Honestly the only reason for this post is because I wanted to talk kids toys, write out a few of my thoughts/plans for Christmas, and share a few toy ideas. This is purely a "fluff" post :)
So here are our plans for Christmas this year (I am always interested to hear how other people do it so I thought I would share our method)... McKay's goal is to buy the kids as little of toys as possible (Lets call him
Buying kids toys is always a guessing game with a little bit of trial and error. Especially with little kids who can't exactly tell you what they like to play with. Hopefully we luck out this year with some good ones to help get us through the cold winter months here in Idaho.
These are some of the gifts that I am thinking of getting this year...
source: amazon
-Nerf Guns. Jensen loves them. He has a few smaller guns and we might upgrade him to a larger one. This is my favorite one that we have currently. I personally like the red mega bullets over the smaller ones for younger kids.
-Neo Tracks. Jensen has been our easy child to shop for this year. He has played with these cars and tracks at the dentist and friend's houses and seems to really like them. They seem pretty user friendly and kids are able to set them up on their own.
- Remote Control Car. Jensen has wanted one for a VERY long time. I said no last Christmas because I really don't like toys with batteries. But Jensen seems to only like toys that run on batteries (of course). I think I am going to give in this year and let him have one. I may have him do chores or something to help pay for the batteries. We will see. I still don't know exactly which one to get. The one I linked had good reviews, so it may be the one we end up buying.
-Dress-ups. Adalyn loves dress-ups and Jensen enjoys wearing costumes as well. Our favorite dress-ups are Little Adventures and Melissa and Doug (especially for the boys). Both hold up well and are comfortable for the kids to get them on and off easily.
Source: Amazon
Play Silks. These have been on my Christmas list for several years, but I haven't bought them yet. They seem so fun and colorful. I think Adalyn would really like them so this might be the year we decide to buy them.
Little People. Currently we don't own any Little People because Adalyn and Jensen weren't really interested in playing with them. But I think Declin and Magnolia would like them. We may start with the Little People Home for Mganolia this year. We shall see.
Doctor/ Vet kit: All of my kids love stuffed animals. Forget baby dolls. They want the adorable puppies and kitties. A new vet kit might be fun.
source: Amazon
Folkmanis Puppets. We are going to start a collection of these awesome puppets. We have one little one and I can tell they are going to enjoy playing with them. They go along with my kids love of stuffed animals. These puppets look so real and a super soft. Magnolia is getting a few of them for her birthday and we might add in a couple for a Christmas present for her too.
Expanding our sets: Currently we have Magformers and Duplos. My kids really love both sets and play with them daily. I want to add to add to our collections with a few more sets of each one. I am thinking of getting this duplos set since Declin loves superheroes and this magformers set since Jensen likes to build cars with the magnaformers.
source: Amazon
Ride on Car. When Adalyn turned one my parents gave her a ride on princess car for her birthday. She loved riding that car, but not as much as Jensen and Declin have loved riding that car. They LOVED it for many years until they have learned to ride a bike. Our princess car has held up well over the years, but after 3 kids riding it daily we are ready for a new car. I am thinking of getting this one since it looks durable and doesn't have any batteries or light up toys (yeah I am boring).
Trains. We got a wooden train set a few years ago and while it was touch and go about whether they were going to like playing with it they have finally figured it out and are loving it now. I think they will love it even more once the basement is done and they can use it with the train table. We have all of the regular trains that come with the set, but I think they will like a few more specialty trains from Thomas the train. By the way, I don't recommend the Melissa and Doug train set. It is too challenging for young kids to keep set up and put the bridges on. I wish we would have chosen a different one.
source: Walmart.com
Camping supplies. Last year the kids got the cutest camping chairs from my dad. They are so fun and the kids have played with them while they are outside a lot this summer. This year we are getting Magnolia a sleeping bag for Christmas because she will need one next summer.Puzzles. I love puzzles. Well kids puzzles, not the 1000 piece kind. My kids have really been into clocks lately and I am thinking of getting them this clock puzzle to help them learn about time, clocks, numbers, etc.
Those are most of my ideas for this year. I wish I had time to talk about all of my favorite toys, because I could go on and on. But I guess I better go make dinner for my family. Happy Thursday!
You are so organized and insightful Kajsa! I wish you could have coached me as a young Mom...But my kids can benefit from your wisdom for their kids!
ReplyDeleteI thought I would just put in my two cents and tell you that my kids have all loved the little people toys. I feel like you can’t go wrong with those.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the input! We will probably try them out this year! I hope she loves to play with them because I think they are so cute and fun!
ReplyDelete