Toddlers are a lot of fun to buy for, they get so excited about the simplest of things. From the cardboard packaging to the wrapping paper. Here is my list of items I have purchased, reviewed or purchasing for Aria for Christmas. I think this would make great gifts for any little toddler in your life.
Leapfrog is a big favourite here and Aria has been eyeing up the Number Loving Oven for a while now. The oven looks great, comes with lots of colourful accessories and is a lot of fun. With over 30 phrases and songs, your little one will spend hours with this toy. The slider moves to allow exploration of numbers time and temperature. Little ones can cut up the food, learning about maths. The oven door opens and closes for cooking; bread, pizza and cupcakes. There is even a light that blinks when ready. Why not try frying an egg with real sizzling sounds. Lots of pretend fun to be had and create and share food. With an RRP of £19.99 I think this is great value for money. Leapfrog products are well made and toddlers love them. They are colourful, bright and the songs are fun. This is no exception. Big bonus, everything stores away nicely.
Aria is a big doll fan, she is very gentle and nurturing when it comes to baby dolls. Looking for something that is the right size and suitable for toddlers was my top priority. This cute little doll is a Zapf creations baby born bathing fun doll. She is suitable from 1 year upwards, comes with her own bottle for drinking and can go into the bath for extending the fun and pretend play. She is a quick drying doll, great for a little dip in the bath and perfect for little ones who want to cuddle after that. The material is designed to repel the water. Her body is soft, cuddly and her outfit is smooth against little ones skin. Aria is planning on taking her to bed to sleep beside her. Baby Born Bathing Fun doll makes a great first doll and a great price at £19.99.
Aria’s favourite bedtime story just now is Snow White and the seven dwarfs, she adores those little guys. Not so keen on the evil queen, but the dwarfs, she can tell you each of their names. A big part of that story is the Mirror. I thought I’d incorporate this into one of Aria’s gifts and get her My Enchanted Mirror. Within the box you get the mirror which works on 3 AAA batteries and a book which has 20 princess, I didn’t even know there were so many. The enchanted mirror will ask your little princess several questions which they will need to answer to play the game. In the end the enchanted mirror will magically tell them which kind of princess they are. This might be a little advanced for her at this stage, but I feel this toy is one that she can use differently the more mature she gets over the next year. What I do think she’ll love is that you can ask the mirror to play different songs and ask the mirror to tell 10 different stories about princesses. This will keep my little princess entertained for hours on end. At £19.99 I think it’s excellent value for money.
Books are a great gift that keeps on giving and I am loving the Miles Kelly gift sets, especially this Princess one. They have lots of different options available, if Princess doesn’t suit you. This giftset contains Big Book of Princess Stories which has beautiful artwork children will adore to look at whilst listening to the stories. 50 Princess stories is a great one to read at bedtime one a night and then start again or as they get older, children can read them aloud to you. My favourite has to be the Convertible Princess Carriage, this book really comes to life and can be read, used as a playmat or folded into a carriage. The gift sets are great value for money priced at £20 each, saving you over 50% on the RRP of these books.
Wooden toys are always a big hit with younger children and Le Toy Van are toys of superior quality. My boys love wooden toys and have had this fire station for years. I am planning on getting Aria this fantastic Noah’s Ark Shape Sorter which looks a lot of fun. The brightly painted ark features cut out spaces for seven different wooden animals to go into. There are also spaces on the top deck for Noah and his wife. The ark features a walkway, removable roof slats and a sliding door at one end which allows access to the cargo area. And the roof can also be turned into a carry handle for fun on the move. At £26.95, I think it is good value and will last for years. These are like heirloom toys, you can pass down.
I always like to add in a gift that is fun and educational. Teach My Toddler Kit is just that. Teach My Toddler is the multi award-winning all-in-one learning kit for toddlers 18 months+. There is no apps or screen time involved which is also a bonus these days. The toddler kit consists of 4 different section; The Alphabet, Shapes, Colours and Numbers 1-10. It is simple and effective. The cards work well with repetitiveness and help toddlers learn the basics through books, puzzles, posters and flashcards. I love that everything is stored in a case. We have been using these for a few weeks now and already Aria has learned her numbers and most of the shapes. It gives them a great start. It is available from Amazon at £24.99 which I feel is a great price for everything you get.
