box it came in? The only way to find out is doing some research and crossing your fingers. To make your life a bit easier here is my tried and true top 10 toys to buy for an infant. All of these toys have been played with in my house or I have seen in person. These gifts are heavily loved and were my children's favorites far longer than I ever expected.
1) LeapFrog My Pal Violet
Recommended Age: 6 mo- 36 mo
Violet is a plush, interactive dog that you use your smart phone to enter info into Violet. Violet then sings about your child's name,their favorite animals, and plays lullabies. She is soft and easy to wipe clean. Violet takes 3 AA batteries and they are included when purchasing new.
Important detail: It has volume control
My Experience: I'm not a huge fan of toys that makes noise, you won't find many on my favorite toy list, but Violet was surprisingly not super loud and annoying. Violet was originally Val's but decided to pass down the dog to Belle, which saved us some money on buying a new one. Violet was heavily loved and even though Val is three she still plays with it. The best thing about this toy is the fact that you can program Violet to know your child's name and their favorite things. Violet sings this cute little song that goes
"I'd like a panda. Please! That's my favorite animal. I'd like it to be yellow. Please! That's my favorite color. I'd like it to eat applesauce. Please! That's my favorite food. And I'll call it Valorie. Just like you."
All of the underlined words are the word that can be changed to suit your child. Isn't it cute? Violet or Scout are the perfect gift for personalization.
2) Melissa & Doug Flip Fish Soft Baby Toy
Recommended Age: 3 mo- 12mo
Flip Fish is a soft, flat cloth teether. Under the scales you can see pictures of sea creatures like crabs, one scale is a shatterproof flexible mirror, and the fish crinkles. The back fin has one end with a squeaker and the other end has a textured rubber teether. The scales are also different types of fabric so your little one can explore different textures. The toy is machine washable, but l
ay flat to dry.
My Experience: This is one of the largest teething toys I have ever bought for my daughter, but it is by far the best car teether. I used this as a car toy since it lays well on the lap and keeps them well engaged while on a car ride. It promotes finger use since you have to move the scales to see the hidden pictures below. A younger baby won't be able to fully discover this toy until they are closer to one, but a younger infant will still enjoy the toy's colorful fabric, the crinkle sound it makes, and its easy to grasp design.
3) Infantino Topsy Turtle Mirror Pal
Recommended Age: 0-12 mo
Topsy Turtle is an attachable plush turtle that you can hook onto strollers or infant car seats. Topsy Turtle has rattles in his feet and a flexible shatterproof mirror on his belly, perfect for peek-a-boo. His fabric is soft and easy to clean, but I recommend spot cleaning. He is simple and inexpensive, but he is sure to be a fun on the go toy.
My Experience: I have had my Topsy Turtle for almost four years and he still looks brand new, that is saying something since he was heavily played with in the car.
4) Hape Walk-A-Long Puppy Wooden Pull Toy
Recommended Age: 12 mo
Walk-A-Long Puppy is wooden pull-a-long toy. Your child pulls the string and Puppy rolls along, waging his little tail as he is being pulled. He is made with thick and sturdy wood. He is painted with red and orange paint and then sealed to keep the paint from chipping.
My Experience: This was given to Val for her first Christmas, it was an instant favorite. After she learned how to walk he encouraged Val to walk more, since she loved the fact that he followed her as she pulled his string behind her. He has suffered a lot of abuse over the years and after three years the string that holds the ears snapped. No big deal he just doesn't have ears now. I heavily recommend any toy by Hape. Every toy I have bought by them has been high quality and well loved.
5) Fisher-Price Poppity-Pop Musical Dino
Recommended Age: 12 mo
This blue dinosaur uses batteries to bounce balls and then spit them out of his mouth. Your baby puts the ball on the tail so it can roll down and start bouncing on the trampoline to music. The manufacture's age recommend that this toy is suited for children 6 mo- 5 years
My Experience: I. Hated. This. Toy. I'll be honest with you, I couldn't stand this toy because of how loud it was. Also it eats though 3 C batteries like they are nothing. Val and Daddy enjoyed playing this together until it met it's untimely demise when a coffee carafe was knocked over and ruined the *poor* dinosaur. If I hate it so much why am I including it on my toy recommendation list? Well, to be honest. it is a fun toy. I am just not a fan of toys that make excessive noises, I have a hypersensitivity to noise and it brings on heavy amounts of anxiety.
