With the twins turning one back in September, and starting to really get active – I thought it would be a great time to share some must haves for one year olds and toddlers!
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After you’ve went through the motions and raised your kids, even if they are still young, you start to learn what works and what doesn’t. This goes for toys as well.
Most of the time an empty box will be enjoyed MUCH more than any toy on the market. This is just a fact. Throw some crayons at it and it becomes a spaceship, racecar or even a house. Imagination runs wild when it comes to boxes.
Although empty boxes are great for kids, you can’t exactly wrap up an empty box and present it as a birthday gift, or can you?
with that in mind, I thought I would share some of our favorite toys for one year olds and toddlers, ages 12 – 36 months, that we have loved over the years.
Indoor Tents
All of our kids have loved indoor tents that they can use in their room, over their beds, or even outside if you want to use them during an outdoor picnic. The twins loved them so much when I first brought them into the living room. They thought it was so funny they could hide and play in them.
Activity Tables
The twins love having their own little table that they can play on and move all the little gadgets and buttons. I’ve even found the big kids on numerous occasions sitting and playing with everything that an activity table comes with. Bonus: Because the activity table comes with everything on the actual table, there is nothing to make a mess! Score!
Baby/Toddler Sized Tool Bench
Now, with these tool benches is will depend on what age exactly you are buying for, but our kids have loved both of these sizes. The Black and Decker tool bench is for older toddlers since there are smaller pieces that comes with it, but is a great size for one year olds as well. Our older boys loved this tool bench when they were younger.
Baby Doll Sets
Baby dolls and baby doll sets are great gifts that all of our kids, boys and girls, have played with. Although we never bought dolls for our boys specifically, they have always had fun taking care of baby dolls, feeding or changing diapers when they were toddlers. These are great to help teach life lessons and taking care of babies. And if all else fails, the stroller is great for the kids to push the little ones around in – haha!
Toddler Chairs
Okay, okay, I know one of these isn’t technically a toy, but the twins LOVE them. We were handed down a chair just like this and honestly, I should grab a few more becuase they kids fight over them constantly. They are the perfect size and actually pretty comfy for toddlers to sit in and enjoy their shows. The second chair is by Fisher Price and was a hit when we visited cousins. It has different levels of learning and growing for every stage of toddlerhood.
Ride On Toys
When our older boys were just little we started the tradition of their first year Christmas gifts were little four wheeler ride ons. They LOVED them and rode all over our first apartment, our first home, and now our current home. These are perfect for one year olds that are ready for the next step in toys and will also be used for a few years, not just tossed to the side after a week. They can also be used outside on the sidewalk or driveway outside.
Stack and Sort Toys
Stack and sort toys are great for youngsters that are ready to move up to puzzle like toys. These are great because although they help with hand eye coordination, kiddos are tricked into thinking they are just play. Anything to help with parenting and teaching!
Musical Instruments
For those brave parents that don’t mind the noise, we have owned all of these toys and I can honest say they are hit with the kids!
Toddler Electronics
We couldn’t end this list without adding on toddlers own set of electronics. We all know our kids see us on our phones or computers, so these are perfect for them to have their very own. From the alphabet to songs, these are perfect to help little ones learn as well as “look cool”. LOL!
