Last updated on February 24th, 2024 at 11:01 pm
Ah, the toys of early childhood. These items evoke nostalgia and memories, serve as a theme for several books and films, and keep us playing. But these musical gadgets and smiley friends can accumulate in the houeshold quickly. By being selective with the toys we keep, I’ve prevented the brightly colored avalanche of extraneous play products from swallowing us whole. Here’s my simple list of favorites*:
Playmat and gym toy (O-9 months)
In the newborn days, it was reiterated to me how important tummy time was. I’d dutifully set a quilt on the floor and gently lower my daughter onto it. She did not appreciate this activity.
If I had the playmat in those early days, I could have dangled it as a reward for tummy time: “Look, baby, I know you hate this activitiy, but it’s good for your development, I think. If you make it through one minute of tummy time, I’ll flip you over and you can marvel at the hanging toys and mirror!”
By the time we received this playmat, baby was around six months, so tummy time was no longer viewed as torture, and the baby gym wouldn’t have been an incentive. But my daughter enjoyed the features of the playmat, officially called the Fisher-Price Deluxe Kick & Play Piano Gym. The striped arch overhead allows babies to wonder and bat at the hanging toys. Babies can tickle the ivory — so to speak– by kicking the colorful, light-up keys forming the piano at the edge of the mat. The piano actually has three thrilling settings: the first and most pianolike, in which each key plays a single note, then another setting in which each key makes a different animal noise, and the third and most celebratory, where tapping any key activates a musical sequence of several catchy songs. A delight! (This, importantly, can also be turned off when silence is needed). This musical playmat is a boon to both parents and children.
Books (3 months +)
Within my baby’s first three months, I was eager begin her academic training. I heard about books featuring high-contrast color images and mirrors to attract baby’s eye and get those neurons firing. In a middle-of-the-night Amazon shopping session, I purchased a plush, self-standing book that seemed to meet these requirements. No reviews? This didn’t matter to my woolly-headed and sleep-deprived self.
The literature was delivered, but it turned out to be an educational disappointment. Each puffy page featured a number and an animal, but not the corresponding amount of animals. For instance, the 2 page contained six butterflies. The 8 page was illustrated with one tiger. Would I be creating a color master of a child while completely stunting her in math? What a useless purchase. I would need to be more judicious with what I bought for my daughter.
Thankfully, we received some great titles to add to our home library. I enjoy these as much as the baby does. We’ve discovered dozens of high-quality baby and toddler books, but here are my three absolute favorite:
“I’ll Love You Till the Cows Come Home” by Kathryn Cristaldi, illustrated by Kristyna Litten
This book adorably and creatively adds to the saying “I’ll Love You Till the Cows Come Home.” The author shuttles the reader through five or six different animal scenes, often humorous, that rhyme and end in love. The illustrations, the humor and the word choice were all winning features of this book. Plus, it’s a board book, which can stand up to baby chews!
“Peekaboo Farm“ by Camilla Reid, illustrated by Ingela P. Arrhenius
This artful and entertaining book really shines in its design. The illustrator uses bright and beautiful colors to create cheery farm scenes. The reader is invited to interact through a series of pop-up switches on each page, revealing adorable “peekaboo” surprises! These books are even durable enough for the toddler phase. We LOVE the Peekaboo series!
“Dream Flights on Arctic Nights” by Brooke Hartman, illustrated by Evon Zerbetz
I love this book because it incorporates such a rich vocabulary. Not every children’s book contains such a wide and precise lexicon, but this one does in its captivating storytelling. All while educating youngsters on the natural features of the Arctic. The text and illustrations are both beautifully done by Alaskan residents. As Alaska wannabe travelers, we loved Dream Flights!
Handmade stuffed animal toy (1 year +)
My husband still has his favorite stuffed animal toy from when he was small. It’s a gray Dalmatian that wasn’t always gray. I also have warm memories of childhood stuffed friends, though mine have been misplaced over the years (which is unfortunate, because we were always assuming our Beanie Babies would be prime investment tools by this time!).
I already had a small collection of animals accrued from my elementary teaching days– characters from various popular stories, like Paddington Bear and Mo Willems’ elephant and Piggie. My husband brought to life the stuffed animal Pigeon (from the Mo Willems Pigeon books) with his vaguely accurate pigeon coos. This is how Pigeon became a central figure in the living room playspace.
But I didn’t want my daughter’s hallmark childhood stuffed animal to be a powder blue pigeon with saucerlike eyes.
Because my daughter gastronomically samples many of her toys, I wanted to get a stuffed animal she could sink her teeth (gums) into, sans polyester. We were in luck– a friend crafts beautiful, simple stuffed animals made from natural fibers.
We bought a stuffed bunny for my daughter’s first birthday from small business JD Stitch Co. The rabbit is made of thick linen and stuffed generously– huggable but not prone to lumps piling up in random areas. She’s got simple, elegant lines of stitching framing her slightly pointed face and a subtle blush pink under her ears. Her pencil yellow dress is lined with a sweet lace trim. She makes a perfect little friend!
The musical remote control (1 year +)
I’d be remiss to leave out one of my daughter’s favorites as of late. It’s such a simple toy– very flashy and musical– but it compels her to dance, and that is priceless.
A beloved uncle gave our daughter the Fisher-Price Laugh & Learn Puppy’s Remote for her first birthday. It sings educational songs about colors and numbers and letters. The remote features big, colorful buttons that are simply begging to be pressed, banged, and even chewed. It’s all part of the learning process.
Toys that count
One of the great pleasures of motherhood has been watching my daughter delight in a toy. These items can be fun for parents, too. But given the generous bestowal of toy gifts on holidays and birthday from various friends and family members paired with our small living space, I knew the toy collection would need to be curated. As our daughter grows and changes, toy culling and curation becomes a periodic endeavor. It’s an imperfect process of sometimes gathering disappointing items (looking at you, mathematically incorrect numbers book) but it becomes part of my continuous aim of progress over perfection as a mom. And, let’s face it– sometimes it’s best to accept the unfancy reality that the best toys (water bottles, spoons, robot vacuums) are right under our nose.
Fellow moms, parents, caregivers– what do you think? Are there any toys we simply must try? Leave me a note below.
*The ages noted in the headings are the ages in which we used and enjoyed the toys. See manufacturer’s material for information about acceptable age ranges for use.
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