Articles in Toys by Age: Birth to 2
We chose the Vintage Musical Elephant Pull Toy as it only had a minimal amount of plastic, and we chose well. It’s the first toy our daughter engaged with and actually tried to grab. The ’soothing melody’ seems to soothe her, but doesn’t quite do the job for us parents.
One of a new range of toys from Silver Cross, this Rufus Rabbit pull-along toy is designed in a gorgeous vintage style and comes beautifully packaged. Once you’ve fought with the usual ties and fastenings to free it from the box you are left with this fabric bunny and his collection of miscellaneous velcroed, pull-apart vegetables in his pull-along cart.
The Pure Love Bunny Hug Pillow is another lovely product from Natures Purest and encouraged us to check out their site – next on our wish list is definitely the bunting collection, which is just gorgeous! This product is amazing quality, from an environmentally friendly and ethical supplier. We couldn’t have asked for anything we – or our baby – would love more.
These beautiful activity bricks from Pure Love aren’t something Mums would tend to buy for themselves but the soft feel, quality packaging and organic credentials make them a perfect gift for newborns. They’re a perfect way to introduce little ones to letters and numbers, but they’re pretty enough to put on a shelf away from curious fingers!
The Imajo Organic Classic Softie Rag Doll is a lovely and soft organic rag doll which has become a firm favourite with my daughter – but at £18.95, I think you could find a cheaper rag doll with similar features. However, if organic and ethically sourced toys are for you, the Imajo Organic Classic Softie Rag Doll is a great investment, and perfect for a first doll.
The Happy Bugs Stacker is certainly a hit with Elodie. She tends to play with the bugs individually rather than with the stacker but I’m sure as she gets older and her skill level increases she will learn to play with the toy in the manner it was intended.
The Tippitoes Boost Trike is and excellent, robust, first trike that offers comfort, safety and best of all fun! The only real problem we had was getting Elodie off it when our trip to the park was over!
A real mixed bag. It’s ideal for the bottom of the age range if you can justify to yourself that playing video games is okay for the under-threes. However, it doesn’t really have enough to keep an active 3 year old interested.
Set in the wonderful seaside world of Sunnysands, where the sun always shines and characters abound, this gently amusing programme reaches parts no other children’s TV programme can quite reach. It’s unique charm is the way it manages to bring nostalgia up-to-date and dispense liberal quantities of feel-good factor.
The ELC Twistasaurus would make a great gift for an under three. This dinosaur stacking toy kept Toddler Boy (2.5 years) amused for a fairly long time and even attracted baby Fifi (9 months). It seems a reasonable price for what it is, and I would definitely buy it for others.
This Castle has provided me with some unexpected “alone” time and has kept my girls’ imaginations running wild for hours at a time. It is terrific for both individual and group play and has everything your little ones need to rule their very own playroom. Although a little pricey it is very well made and I feel it will stand the test of time, unlike many plastic versions that are currently on the market.
The Jojo Maman Bebe animal cubes are a really good value for money set – the design really is gorgeous, and the addition of the patterns and numbers mean that these can be used for education as well as fun as your little one gets older – a great idea.
These Travelling Souk wooden earth worms for babies look lovely. I’m a sucker for nice wooden toys and would probably have a houseful of them, if I could afford it. And it’s nice to get a toy for a baby that does something other than rattle, squeak or make some kind of annoying noise!
If you’re looking for a reasonably priced stocking filler or present for a young baby, this is a great option – bright, colourful and gorgeously tactile, and able to be used on prams, cots and baby gyms. A fab toy and I like toys that seem ‘educational’ not just cute.
I love the way this set brings the story to life. On more than one occasion I’ve seen Little S acting out the story on his own. He particularly enjoys saying, ‘chinny, chin, chin’ and acting out the part where the wolf goes down the chimney into the boiling water, although I’m not sure if that’s a good thing! My children have already had lots of enjoyment out of this toy. It would make a lovely gift for young
children but consider buying a proper book to go with it.
“Not another doll?” was my husband’s first response when Melanie the rag doll arrived in our house, but i was actually quite pleased as she was a welcome relief to the mountain of crying plastic dolls strewn across the play room. Melanie comes complete with pretty blond plaited pig tails, pink gingham pyjamas and a giant smile, she’s soft and very cuddly.
We do absolutely love these new Chan Pie Gnon teethers from Vulli as toys and people have commented on how cool they are. They are definitely worth having, but as teethers we prefer Sophie the Giraffe, mainly as its legs and head are a lot easier for her to get in her mouth
It’s cute. Simple as that, and little ones can’t help but like it. It came really well packaged in a beautiful presentation box, and we enjoyed being able to attach it everywhere and anywhere! Since we have had our Sleepytot, we have seen Sleepytots everywhere – they must be the must have comforter! It’s not surprising though. The Sleepytot comforter is lovely: beautifully made and comes in a fabulous little gift box. Top marks from us.
The My First Lacing Tools set is a lovely present for a young child, and one that gives you a lot of toy for your money. It’s going to get lots of play, and is robust enough to still be around for the next child.
Bambini beads make a lovely gift for children aged 3 and above, and I’d buy them for boys or girls, which is a refreshing change. It’s an educational toy, but so much fun to play with, too! Great value for money and it’s so popular in our house.
The Silver Cross Rufus Rabbit shape sorter is a lovely toy: it looks funky and definitely keeps BG’s attention. A great toy to grow with, and a perfect gift for new babies and toddlers.
