I struggled with whether or not I wanted to do a gift guide for just babies or for kids in general because I know wayyy more about babies. Plus with the kids in my life I tend to gift ~experience~ or activity type things…like we always do a day out with my nieces and take them out to eat and do something fun. Same with the boys I nanny. I’ve also made them craft boxes so that we have something to DO during the day especially in the winter. So I have zero idea of what the HOT toy items are (except I keep seeing those fingerling things) so I was doubting my skills but then I thought I have enough experience to know what the kids in my life like and actually spend time doing so I can totally do this list!
Check out the rest of my gift guides for more inspiration: Gift Guide For The Book Lover In Your Life, Gift Guide For The Harry Potter Fan, Gift Guide For (Almost) Everyone On Your List
Some Ideas For The Kids In Your Life
My Giant Busy Box: I can’t tell you how many times I’ve purchased these sets from this brand (they seriously have SO MANY) and do them with the kids I nanny. I’m actually going to get these for my nieces this year.
Build Your Own Robot: I thought I was kind of settled on what I was getting the boys I nanny and the nieces but this is super cute!
Hedbanz game: I actually got this for the boys I nanny this year (still trying to figure out what else I’m getting them..some sort of science kit I’m sure). I saw a couple moms in an online mom group I’m in suggest it for someone crowdsourcing for game ideas and I checked it out and it looks like something the boys would be into because it could get silly for sure!
Hearth & Hand Dollhouse: Is it weird that *I* want this dollhouse from Chip & Joanna’s line for Target?? It’s beautiful!
Make Your Own Superhero Cape: HOW FUN! They also have mermaid tails too!
Paint A Birdhouse — I do a lot of this kind of stuff with the boys I nanny and it’s always fun for them to be creative and paint things. I sometimes bring out stickers and or things to glue on for even more fun. This brand has other things like a butterfly house or a bird feeder. I think the bird feeder would be fun because I know the boys would be excited to put it outside and feed the birds!
Family Fun Bucket List: HOW FUN IS THIS?!?! Great memory making!
Play Castles/Cottages/Clubhouse: Right now the boys I nanny are super into making forts and clubhouses — every day it’s a new thing that we make with blankets and chairs and pillows and whatever else we can find. Sometimes it’s their spy fort, sometimes they pretend it’s work/home, some days they just like to hang out in the fort with some books or their Leapfrog. I think this is SO FUN. I can imagine all the creative play they would do with this! Melissa and Doug also have some fun ones!
Stop motion Claymation Kit: This is super unique!
Bookroo: A book subcription box for kids! Pick between board books or picture books!
Fun Subscription Boxes from Kiwi Co: This is another thing I’m contemplating getting for the kids I nanny this year! The love doing projects like this! I love that there is a box for every age group! If you don’t want to do the monthly subscription thing, I think this Tinkerbox is similar and fun!
Little Passports: This is so great for kids who are interested in learning about the world! It’s a fun subscription box that a couple moms I know rave about! The one boy I nanny actually just saw a commercial for it on tv and was like “ooh that looks fun!”…pretty sure he was trying to hint to their Elf on the Shelf haha.
Stem Club Toy Subscription: I’m a big fan of STEM stuff for the boys I nanny and my nieces! This looks cool..I found it when I accidentally clicked on it while perusing for something else!
Butterfly Growing Kit: The boys I nanny did this at preschool and requested one for home that the fill-in nanny did with them while I was on maternity leave! They loved it so much and I got MANY picture updates because they didn’t want me to miss out.
Art Set: We got this for my niece (who was 9 at the time) who was super into drawing and everything and she LOVED it!
Anything Steve Spangler science: Seriously awesome stuff for the kids who like doing experiments and making stuff and learning!
Googly Eyes Game: This game is pretty fun, not going to lie!
Craft Box: I put together a craft box for the boys I nanny for Christmas a couple of years ago and this is what I’m doing for my nieces. I put together all sorts of things I could find at Michaels or Amazon that were easy things they could create and make artwork with. All things that they really didn’t need help to do. I put it in a bin and put a bunch of stuff like this set of pipe cleaners/pompoms/googly eyes, construction paper, wooden craft sticks, paint, etc. etc. Basically whatever I could find that looked fun for them to do something creative with. If you don’t feel like putting one together, check out this pre-made one or this one.
Also (for any age group):
Memberships to museums & zoos, etc.
Class Passes — Swim classes, music classes, Little Gym, anything like that!
Hooded Towels: We have so many of these from different brands and they are wonderful! Nothing is cuter than a baby in an animal hooded towel. I’m just saying. We also love the Hudson Baby ones and they have so many different animals! I want the unicorn one for Riley so badly!!
Coffee Cup Teether: Will and I saw this when we were perusing Bed Bath and Beyond one day and I thought it was cute! Now mama and baby can have their lattes in hand!
Copper Pearl Bandana Bibs: We LOVE these! We have a few sets (including this particular one) and they are great for our drooly baby and so cute/stylish and SOFT!
Wrist & Foot Rattles: I love these! Riley always had fun with these! Helps them discover their feet and hands and learn cause and effect ie if I move my hand like this then the noise happens!
