Mollie Twohig

Buying just the right gift for your family member or friend can be a challenge. But, what in the world do you get for a newborn, four, six or nine month old? Actually, buying toys for your tot is something that’s a year-round event, and so is always thinking about what their chubby little hands and gummy mouths will appreciate the most. When I was eight plus months preggers, I remember standing in the toy aisle of one of those massive baby stores comparing one obnoxiously bright toy to the next. I couldn’t help but think to myself how loud black and white stripes, Smurf-blue dots, and candy apple red squiggles were really going to clash with my tranquil khaki safari nursery. I’m laughing to myself just thinking about that, because if you go into my son’s room right now, it looks like a Crayola box exploded with the amount of color popping from every stuffed animal and rattle strewn everywhere. I quickly learned (and accepted) that vibrant colors, patterns, and loud, sometimes screeching “musical” toys, got two thumbs up from my lil guy. Here are five of his absolute favorites, which I highly recommend to anyone trying to make it through that toy aisle like myself.

1. Fisher Price Discover 'n Grow Kick and Play Piano Gym: This toy grows with your baby from back and tummy time to sitting up. It features a piano pad that your baby can kick and activate music while lying down or sitting up, an arch with bright colorful hanging toys and mirror, and a soft mat. This is great for developing hand-eye coordination, strengthening motor skills, and understanding cause and effect through music (and giving you some time to fold laundry or wash your face!).

 

 

 

2. Amazing Baby Feel and Learn Soft Book: These books are an excellent way to introduce your baby to reading. Your baby will love the bright colors, teethers, crinkly pages, and textures that adorn its pages. This is perfect for stimulating tactile exploration while discovering words early on. It’s also washable! And speaking of washing a book, if you’re looking for something that can withstand drool, puke, chewing, ripping, and gumming, then definitely buy a few Indestructibles! These are books that are completely baby-proof!

 

 

 

3. Anything O-Ball: Hands down, the easiest toy for your baby to grab and play with. With over 32 finger holes, this ball allows for a firm grasp for baby and less retrieving for you! I love the Oball Car, Oball Flexiloop, and Oball Ball Rattle.

 

 

 

 

 

 

4. Melissa and Doug Musical Farmyard Cube: When your baby is sitting or almost ready to sit alone, this little toy comes in perfectly. Your baby can lean on the cube while exploring different animal sounds, teethers, crinkly tabs, and the mirror.

 

 

 

 

 

5. Bright Stars Having a Ball Get Rollin Activity Table: This is another toy that grows with your baby. The legs are removable, so you can keep them detached for floor play until your baby is standing. You can switch between “play” mode and “learn” mode as well as English and Spanish. In the center, there is a ramp that swirls around balls before they drop out to a musical beat! (When my husband first took this out of the box, I think he played with it for 10 minutes before turning it over to my son!).

 

 

It didn’t take me too long to develop an eye for what kinds of toys my baby likes to play with. One thing I did learn was that some of the most fascinating toys aren’t the ones in Babies R’ Us or Amazon Prime. They’re right there in your home already (with supervision!): small plastic cups, hairbrushes or combs, drink coasters, large fridge magnets, dog tails (sorry doggies!), and sometimes (but hopefully not) shoes, dog bones, dirty socks, grass, boob pads...

Happy playing!

 

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