if you need toys for a very young child

[kate_nepveu]

Inspired by a picture on FB of a friend with one of my prior go-to baby toy gifts (alas, apparently no longer being made), and because I'm home this morning, I thought I'd link to my two other reliable gifts in this vein, for people who may be unfamiliar with kid toys but need a gift or to start their own collection.

1) For when they start holding things: this soft-sided sorter comes with three different kinds of stuff inside, hard rattly things, vinyl squeaky things, and soft fabric things, all of which are likely to be of great interest to a young child (and, judging by SteelyKid, to be tasty, too). Plus you can zip up the top and keep all the things inside, which is great for travel. (FWIW its availability seems to wax and wane, as I've bought it for cheaper than the current price and avoided buying it at other times.)

2) For when they start manipulating things: I spent way too much time looking for stacking rings, and these look and feel really nice, plus the slightly different design lets kids experiment with different stacking patterns as they grow.

(Bonus: not a toy, and don't give it as a gift unless you know the kid is using this particular kind of pacifier, but these pacifier holders were essential for us.)

And not for babies, but while I have my Amazon history open:

A really nice tea set.

Open the doors and find animals.

Magna-Tiles are expensive but they're very durable and endlessly fascinating. Good for as young as three, and possibly earlier.

(Finally, if you like to give books, try the "That's Not My..." board books from Usborne (available in any bookstore); any of Sandra Boynton's board books; any of Mo Willems' Pigeon or Elephant & Piggie books; or Peekaboo Morning.)

Comments

[lnhammer]

With every Melissa & Doug puzzle toy I meet, I get more and more impressed with their work. We have one at home, plus a friend regularly visited has another, but one that had vehicles (especially a bus) would exactly hit the spot for TBD.

Not sure Magna-tiles would work yet -- possibly once we turn three.

---L.

[thistleingrey]

For my child (FWIW) Magna-tiles became interesting somewhat before it was possible to conceive of building things with them: they're durable enough to survive some dropping when a short stack of squares falls from small fingers. Different kinds of experimentation. Specifically, at least for us, it was novel because little kids aren't often permitted relatively heavy things--yet a stack isn't heavy enough to crush toes, etc.

[kate_nepveu]

Some of M&D's stuff I dislike as unnecessarily specific or gendered, but I have generally found them to be of good quality. And we have a ton of their puzzles, no question.

I think Magna-tiles definitely start to be most fascinating round-about three-ish, but even before then, they stick together! Can be stacked! And are colorful!

Anyway, since they really only make sense in the 100-piece sets, there's time to dump your pocket change in a special jar just for them. =>

[lnhammer]

Heh.

We already have the starter set for another magnetic connector toy, which was cool for the magnetic bits but was otherwise a little frustrating. We'll add a few more pieces and try again in a couple months, I figure.

---L.

[kjn]

One great thing is chew rings filled with water that can be chilled in the refridgerator. Great for teething aches.

[kate_nepveu]

Oh sure, but those are common enough in stores that I figured they didn't need specific recs.

[ejmam]

My go-to present is more a category -- block puzzles, where you have (usually) 16 blocks, and you can make six pictures from them. Small kids can stack them, and as they get older they can also put them together to make the picture. So it's good from about age 2-7, or for families with kids of different ages.

Along the same line I had some floor puzzles made from thick foam that made complex pictures, but all the pieces could snap together. So the 2-4 year old could just randomly assemble them (until he went to bed and OCD mom did it "right" before putting it away) and the 0-1 year old little brother could have a mat to lie on. My google-fu is failing me, but they weren't hard to find fifteen years ago...

[kate_nepveu]

Ah, we have one of those block puzzles! The foam ones don't ring a bell, though.