Toddler Gifts Under $200 That Will Keep On Giving
We’re back with another toddler gift guide and this time I focused on items that would both look good and keep on giving—whether that’s giving your toddler years of fun or occupying them long enough to give you a few minutes to yourself every now and then.
But before we dive in, I want to share one of my hacks for keeping the toys in our home under control: an Amazon wish list for our toddler. Ours is set as just a second public wish list on my personal account (in addition to my own wish list).
We send the link to anyone who asks what they should get for Benji and it really helps make sure that the presents coming in are things we like and approve of (and things we actually want in our home). Benji is old enough now (2 1/2 years) that he kind of gets the idea of a wish list; when he asks for things (usually books pictured on the back of books he already has), I tell him that I’ll add those to his wish list and it seems to satisfy him.
You can also install the Amazon plug-in to your browser and when you see something outside of Amazon you think your kid might want, you can add it to the wishlist a lot like the way you add a pin to Pinterest. (I recommend turning off all of the Amazon notifications and recommendations on your plug-in, otherwise it will keep trying to redirect you back to Amazon to buy things there.)
Okay, now that we’ve got the practical stuff out of the way, let’s get to the fun stuff!
BALL PIT: We don’t have this ball pit, but we made our own with a baby pool, about 500 of these balls, and a baby pool cover. It would be so nice to have an indoor one though, and how tasteful is this one? BONUS: This is one of those toys that you can buy when they’re one and they’ll keep loving and playing with because who doesn’t love a ball pit?! If this color scheme isn’t your style, check out this green one and this marble one.
BALANCE BIKE: Balance bikes are supposed to be better trainers for bicycles than trikes because what’s actually hard about learning to ride a bike is the balancing, not the pedaling (which trikes teach). We have this one and one of the things I love about it is (other than it being super cute) that the handlebars and front wheel can basically do a 360, which makes picking up the bike and trying to get on it a lot easier for little ones.
YOTO PLAYER: I got this for Benji a few weeks ago (with an “adventure jacket,” which is the cutest name for a case I’ve ever heard) and I’m obsessed, maybe more than he is. This is basically like a fancy tape player for kids. I got it because I wanted him to have something he could control that would help him fall asleep (and go back to sleep) in his room. Falling asleep isn’t easy and since I listen to “sleep stories” to fall asleep (and have since I was little), it didn’t seem fair to ask Benji to lay in the dark and fall asleep (or go back to sleep) without anything to help him. The recommended ages are 3-8, and I can see how that would be easier, but at 2.5, he’s gotten the hang of it and after a few weeks of him only wanting to use the fireplace card (“Like Mary Poppins,” he says), which shows a static 8-bit fire and plays the sound of a crackling fire, we’ve moved on to actually listening to stories at night. Last night, when I left his room he was listening to Winnie the Pooh and when I came in this morning, the fireplace card was in the player. He had switched them himself. Whether he did it to fall asleep last night or to go back to sleep during his daily 5am wake up/cry, I don’t care, it’s a WIN!! If you’re considering it, this is the YouTube review that convinced me (and helped me choose the Yoto over the Tonie Box, which I was originally considering).
LOVEVERY BLOCKS: We’re big fans of Lovevery, and these blocks are definitely on our wish list for Christmas. For the last year or two, Benji’s been playing with a set wooden cube alphabet blocks that were a hand-me-down from a friend, but he’s starting to want to build things with other toys so I think we’re ready to level up. I like that the Lovevery set has playful but not obnoxious colors, and that the container they come in looks like it won’t take up too much space. Blocks are one of those toys that starts out as a main activity during play time, but as kids get older they can incorporate them into other games and imaginative play.
TARGET x HEARTH AND HAND KITCHEN: There are a lot of cute play kitchens out there, but they get expensive fast. We DIY-ed an Ikea Duktig last year for Benji’s Christmas present, but that was a LOT of work (at least for DIY n00bs). If you want something tasteful, fairly inexpensive, and don’t want to spend your nights, weekends, and nap times sanding and painting, I recommend this play kitchen.
SCOOTER: Any time Benji sees a kid on one of these, he can’t help but stare. He is fascinated and he clearly wants one so bad. This is the one on our wish list and I’m certain it will be under our tree (or menorah) this year. I’ve seen kids in kindergarten on these three-wheeled scooters, so I’m hoping it will be a go-to for years to come. I also love that once it folds down, it looks easy to toss in a car trunk or hang up in the garage.
RETRO DOUBLE-SIDED PLAY KITCHEN/LAUNDRY: When I first started looking at play kitchens last year, I saw this one but didn’t realize that it was double sided— it’s a laundry room on one side and a kitchen on the other. How cool is that?! I think if I’d known that, I would have opted for this one instead of DIY-ing the Duktig.
BALANCING STONES: These are basically pretend rocks that your little ones can hop from one to another on. For now that’s enough of a game for Benji, but I hope as he gets older we’ll use them to make obstacle courses or in imaginary play. I put the green ones on our list because I thought they were more likely to look at home in our yard.
ROCKING HORSE: Benji’s rocking horse has been such a huge part of our lives for the last year, we even took it on vacation with us, TWICE. And for a toy that takes up a whole seat in our sedan, that’s saying a lot. We have a rattan one, and it’s pretty squeaky, but this stylish, modern, and subtle rocking horse looks like it’ll be quiet and it will fit in with any decor.
Stay tuned for our next gift guide: Toddler stocking stuffers!