Review: Toys for little ones
Today’s post is going to be about infant and toddler and pre-k toys. We’ll talk about toys for older kids later.
I’ll talk about (and point to) some of my all time favorites. Things both girls adored, and that got (and in some cases still get) a whole lot of play.
The Leap Frog table made it through both girls and is now being used by a cousin’s child.
The Learn through Music system looked different when we bought it for GG, but it works the same as the one that is out now, and TT is still playing with it. It’s a touch screen and very intuitive.
Going from hi-tech to low-tech, what kid doesn’t like to hear the sounds the animals make? It was a string when we were little, it’s a lever now. Same concept, but safer. (Though I doubt a child ever actually managed to strangle themselves on the string.)
The rings and sorting cube are now gone, and I didn’t save them between girls, so I had to buy a new set of each for TwinkleToes. But both girls gained a lot in muscle control and motor skill and logic by playing with them.
The easel is still in use. A lot of use. Enough said. It’s a great toy. I’ve lost track of how many rolls of paper we’ve been through. Plus there is the chalk board and the dry erase board. Both girls learned to write their letters and numbers on this easel. Me sitting on the floor, them standing beside me – I’d write it, they’d trace over it, then attempt to write it beside without tracing.
And then come the Little People sets. Twinkle Toes occasionally gets them all out at once and makes a village out of them. As old as GlitterGirl is, she still gets in the floor and plays with the various sets with her sister. GlitterGirl had the farm and zoo and house, and the other items have been purchased for TwinkleToes. We’ve also bought extra farm animals and safari animals and zoo animals to go with them (not little people animals, but animals that look real).
Megabloks. I both love them and hate them. The wagon with the blocks in it was given as a gift to GlitterGirl on her first birthday, several months after we arrived home, and then we started accumulating more bloks. We have a large storage bin that the bloks now go in when not being played with. The wagon gets a ton of use, still. Either GG caries TT around in it, or they put stuffed animals in it to give them a ride, or they use it to move props around when they put on their shows and plays for us… the wagon is a wonderful thing. The bloks have gotten a lot of play over the years, and they are probably wonderful, too. And the construction stuff gives some added fun since TT loves earthmovers and heavy equipment so much. Also, TwinkleToes is much better about putting them away than GlitterGirl was, which is a great improvement. Basically, the blocks are a wonderful toy, but they hurt something awful when you step on one with a bare foot in the middle of the night.
The magnetic letters that go on the fridge have also gotten a ton of use. Make sure you buy the jumbo letters with the magnets sealed inside, which I’m not sure the ones I have pointed to have the magnets sealed inside, since they are listed as being for 3+. The letters we have are about three inches tall and fairly wide, and there is no way a child can choke on them. The ones I’ve pointed to say they are jumbo, so I’m not sure why they are listing them as a choking hazard. If you buy them in person you’ll be able to tell for sure. Also, don’t just buy upper or just lower case. Kids need to learn both. We have upper case, lower case, numbers, and shapes. We still use them, too. Though I will admit to buying a metal thing to put on the wall for them after we bought our stainless steel fridge.
The wooden alphabet blocks have also been good for hours of fun. First it was just stacking them, seeing how high (GG was very good at that at a very young age), then later it was spelling words with them. You can also build with them, our set has 100 blocks and we can build houses and pyramids and large triangles and all sorts of things with them.
The shaped blocks are a ton of fun and offer a different kind of building experience. We also have some Foam Blocks
And last comes the kitchen and all of the food and other accessories that go with it. We finally got rid of the kitchen a few months ago and there is now a wall of IKEA shelves where the kitchen once stood. But the kitchen was worth every penny we spent on it, and then some. Lots of creative and imaginative play. And lots of storage areas for the food and other kitchen accessories we bought. We bought the huge plastic set of dishes and spatulas (and other things) for GG, and we still have most of that set, but we added the stainless set for TT.
Then there are the things like swing sets and swimming pools and sand boxes and toys you ride (trikes and big wheels and even motorized things) and all of the other bigger ticket items that are usually played on or with outside. I’ve only pointed to the flintstone car because it is so cool and the rest seem to be staples, things almost everyone gets.
We bought a cheap metal swingset when it was on sale at KMart, with a lot of different things to do on it and I’m pleased with it. I think we spent something like $170 on it a looonnnnggggg time ago, and it is still perfect. We spent more on the play kitchen than the swingset, come to think of it. The kitchen has probably gotten more use, though since it is played with year round.
If you are going to do a sand box (and if there are sensory issues, it’s a good thing to have) then I recommend one with a lid.
Oh, we mustn’t forget things like sidewalk chalk and bubble play, either. Two more things that have given us hours of fun.
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I’ll add in the toys our commenters have recommended on this post instead of creating a new one:
June 30th, 2009 at 12:39 pm
RQ, I am loving these posts. Thanks for them.