Leapfrog products are always a big hit. They are well made, great fun and educational too. Aria has had Read with Me Scout for a while and adores him. He comes with 5 lovely little books which can be read aloud be the parent or Scout reads the books to your little one. We love Scout reading. He has a great voice and it’s adorable. The books are chunky and perfect for little hands. Scout is soft, soft but durable. He plays music and talks away. The books consist of a pattern book, let’s find book, concept and colours book, a rhyming book and a learning book. I highly recommend it to anyone and with an RRP of £29.99 great value.
Dream Town Rose Petal Cottage was one of Aria’s favourite toys of the year. It is well made and looks great. It takes a bit of time to build, but it’s worth it and can be used for toy storage when it’s not being played with. We love this little cottage and Aria has had many hours of role playing and imaginative fun making cakes in the little oven, posting letters through the letter box and much more. They really have thought of everything. Do check out my review for more information. There are also some lovely add-ons like a kitchen set and table and chairs. At £99.99 it is expensive, but would make a wonderful main gift and will last for years.
We are huge fans of Lottie dolls and there are quite a few on Aria’s Christmas list, but her favourite one that she has played with has to be Muddy Puddles Lottie. She adores this one and it is perfect for toddlers with her bright yellow rain coat and welly boots. There are no fiddle accessories and what toddler doesn’t like splashing in puddles. Lottie can join in on the fun. At £16.99 she is worth every penny. There is a vast range of Lottie Dolls available, one to suit every taste and there is a boy doll Finn who my boys adore, but also equally as happy with Lottie. I love their concept and the fact Lottie dolls stand on their own two feet. Read more about them and the other Lottie dolls I’ve reviewed and have. We have quite a collection now.
Toddlers aren’t always the easiest of people. They are testing the boundaries, especially at mealtimes. Aria isn’t the fussiest child I’ve met, but she does have to be prompted and helped when it comes to dinner time. So when I came across this Dinner Winner Plate I knew she’d love it. How great does it look? It is made of melamine, safe and suitable for the dishwasher. The plate is designed as a race that has separate sections for each part of the meal. Put on some veg, fruit, meat, cheese, whatever you are having that day. At the end, the finish line there is a little covered section for a small treat. Fun isn’t it. At £17.99 it’s not the cheapest of plates, but if it makes mealtimes that bit easier, I am all for it.
Tsum Tsum are taking over the world, we love these cute little teddies, but have you seen Tsum Tsum Squishy figures? These are fun little squishy tsum tsum Disney characters which have their own little playsets and are collectable. There are various different items from blankets to sewing your own tsum tsum, but the little squishy figures are our favourite. They even come with their own little bag clip in the five piece pack. Starting at a range of £6, these toys make great stocking fillers, to little gifts that all the family would enjoy. Everyone loves Disney characters don’t they?
I always like to include clothes with the kids gifts and I am loving the t-shirts by Tiger Prints. They are 100% cotton and I love this print ‘There’s No Place Like Home’ featuring sparkly glitter ruby slippers and is designed and printed exclusively at Tiger Prints UK. It comes in different colours and goes from ages 2-3 up to adult sizes. I might have to get one for myself. They are well made and there are some great prints. This one costs £13.00.
Magformers are the perfect construction toy for toddlers. They join together magnetically, are chunky, colourful, come in different shapes and are great fun. Magformers My First 30 teaches colours, fine motor skills, shapes and grows confidence in independent play. Aria has had so much fun building with these. The set contains 30 different pieces, 12 triangles and 18 squares. It comes with a colouful booklet you can help your child follow to create various different structures from a rocket to a ball to a dinosaur, anywhere their imagination takes them. There are also shape cards which your child can put the shapes on to match and build up a pattern. It really is a great set and all can be stored away in the handy storage box. At £32.99 I think it is good value for money. It’s educational, well made and can be used for years to come.
Little stocking fillers can be difficult for toddlers, so I thought some scrummy and delicious smelling toietries were the way to include. Dubble Trubble cherries 2 in 1 shampoo and body wash and some cool cucumber detangling spray. Both smell divine and are great products to use. These products are designed and created by celebrity hair colourist and Prince’s Trust Ambassador, Daniel Galvin Jr. The collection consists of five pH balanced Hair and Body washes and a Detangling mist, all utilising organic botanical extracts. A lovely little luxury for your toddler, plus a percentage of the money made goes to the Prince’s Trust.
What is on your toddler’s Christmas wish list?
Disclaimer:- I was sent some of the above items as stated in the post, others I have purchased myself. I’ve not been paid further for mentioning any of these products in this post. All words and opinions are my own and the links have been included out of courtesy.