Best Toys For Babies 0 to 12 months - List & Online Links
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| traditional building blocks |
This age is incredibly cute - she reaches for things all the time, people around her or randomly yesterday, the side of her car seat while I was holding her. I am enjoying this curious, expressive phase. Currently, I am also starting to feel she's either outgrowing or getting bored of the toys she has. We're really into only about three or four at the moment, so I think she might be fed up with them. Is that possible? She tires of the play gym quicker and bashes harder and noisily at the toys hanging, as if to say, these old things again? Haha. It might just be in my head, but some variety won't hurt, and toys are the one area I have been quite strict about not going overboard with, perhaps to an extreme.
I started a search for toys to add to our collection, two days ago, and within minutes I was literarily dizzy; each site offers a wide variety, with little guidance on which are key. I really wanted someone to tell me which toys to get so I was pretty happy to discover this list of fifteen toys for baby's first year, to promote development. The Mama OT (Occupational Therapy) blog article re-focused and energised me. Mama OT has carefully selected fifteen toys for baby's first year, and explains what skills each one helps to develop, what age it's suitable for and where you can buy it in store and online. She is based in the United States so her links take you to the US stores.
For her full list of toys, I have provided links to UK sites (mostly Amazon.co.uk). That way, you can buy the same toy or it's equivalent, by following the links below. These would all make great gifts for a new Mum or great baby shower gifts too.
1. Baby Gym
Baby Einstein Nautical Friends Play Gym £39.99 Fisher Price Rainforest Gym £59.99
I have updated this to include the Baby Einstein and Fisher Price options. These two are your 'traditional' play gym which include a mirror, hanging toys etc. They also seem to be the highly rated by Mums.
Lamaze Spin & Explore Garden Gym £25
I am considering getting this two in one product - containing play mat and baby spinning element. Baby Coco only likes tummy time for a few minutes before she gets upset. I hope the spinning element will mean the mat holds her attention and gives her a longer tummy time session. If she doesn't like the spinning I will simply take it off and use the mat as is.
Ikea Leka Play gym £20
I explained my love for this in this Montessori post. Coco loves batting the toys, pulling them and hitting the toys on the side too. The toys on the side should be quite useful for learning to roll over too.
2. Plastic Links
First steps 8 piece textured learning links £3.89
My worry with these, is that it says it's appropriate for 12 months plus on Amazon. I wonder if that is because it could be a choking hazard as the links look quite small. That said, two of the reviewers on Amazon have mentioned that they started using them at four months and Mamaot (per link above), who has experience working as a Pediatric Occupational Therapist for kids 0-3years, has tagged the links for ages 0 -12 months. Perhaps just be quite mindful, if you have these around your baby.
3. Mirror
Infantino Gaga Mirror £11.99
There was quite a selection available on Amazon, but I picked what looked to me like the best for under £15. There is also quite a variety of mirrors for the car available on the site.
4. OBall with rattle
Rhino Toys OBall with rattle £4
This looks like its the exact same as the one in the article.
5. Sophie the Giraffe
The original £11.96
The teether £8.99
We have the original and have just started getting into chewing it in the last three/four weeks. I really liked the look of the teether too but it wasn't available in store when I was looking to buy oso I got the original instead.
6. Set of small bath squeeze toys
Lovely Mummy baby rubber race £2.79
These were the closest alternatives I could find. The one complaint reviewers had was mould - they would squeeze the rubber duckies and black goes liquid poured out. There are tips for how to clean them out occasionally to prevent that here. Or at that price, you could buy two or three sets and throw out the old ones once they become mouldy.
7. Set of small rattle balls
Bright starts activity balls £6
This looks like its the exact same one at Mama OT's article.
8. Busy ball drops
Busy ball drop £38.46
This looks like its the exact same one at Mama OT's article.
9. Board books
Waterstones do a good collection of baby books split into categories such as bath books, buggy books, sound books etc. It includes the 'Thats not my...' series. We have one of those, and it's good fun.
10. High chair suction toy
Mamas and Papas baby snug activity tray £14.95
Sassy Fascination Station £8.10
The Sassy seems to be the more popular of the two going by review numbers - 143, with a rating (on average) of 4 out of 5 stars. There seemed to be quite a few complaints about the suction not working as well as you would expect, though.
11. Soft crinkly blocks
Bright starts grab and stack blocks £8
12. Ring stacker
Fisher Price brilliant basics rock-a-stack £8.19
13. Play table with removable legs
Tech baby learning activity table £14
14. Baby tool bench
Fisher price laugh and learn learning tool bench £22.07
Chico talking carpenter £19.99
15. Push toy for sitting, standing and walking
Tech baby first steps baby walker £29
Chico baby steps activity walker £29
Phew. How I plan to use this list, is to go through and pick say, five to use between now and the next few months, based on what skills I think she has yet to develop or which toys we do not currently have or simply what might be fun for us! I will return to the list in two/three months, and select another few.
What do you think? Which ones sound or are in you experience, a waste of money? Do you think your baby needs all fifteen toys or even more? What is missing from this list?
Happy Friday Eve
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Best Toys For Babies 0 to 12 months - List & Online Links
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