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Shopping for toddlers can be tough – their interest can change so quickly and while we LOVE technology, 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 reading!
Gifts for our 18 month old
Little People and car toys are a HUGE hit around here and both boys love pretending to use normal cars to “tow” other toy cars so this Little People tow truck will get lots of imaginative use – likely from both kids, though the Little People brand has been great for my youngest as they are bulkier and easier for him to pick up than some other toys.
This Color Matching Mosaic Pegboard Puzzle Set will help with fine motor skills, color recognition, patience development, and is fun with the large color images. I also suspect our oldest will play with this as well, but since this is reusable, that will be totally fine!
Gifts for our three and a half year old
This Wheel Steering Wheel Toy will likely be used by both kids, but will be LOVED by my oldest who is into all things cars. This toy encourages imaginative play along with balance and coordination. Honestly, I suspect some brother-battles may erupt over not wanting to share this toy!
These MathLink Cubes may surprise you that they’re on the list for my three and a half year old when they’re rated for five years and up, but our cousins brought some of these along when they visited for Fall Break and these were a big hit with William. Since they are small choking size pieces, we will likely only let him play with these while we’re directly watching him, but these will be a really fun toy to play along while we watch Number Blocks (a great toddler-friendly educational show)!
Books for them to share
William is in love with all vehicles he would classify as “helpers” – trash trucks, ambulances, firetrucks, etc. so we’re thinking he will love this rhythmic Trashy Town book about the cheerful Mr. Gilly who cleans up his town.
These Team Supercrew books are all about emotional regulation, emotional education, and how to use your emotion superpowers! We’re doing our best to raise two emotionally aware and emotionally regulated kids so these will be a repeat read around here!
BONUS: Bookcase
We currently own this bookcase and it is one of my favorite furniture purchases for the boys! Highly rated and easy to put together (William and I put it together when he had just recently turned three). The right side has slots for books so the kids can see the book covers and then we use the other shelves for a mixture of board books and small toys.
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 little ones.
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!