Shopping for toddlers can be tough – their interest can change so quickly and while we LOVE technology, but let’s be real – most of our toddlers have plenty of screen time and don’t really need more tech in their daily lives.
Below is my short list of some of some no-tech things we’re buying my kids this year for the holidays to encourage things like fine motor skills, imagination, and adventure!
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For the Creative Kid
LEGO® DUPLO® are a great imaginative toy! Any LEGO Duplo are great for the toddler age – we’re adding these two sets this holiday season.
The elephants are for our youngest (18 mo) and are a part of Duplo’s “My First Daily Routines” series so that we can reinforce routines by learning through play. His older brother actually picked this out for him. So sweet!
The police station is going to be a great addition to our existing Duplos for my older one (3.5 yrs) – particularly since he loves helicopters!
Coloring activities are a great screen-free activity and we love these giant triangular crayons – they are great for tiny toddlers who are still working on their grip and hand-coordination. They are also super easy to wash which is great when your little one is still working on impulse control and learning to color only on the paper! haha!
We also really enjoy this “Simple and Big” coloring book for toddlers. It is full of images that aren’t super detailed so they don’t get overwhelmed with trying to color in tiny details that are meant for older kids with smaller crayons.
For your little creative who loves building, we love Makedo tools and this kid-friendly measuring tape.
The Makedo collection is great for making whatever you can imagine out of cardboard! We’ve used these for our Halloween adventures and for imagination time.
The HandyFamm 3-in-1 STEM Starter Tool is a tool designed for kids! It comes with an 8-ft measuring tape, the eye is a level, and it has an angle finder.
For your paint-loving creative, we really love this watercolor set and watercolor postcards. Whenever there’s a rainy day (or you need a travel-friendly activity), you can paint a watercolor postcard and mail it to a friend or relative. We used these when we were on vacation – William painted the background and dictated what the notes should say so I wrote the note on the back and then used an ink pen to draw on top of the watercolor painting on the front.
For the Little Learner
This Magnetic Alphabet Puzzle is great because it can be simply interactive to park the cars, or as in depth as working on letter recognition and matching. The best part though? ALL THE PARTS ARE SELF-CONTAINED! (Cue all the parents who are tired of cleaning up small toy parts saying AMEN!)
Little People toys are great for those little toddler hands to grip easily. This tractor toy is a great addition. You can use it for educational play as we go into the spring to discuss farming, take it on adventures to the farmer’s market, and you could even make your own little farm with a cardboard box and the Makedo tools from above!
For the Adventurous and Brave Kid
This balance bike has been great for William learning to buy a bike. It doesn’t have pedals or training wheels it forces him to use his feet to balance side to side in order to get any speed. It’s helped him get fairly good at balancing and steering at the same time. We suspect if he keeps riding this he won’t need training wheels on his future bikes. This is the helmet we currently use and love.
For your brave soul – particularly one who loves music – this karaoke machine is a hit. You can pair it with your phone to use as a bluetooth speaker, but you can also pair its two microphones for a karaoke experience. My kids love using this to sing along with their favorite tunes and feel like rockstars.
A Big Toy
If you’re wanting to go big, this ride-on construction toy is a great option! It’s a construction-themed ride-on toy that also features a seatbelt and remote control for the supervising adult to use (complete with an emergency stop button for those sudden Evel Knievel-inspired moments) . An awesome intro into construction and engineering, this toy features a working backhoe and bulldozer that really promotes hand-eye coordination.
Let me know what you think!
I truly hope these gift suggestions bring joy to your family during this fun-filled holiday season.
Let me know how it goes – I’d love to connect, hear if these gifts were a hit with your family as much as they have been with ours!
Follow me on socials, comment on the social media post letting me know which one you loved, and even pop into my DMs to reach out – you can find me @appmanda on all platforms!