I’m really happy to see the Melissa and Doug easel on here. I have it on my list for DD for Christmas this year and I think I’ll buy it now since it’s such a low price and it qualifies for the super saver shipping. I’m not usually this proactive about holiday shopping – so thanks for help! LOL.
My DD also loved the leap frog table. There are so many things to learn that she started with just the music and learning to pull herself up. Then, as she got older, she learned her colors, shapes, words to the songs, etc. So she was entertained for more than a year with this one toy.
She also loved the fisher price barn. She carried the cow and the sheep with her everywhere for months. They were her best friends until she discovered the backyardigans!
My DD has sensory issues, but she loves music and musical instruments. So we’ve bought her a number of instruments and we march around with them. I also love this drumset that we bought recently: http://www.amazon.com/Todays-Tot-Musical-Discovery-Piece/dp/B001HOLWBE/ref=sr_1_41?ie=UTF8&s=toys-and-games&qid=1246379876&sr=8-41
I am looking forward to your post on toys for older children.
Thanks again RQ.
June 30th, 2009 at 1:53 pm
Sometimes the best toys are not toys at all! Plastic cooking utensils, fabric scraps of different textures, and cardboard boxes can provide endless possibilities for play.
I’m partial to most Fisher Price toys. They have an excellent reputation for quality and developmental appropriateness without being overly fussy with the bells and whistles.
June 30th, 2009 at 3:16 pm
June 25th marked one month since “gotcha day” in Nanchang, and our DD now knows what a toy is. She turned eight months old the day we were united with her. She was so cute, and so young and tiny. But she didn’t even look at any toy, let alone reach out to touch or hold one.
What a difference one month has made! Now at nine months, she loves to play with just about any toy she can get her hands on. Her favorite thing to do next to drinking her “ba ba” is to jump. Our arms (seven of us) were getting so tired of helping her to jump, we finally got a Baby Einstein jumping toy station at Target. When we put her in it for the first time, she jumped for 90 minutes almost continuously, only stopping occasionally to take a breath and touch a toy or two, laughing and smiling the whole time.
She is quite a ham, and loves everyone in the family telling her how good she just did on the 4,265th jump. But much as she loves her Dad (me) and her five siblings, she just has a special place for her Mom. She seems to just live for Mom’s praise.
June 30th, 2009 at 4:11 pm
I would never have expected this water table would be a super-interesting toy, but one of my good friends bought it for Baby Emory, and OMG it is so much fun! It’s nice and cooling play, and stores easily on our back porch. You just fill it up then pour out the water when finished playing.
http://www.amazon.com/Step-2-Arctic-Splash-Water/dp/B001JTE2KU/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=home-garden&qid=1246392434&sr=8-2
In addition to the two table levels, it has a three tiered “mountain” that you can stack at 1, 2, or 3 levels, with little slides for the plastic animals that come with it. It also has a little bucket with a small hole in the bottom for pouring waterfall fun.
June 30th, 2009 at 4:11 pm
RumorQueen or anyone else with the Learn through Music system:
My daughter loves music and can actually carry a tune when she sings. For anyone who has the system, is it worth the money to buy a new one, given its price tag? Based on its quality, would you feel comfortable buying a used one?
I recently purchased a play kitchen for my daughter. She will be getting it for Christmas this year. I shop year round for the holidays, buying things on sale as I find them. I can’t wait for her to see it! In addition to music, she loves to “cook”.
June 30th, 2009 at 6:09 pm
The learn through music thing is more like a video game that teaches things through music – the Elmo cartridge I pointed to teaches the alphabet in a really engaging way, not just the letters, but what the letters sound like, and the child is encouraged to touch a picture of something that starts with a particular letter, with there being three letters to a “screen”. If someone assures you the one for sale works, and if they have a good customer rating, then it’s probably okay. Ours has taken a good bit of abuse and it still works fine.
June 30th, 2009 at 6:37 pm
My kids are 9 and 10. Our large little people collection just left the house last summer ( excellent resell value I might add) My kids used it for years. My son is a boy boy and my girl is a girly girl, they both loved playing with little people.
Wooden blocks are a must have. My kids still use them. It is fun to watch their play evolve as they get older. They joy of wooden blocks is that you can never have too many, that makes them an excellent gift.
June 30th, 2009 at 7:21 pm
I have to admit – Fisher Price Little People were some of MY favorite toys as a kid! I probably played with them longer than most kids, because it was something I actually enjoyed doing with my little sister. We had the house, the village, the farm…a whole town set up! I can’t wait to experience these toys again with my own daughter some day…
June 30th, 2009 at 7:23 pm
I gotta say I’m a lego snob. Get the duplo blocks.
I can’t tell you how big a deal balls are. For boys playskool has some nice soft plastic cars that fit in the hand or are easy to grasp. They do great until ready for matchbox cars.
Lakeshore learning had a great vinyl block set of various shaps with some balls that fit in the palm of their hand. Very safe. Parent’s also has that great cloth block set with different cloth textures and simple abc’s. Some blocks have little shaped rattles that fit inside.