Manhattan Skwish Toy: This one is so fun! A friend of mine has it for her kid and so I added this to Riley’s Christmas list for my family! It’s fun to squish down and it’s great for teething, grasping and the little beads rattle! It’s kind of mesmorizing! Honestly I just love so many of the Manhattan Toy brand!
Sassy Developmental Ball: Probably one of Riley’s favorite toys so far! So much to explore tactile-wise when they are little and I’m sure she will have fun with this ball even when she’s older.
ItyBity Teething Necklace: We aren’t sure if Riley is teething or if it’s just the stage where everything goes in their mouth because that’s how they explore and learn about the world BUT she’s been going to town on these!
Shape Sorter: Riley’s still a little ways out for this toy but I LOVE shape sorters in general and I think this one is darling! I also think this owl one is cute too!
Melissa & Doug Fruit Cutting Set: They have so many others of these but I picked the fruit one! THESE (not this brand I don’t think) ARE A HIT at the library I go to…literally all the kids fight over these/play with them endlessly. They all seem to love a pizza one a lot too. The food is velcro-ed in the middle so they can “cut” it with the knife! It’s really cute and I love watching all the ways the kids play with it. A couple of years ago we got my nieces the cookie set and they had so much fun with it!
Stacking Toy: There are so many different kinds of these but I think these are fun! I put them on Riley’s Christmas list!
Teether: I know everyone is gaga over the Sophie giraffe teether but I didn’t want to pay that much and thought this was a cute alternative!
Pound & Tap Bench with Slide Out Xylophone: What kid doesn’t love banging on things like this?? Maybe also buy the parents some earplugs?? 😛
Squeeze Blocks: My sister got these for Brody and I’m currently waiting for him to stop playing with them so we can have them! They are GREAT first blocks for a kid plus you can put them in the bath and I like toys that serve many purposes!
Woodland Gift Crate: An adorable gift set for a new baby — comes with a cute fawn blankie, a mushroom rattle and a book!
Wooden Rattle: I’m just really a fan of wooden rattles more than plastic or anything else like that! Especially when I’m gifting I like to get things that are aesthetically pleasing as well and maybe something different than what they might already have!
Unicorn Lovey: I’ve been thinking about introducing a lovey like this to Riley because she really seems to love stuffed animals! This one has been one of my favorites through all my searching thus far!
MagnaTiles: So the boys I nanny have been obsessed with these FOR YEARS — they are very serious about building with them now at 4 and 6 — but they liked them even when they were a bit younger. I had a playdate with my nieces and the boys I nanny and THEY were obsessed with these as well. Way too young for Riley for me to buy them right now but boy does she love playing with them (and sticking them in her mouth obviously)! Honestly *I* even have a lot of fun playing and building with these with the boys. I love opened ended play and I can say we’ve done everything and more with these! We’ve built towns and spaceships and mansions and you name it.
Activity Loop Rocker: We have a couple of activity cubes for her already (thanks to my sister) but if I were buying one I would be getting this one in addition to those. It’s different with the base that rocks!
Hopalong Rabbit Pull Toy: I am obsessed with this! I was looking on Anthropologie for stuff for ME and I saw this….it all comes back to Riley!
Wobbly Stacker: I know I already put a stacker on this list but I love this one so much I can’t not put it on!
On the Farm Soft Stacker: YEP ANOTHER STACKER. But I think these are just darling and I like a soft stacker too!
Multicolored Train: This is so cute!!
What are your go-to kid/baby gifts?? Tell me! I’m going to need lots of ideas in the coming years between my own kid and my nieces and nephews!
[Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links which means that if you click on a link and purchase something I’ve talked about or recommended, I’ll receive a very small percentage of the sale. Please see my disclosure policy for more info.
I plan on doing a books for kids gift guide but in the meantime…here are some books Riley and I love to read!
megan says
So many great ideas on this list! We had a subscription to the tinker crate for a while and LOVED it. I also love the idea of a craft box with open ended materials. My daughter is sitting at the dinning room table right now making some kind of something with a glue gun, colored glow sticks, and stencils.
My go to toddler gift is pegs and a foam pegboard. It sounds lame, but in the 10 years that I worked in early intervention I never met a kid who didn’t love them. My favorite gift for older kids is a family board game. Our family favorites are Blink!, Splendor, Uno, Dixit, and Sorry.
Kristi says
We have so many of these already!! You’re going to have so much fun with Riley as she gets older! I mean don’t wish the time away bee cause they grow so fast! But you know what I mean. My four year old wanted to let you know, you forgot the Vampirina Scare BnB on your list though!
Camilla says
I wish I knew what to give mine. For this Christmas, I’ve already bought a few things, among them a little wagon (?). Sorry, English isn’t my first language. My twins, who will be two in January, tire of their toys so quickly and just throw them into a corner. Also, they seem to prefer big toys over smaller ones.
Alegra Loewenstein says
YES! I LOVE giving experiences, too! Membership to a zoo or botanical garden, or gift cards for ice cream (maybe paired with a few kitchen additions like popsicle makers or ice cream bowls…). It gets harder as the kids get older and busier, though!!!! As far as things go… LEGO all the way!!!! Ages 3-10 this is pretty solid for most kids 🙂 Also magnatiles and wooden marble track have had years of action in our house. I get rid of almost everything that is not used often.