Ella is thrilled with My Pal Violet and with the exception of the music options, I am very pleased with this product. My Pal Violet and My Pal Scout (the green version) are very popular and I would recommend My Pal Violet to any family and considering the cost (£15.99), it’s well worth it.
For a jigsaw this is excellent. It has large pieces that little hands can manage and is a nice way to teach your child about woodland animals while encouraging dexterity. If I could get over my loathing of jigsaws I am sure this would get a much higher mark.
great toy to use for a short time. If like me, you have a child that doesn’t like tummy time very much this will isn’t quite a miracle but in our house it was enough to keep a lively baby entertained for more minutes than usual, encouraging him to play on their tummy, and (hopefully) help him to strengthen those muscles!
The Baby Whoozit seems to be a perfect toy for a small baby, and one that will probably keep being of interest for a good few months, perhaps even past the crawling stage. There’s lots to explore, it’s beautifully made and a fantastic price. We love it!
The Noah’s Ark is a really nice, quality floor toy that would make an excellent present and you’re also helping a good cause when buying this toy. It kept my son entertained for ages. The Noah and wife figures even have magnets on their bottom and the top of the Noah’s Ark toy is magnetised so you can have all the animals inside and the people on top and act out a stormy sea scene!
The Vtech Animal Fun Bounce and Ride Giraffe is a popular toy with both our boys. It has been played with every day. It’s brilliant if you have no outdoor space, or for the winter when you don’t want to go outside!
If like me, you love playing these sorts of games with your kids, but would rather eat your own eyeballs than sing along to High School Musical, then Lego Rock Band for Wii is perfect. It couldn’t be any cooler – Iggy Pop does the game voiceovers! You can introduce your kids to Bowie, if you haven’t got around to it yet. I think overall Lego Rock Band is one of the better music games for the Wii, since it entertains kids and won’t offend the adults’ music sensibilities.
“Playmobil Pirates is a great, absorbing game for little swashbucklers, with some nice in-game features and extras to discover.”
A fabric covered photo album with six ‘frames’ to hold photos capturing the highlights of your baby’s first Christmas: Christmas morning, presents, family, dinner etc. The album is held closed by a velcro ribbon and each frame has a plastic insert to protect your photos and keep all your memories safe and sound.
Three excellent additions to the children’s TV stable, theses DVDs mean that you need never again be at the mercy of the CBeebies schedule. Each title is well over an hour long and – with extras – represents great value for money.
The Woolworths Vampire Costume is a budget buy with a lot for your money, but by no means the most spectacular costume I’ve seen and the quality is very disappointing. The pointy-eared headpiece and the cape are definitely the highlights of the set. But that’s only if you can persuade your toddler to keep them on!
I can’t think of any little girl who wouldn’t want one of these fluffy, original creations, the Halloween Pumpkin Tutu is the perfect present for any Princess or pumpkin worth their tutu and you’ll struggle to get them dressed into anything else!
Sure, the Kiddymania Medieval Princess Outfit is a little pricy, but the quality shows. I think this is well worth the money. If you have a little one like mine, with an active imagination, then this costume will be a big hit. I’m going to mention the quality again because I think this dress is exceptional – it looks like it will withstand some pretty serious Medieval play.
I’d definitely recommend The Adsa Pumpkin Fancy Dress Outfit if you’re looking for an outfit for a 2 year old or under. You’ll get lots of growing room and it’s certainly cute enough to make your little one the star of the night! I also felt it was great value for money for the price.
If you’re looking for a high-quality costume that won’t fall to bits, the Kids Army US Pilot Jumpsuit is for you. And it doesn’t hurt that my son looked completely, utterly adorable in it. Highly recommended.
The Kiddymania Dinosaur Dressing Up Outfit is something kids can play in for several years, which is a rarity among Halloween costumes. Little S can also testify that this is a GREAT costume for perfecting your roar in!
The Tesco Skeleton Kids Halloween Costume is really great value for money outfit and more substantial than some supermarket offerings. Definitely my favourite from the Tesco range this year.
The Fisher Price Rainforest Jumperoo is good fun for little tots with lots of variety for fun, stimulating play. But the novelty soon wore of for us, making it an expensive choice for such short term use.
The Naturally Playful Storybook Cottage Playhouse is a dream playhouse for any child, full of fantastic features and sturdy and big enough to last a long time. However, you might need to smile sweetly at the Grandparents to afford the hefty price tag!
The VTech Push and Sing Tricycle is not an expensive toy, but I expected more from a name like VTech, and I think it’s really not something that will be played with for hours on end. Could do better!
In our house getting hold of a phone is the Holy Grail for babies and toddlers, and this phone does the job. Our 12-month-old plays with it every day, for a few minutes at least, although he doesn’t make use of all the toys features – which makes it rather expensive, especially since the two-year-old would rather talk into a piece of Duplo than into this phone!
This is a really good buy. From a parent point of view, it’s great quality, well made, and a reasonable price. From a baby point of view, there’s lots of colour, textures and activities, plus plenty of room for rolling around.
My little boy loved it from day one, and is actually sat in it as I type, happily bashing the toys and chatting to himself in the mirror. It’s a really lovely chair – comfortable and entertaining without breaking the bank.
This set is well made and a great first Playmobil set for young children. However once you have rocked the dinosaur and slid the figures down the slide a few times there is not much else to do. I would buy a couple of different sets in the range to get maximum enjoyment out of it.
A good Christmas or birthday present for your own child, but if your budget is tight they might be a good suggestion to the grandparents!