Melissa and Doug puzzles are the best. The big knobby kind.
As for magnets I like the leapfrog phonics fridge toy. The magnets are inside, not glued to the back. The fridge phonics boom box and the alphapal – that caterpillar that sang or did the letter sounds and names were his two favorites. Though I didn’t love the string on the caterpillar.
Books.
Kristine
June 30th, 2009 at 8:07 pm
I just thought I would add….when looking for toys that play music or make sounds of any kind, especially for younger children. If it doesn’t have a volume control, hold it up to your ear and see how loud it is. Most children don’t hold toys out on front of them to play. They hold them close to their face and you’d be surprised to hear how loud some of the toys actually sound up close.
June 30th, 2009 at 11:10 pm
My oldest dd’s will be 10 next month. The wooden blocks, play kitchen with food, and Little People all still get alot of play time. The beauty is that even the 3 and 6 yo can play with the big kids. The style of play is different, but they all get together and cooperate. Another item that has had near constant use for 9 years now is a Step 2 Kangaroo climber. Here’s a picture: http://www.step2.com/product.cfm?product_id=1305
It is small enough to be inside the house, but large enough for my 9 yo to still sit in, and sturdy enough for all the kids to hang, climb, and jump on in some form or fashion, but light enough to move around easily. Even dh, who is dying to finally get it out of the house, admits its still getting alot of use. And it is great PT/excercise for ds.
July 1st, 2009 at 4:15 am
Thank you for the recommendations!
We have been in Kazakhstan bonding with our daughter who is almost 11 months old for about 36 days now. I have to put in a plug for the following three items that were so easy to pack and have really gotten a great response from her!
The Soft Shapes books
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=soft+shapes
They are intended for children 1-4 years old, but they can be fun for slightly younger children – with supervision. Our daughter just loves them! We brought the Animals, Colors and Counting. She likes the feel of them, the colors, and she likes to bang them together or on the floor for the noise she can make. She can get them out of the books with help and she also enjoys feeling, manipulating and looking at the book itself. Alot of fun!
The Baby Einstein Musical Duck
http://www.amazon.com/Kids-II-INFANT-BABY-EINSTEIN/dp/B000JQ2VGG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=toys-and-games&qid=1246435083&sr=1-1
She loves music and we have gotten alot of interactive enjoyment from this little duck. She likes the feel of him and she is starting to be able to squeeze him right to make the music play. She bounces on her stomach to the music and the tune is short enough that it keeps her attention. You press the duck’s stomach for the full ensemble melody, and you press the wings and feet for the same tune broken into instrumental parts (drum, horn, violin etc.)
The Surprise Inside Elephant
http://www.geniusbabies.com/suineltrtoy.html
This soft toy was easy to pack and she loves it! All the textures and sounds (crinkly flower with mirror, squeaky mouse, ball, the peanuts, etc.) keeps her attention. The first day we introduced this toy, I think we got 45 minutes of uninterrupted play!
I love baby toys! Enjoy!
July 1st, 2009 at 8:37 am
The Mozart Music Cube from Embryonics (http://www.geniusbabies.com/mozmuscub.html) was a favorite in our house. Although ours wasn’t Mozart, it was the version that they had that played children’s songs (can’t find that one on-line today though). I read some current reviews that said that the battery cover breaks easily, but it didn’t on the one that we had…my DD was really rough with this toy and we never had a problem with any breakage. She had a little tykes climbing cube with a slide that we kept in the den and she loved to start the music on her music cube and throw it down the slide, then do a little dance until the music stopped…then slide down to get the cube and repeat the process. She spent many hours doing this and our music cube still works as well as the day that we got it.
July 1st, 2009 at 9:47 am
For her first birthday, my daughter got a Fisher Price Roll-a-rounds Tumble Bug Ball drop:
http://www.amazon.com/Fisher-Price-Roll-Rounds-Tumble-Ball/dp/B0007WX116
She loved it, and when we have babies that come visit, we get it out again and it’s always a favorite.
July 1st, 2009 at 10:49 am
I’ll also put in a plug for the fake plastic food and kitchen set.
But one of the best things we got for our girls was a Fisher Price mirror, that had softly flashing lights and played classic lullabies. We had to hide it when we finally got rid of it because they still loved it!
Also the shape ball, where they drop the star, block, circle, etc. into a ball that comes apart. Loved it!
The other item that both of my girls loved to play with regardless of their age – my shoes! Once they could walk – and DD2 was walking at Gotcha Day – the instant I would take my shoes off they would put them on and pretend to be me.
And a good excuse to get new shoes for me!
July 2nd, 2009 at 7:53 pm
I have to be practically militant about insisting that nothing else be out when they get the TinkerToys out (or Lincoln Logs, or wooden blocks, or whatever), and that when they are through playing with them everything goes back into the container and gets put away.
There is a container for the potato head family, a container for the Thomas trains and track (oh, forgot to mention that the other day), a container for the lincon logs, etc. Yes, I think that a post about organization may be a good idea.