6) Hape Wooden Toy Cars & Trucks for Kids
Age Recommendation: 9 mo- 5 yrs
Hape wooden toy car, truck, helicopter, and airplane are painted and then sealed to prevent chipping.
My Experience: Remember what I said about Hape's pull-a-long dog? Same about these! They are your basic wooden push cars, but this set has lasted longer than Val's Melissa and Doug's stacking wooden cars. These toys have been chewed on, crashed into each other, and left out in the rain but are still in decent condition.
7) Munchkin Mozart Magic Cube
Age Recommended: 9- 2 yrs
Allow your young one to experience the wonderful music of Mozart. The cube plays 8 classic Mozart songs, buttons light up, and buttons flash to the tempo of the song. Your child presses the large buttons to play different musical instruments or to turn off that instrument. Cube offers an on/off switch and two volume settings. This toy takes 3 AA batteries (toy includes batteries upon purchase)
Toy has a hard plastic exterior and contains BPA-free and phtalate-free plastic
My Experience: I have the cube from 2014, it was a Christmas gift, but I can't imagine that it has changed other than appearance. This toy is one of the few electronic toys that don't set off my hypersensitivity and comes with two volume settings. Val was 8 months when she received this and it has been her go-to toy ever since and gains the attention of her 11 year old uncle who enjoys to play with it too. When we have play dates at our house with her friends the cube is always pulled out for play. The only toy to beat the Mozart Cube is Val's American Girl doll and for costing over $200 I would hope that it would be in first while a $28 toy would be in second place.
8) Bright Starts Snuggle and Teether - Giraffe
Age Recommended: 0-12mo
Soft plush teether with two rubber teething feet. The body crinkles, has a spot for a hanging ring to through, and lays flat. Machine wash, lay flat to dry.
My Experience: I have had this particular giraffe teething toy twice now and both times it was well received by both girls. Both girls love the easy to hold design and the large, fun face it has. Belle has an extreme love for giraffes so this toy is her absolute favorite and it is easy to clean when she spits up all over it.
9) Bright Starts 5-in-1 Play Activity Gym
Age Recommendation: 0-5 yrs
Bright Starts is a 5-in-1 play gym that starts off as a newborn floor gym and ends up being a ball pit for toddlers in the end. The activity gym comes with a 48" mat, 35 colorful balls, a plush elephant, a few hanging toys, an electronic elephant that plays 20 minutes of music, prop pillow for tummy time, and a carrying bag. The walls of the mat fold up to make a barrier for tummy time or a pit for the balls to be contained. The mat is machine washable and lays flat to dry. The electronic elephant takes 3 AA batteries.
My Experience: I actually do not own this mat yet, it is Belle's Christmas present from my mother, but I have seen it in use at a friends house. I love the idea of a play mat that grows with baby, it makes the price of a play mat seem reasonable. While inspecting my friend's play mat I noticed that the walls do stay up nicely and do not easily fall down, which is nice when you don't want an escaping baby. All in all it seems like a top quality play mat that will be in use for several years instea
d of a few months like other mats on the market. I'll let you know more after Christmas. ;)
10 )Baby Einstein Nautical Friends Play Gym
Age Recommended: 0-9 mo
This play mat features the puppet characters from Baby Einstein Neptune. The mat comes with an electronic starfish that plays 20 minutes of classical music, a whale tummy time pillow, a shatterproof mirror, nautical flash cards, and about 3 hanging toys. Electronic starfish takes 3 AA batteries
My Experience: I cheated and found this mat at the thrift store for $5. My mat does not have all the fancy toys that come with a brand new one, but I can tell you that the mat itself is wonderful to have. The mat is a major improvement from the one Val had when she was a baby, this mat is well padded and is easy to clean. The mat is also engaging to little eyes and that makes tummy time easier, unlike when we set her down on a blanket or other boring mat. I can't say for sure if the toys are nice but I buy Baby Einstein toys all the time for my kids and they are well liked.
