Here are some great ideas if you have a toddler on your shopping list this Christmas. These gifts are also a great place to start for 1st & 2nd and even 3rd Birthday Inspiration.
1. L.L. Bean Fleece Toddler Slippers
You will love these little fleece slippers because not only are they super cozy and warm, but they have a nice cuff to stay on those little feet a lot better than most of the other toddler slippers I have come across. The real bonus in our house is that they work well on hardwood floors, preventing our active little girl from slipping. They actually remind me of some slippers that I used to have as a child. They come in blue and pink and range in sizing from Toddler sizes 3- 10.
Notice: Some gifts contain smaller parts and I am providing you with these recommendations but I cannot ensure your child’s safety. Parents should make that judgement call on their own. Also, as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases made using some of the links I provide at no additional cost to you.
2. Play Kitchens
Play kitchens are so much fun. And yes, they are for girls and boys! There are so many options out there. You can usually even pick up a nice one used on Marketplace if you want to save some money and your toddler will love it just as much. I fell in love with this particular kitchen because I felt like it would look nice, which is important to me considering it will be set up in my main living space for 1/2 the year (Our screen porch is our playroom when weather allows). So, I want to enjoy looking at it. I also love the planter boxes for pretending to grow planters and herbs and the chalk board! My daughter was ready for a Kitchen at around 18 months, and she will get this one for Christmas when she is 21 months old.
3. Melissa & Doug Food Groups
I bought this play food to go along with her kitchen, and while the package remains unopened, I can already tell that I love the quality of the hand painted wooden pieces. There are 4 separate wooden crates included to sort out the different food groups, and they are pretty small so should store easily in her new kitchen. These would be fun for a toddler to have with or without a kitchen.
4. Melissa & Doug Fill & Roll Grocery Basket
Anyone else recognizing a theme here? This grocery basket is a cool gift in itself, but I am theming this Christmas around my daughter’s new kitchen and since she does a great job “helping” me when we are grocery shopping, I thought it might be fun to pretend to do that at home too! It comes with some groceries in the basket like spaghetti, tacos and canned goods which will be nice to have with the kitchen. The handle extends to roll or can be pushed down to carry like a basket.
5. Mega Bloks
12 months and up are perfect for legos/blocks in my opinion. My daughter enjoyed watching us build with these Mega Bloks at 12 months and helping out here and there. It wasn’t until around 18 months that she really started building on her own. And now look at what she can create! Joking… my husband loves these too.
6. Magnetic Tile Blocks
You will find all kinds of different brands on the market. I have played with many of them, and for the toddlers I like these ones with the rounded edges. At this age I don’t think you need to run out and buy the most expensive and popular brands of magnet tiles on the market. I picked these up for my daughter when she about 12 months old and she really took off with these around 18 months. I know kids love these up until age 3, 4 and even older and maybe if it is their thing at that that age you can buy the super cool expensive brands that are out there. I love playing with these too! Some of the sets on the market come with some smaller pieces, so I just take those away and leave out the larger pieces for everyday play.
Also, since magnets can be dangerous for little ones to swallow if toys like this become broken, play with magnet tiles should always be well supervised and may not be the right choice for little ones who like to put everything in their mouths!
7. Fisher Price Little People Nativity Set
Fisher Price Little People are a great gift idea. In the interest of Christmas, I am recommending this Little People nativity set, but I actually recommend any Little People gifts because the kids seem to love them. Last Christmas we were visiting family and their little girl used a kids nativity set to tell us the story of Christmas and I was so impressed. I decided then and there that I wanted my daughter to be able to do the same.
8. Pottery Barn Anywhere Flip Sofa
Toddlers love having their own chairs. I bought this flip couch to keep in her room but now I drag it all over the house depending on the day. Pictured here in my office, she relaxes and “reads” some books while I get some work done. Flip it out for a nap or just for relaxing. I sit on it with her often in her room to read books. I have laid on it and I have napped on it. We have also used it for elementary school sized guests as a place to sleep- it’s comfy! I like how it fits into my decor when it lands itself a place in the living room. Pottery Barn offers monogramming too. Our sofa is well loved in this photo and I need to take the cover off and wash it soon and when I put it back together it will look good as new! They also sell a popular Anywhere chairs if you are looking for something smaller without the flip out functionality.
9. Laura Numeroff Books
My toddler is obsessed with these books. She received them for her 1st birthday and the stories are really fun to read and lots of great pictures to look at. I am attaching a 6 book set because you will end up buying them all individually anyway, might as well consider buying them all at once to begin with. Great gift idea!
10. Yeti Rambler Junior Cup
If you have read my previous post on gift ideas for adults, you probably already know that I love Yeti products! It’s fun to pull out a new cup once in a while and most toddlers like trying new ones out. Few of us parents are going to want to spend $30 on a single cup for our kids, but chances are if our kids were to receive this cup as a gift, it would be well loved.
11. Baby Einstein Magic Touch Piano
Any toddler will love this Magic Piano– I don’t have this one but I am interested in purchasing it for my toddler. It has excellent reviews, check it out!
12. Triangular crayons
Toddlers love drawing and coloring and moms and dads love when the crayons don’t roll off of the table. These crayons are washable too, but I can’t comment on how that works quite yet. Excellent stocking stuffer!
13. Coloring Book
Any coloring book is a win, but you definitely want one like this with nice big letters, shapes, etc. I am sharing this one because I think it is the perfect first coloring book and is excellent for learning numbers, shapes, letters, animals, colors etc and it is easy for them to color.
14. Foam Alphabet for Bath
Bathtime can be learning time too! My daughter plays with these foam letters in the tub, we rotate different letters all the time and we have been keeping things simple and working on just the letters in her name lately. They stick right to the wall when wet and are easy to move around and rearrange. The letters pop out (kind of small but bathtime is always well-supervised of course). These are also great for learning animals and sea creatures.
15. Step 2 Creation Art Center
I love this so much if only I had a house with a dedicated playroom, then I would certainly purchase this for my daughter. It truly is a great concept if you have the right space for it. Seems like a great way to keep all arts and crafts supplies together and organized in one location perfect for creating.
16. Baby Shark Puppet
Have you met a toddler who doesn’t love Baby Shark (Do Do Do Do Do Do)? My daughter is obsessed. Any baby shark toy is probably a safe bet for this age group. We tried this toy out in the store and almost brought it home… but I have hit my max for Christmas gifts for her and we do already have a singing baby shark toy at home. We bring that little toy with us everytime we’re going for professional photos to make her smile!
17. Magnetic Drawing Board
My toddler uses this drawing board every day. This is the travel size, but I think it is the perfect size for every day and also a great size to throw in her bag and bring along. It comes with some stamps but I took those away because I felt that the pieces were too small.
18. Crayola My First Finger Paint for Toddlers
It’s time to start finger painting! This washable finger paint kit is a good place to start, comes with paper too. I would suggest buying this long sleeve art smock to go with it.
19. Lego Duplo My First Puzzle pets
This is a cute starter kit for legos, and what I like most about them it its easy enough to pack up one or 2 of the puzzle pets for on the go.
20. Wooden Peg Puzzles
These puzzles are one of the ways that my daughter learned all of her animals first, and now at 20 months we focus more on fitting the pieces of the puzzle where they go. The pegs are really helpful for them to pick up wht pieces and to place them onto the puzzle. It comes in a set of 3 different puzzles. Note: The puzzle pieces themselves are not wooden, just the pegs, but I still think these are great puzzles!