Unique Gift Ideas for Kids of All Ages
(Posted on Wednesday, January 12, 2022)
This post is sponsored by Hahaland.
I am always on the lookout for unique, fun, and educational gift ideas for my own children and for birthday celebrations. I was so happy when Hahaland let me try out some of their products and “best-ever” toys. Their products are of great quality and are functional and fun! I love that I can find toys for all ages in one place.
Let’s be honest, we use screen time in our home and I don’t regret that, but I do love when I come across a toy that allows for screen-free play. We can all use a little bit of balance in our lives.
Here are some of our favorites, sorted by age level. I hope you find them as awesome as we do!
Bonus, save $10 on Orders $65+ with code Lauren10 at Hahaland.
Baby/ Six Months Plus
This sippy cup with spout and weighted straw is great for smoothly transitioning baby from the bottle to a cup. We have found that a soft sippy spout more resembles the bottle which can help baby more easily get used to the feel of a cup. At 8 months plus, the straw cup (which is also included) can be used as well. The straw is weighted, which means that baby can be in any position to drink. Little ones are used to holding a bottle upright to drink, but a typical straw cup does not allow for this option. The weighted straw allows them to get used to the feeling of the straw more easily by drinking from any position. I love that this cup comes with attachments for both options, as a straw cups can support speech development and help little ones build muscles in the mouth. Measurements are also still included on the side of the cup to help manage feeding as well. Win!
Toddler/ Preschool Ideas
Paint with Water Flash Cards Toddler Puzzles are perfect for toddlers and preschoolers. I love educational toys as who doesn’t love having fun while learning? These cards have so many neat features. First, realistic images of fruits and vegetables are featured to use as flash cards to help with language development. The cards also function as small puzzles which help with motor coordination. For added fun, the front of the card features a magic water drawing activity. Fill the included pen with water, and little ones can paint to magically show what each fruit or vegetable can become. I love how this encourages children to think about cause and effect relationships. This is a great Montessori activity.
The Race Tracks Car Adventure Toy Playset has been a huge hit in our home for all of our children (ages 3, 6, and 8). They have spent hours playing with this toy. Little ones use their hands to activate different buttons along the bottom of the toy to make the cars move through obstacles along the path. At first it was fun just figuring out how the buttons worked and in what order. Now, the kids are working on keeping all three cars moving around the track at the same time. The playset helps build hand-eye coordination as well as motor skills. This is a great screen-free, electronic-free toy which provides endless entertainment.
Whole Family Fun
The LED Titanic Ship 3D Puzzle is hours of fun for the entire family. If you are looking for a scree-free activity for the whole family, this is it! We worked on this 3D puzzle together. We worked a couple of hours a day, and it took us about eight hours to complete (even with little hands helping). My six and eight year olds really enjoyed this challenge. With adult help, they were easily able to participate. I am amazed at how seamless this 3D puzzle was to put together. It looks like it would be very difficult, but it wasn’t. We just followed the directions exactly and were careful when punching out the pieces and it came together perfectly.
I cannot believe the details in this ship. They are intricate and beautiful. The pieces came together so perfectly that it seemed like magic. The finished product is 34.6 inches long and includes working LED lights. It looks beautiful on display. We will display it in our home, which will remind us of all of the fun we had together. This would make a perfect gift for a child, teen, family, grandparent, really for anyone. If you have a child who loves puzzles, this is a unique activity they will surely enjoy.
Remember, you can save $10 on Orders $65+ with code Lauren10 at Hahaland.
Do you have a favorite? Which product do you like best? Share it in the comments.
To learn more about. me and my blog, check out: About Lauren
You may also enjoy: 30 Plus Fun Craft and Activity Ideas for Kids with Household Items or What Makes a “Good” Parent
Top Educational Toys for Babies and Toddlers: Play to Learn
(Posted on Thursday, December 5, 2019)
Looking for a fun AND educational gift for a baby or toddler? Look no further! We have found the perfect Block Set and monthly Play Kits from Lovevery, a child development toy company! Their goal, much like my goal here on this blog, is to “help every parent feel confident.” Their play products “are designed by child development experts and distilled to their simplest, purest purpose: to be exactly what children need at each stage.”
As a Lovevery affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases. You can count on me only recommending products which I know and love!
First, check out Lovevery’s amazing Block Set which is fun for all ages!
Did you know blocks teach children about structure, balance, physics and math in a way that no other toy can? They provide a foundation for early learning. Early experiences with blocks help children develop spatial, language, cognitive, and problem-solving skills!
The Lovevery block set is the most comprehensive block set ever! It comes with an activity guide which shows us exactly how we can play with blocks with our children at each and every stage.
I didn’t realize just how much my children loved blocks, until we received this set and I was able to check out the accompanying guide which showed me ideas of how children can use blocks in play at each age and stage. These blocks are now a go-to for my one, four, and six year old, and we have spent hours playing with them.
There are so many ways to learn with these blocks:
Explore cause and effect, force, magnetism, velocity, and gravity by rolling the wheels down a hill.
Plan ahead and reach a goal by making a car or wagon.
The magnetic wheels make it super fun and easy.
Develop fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination at the same time. and experiment with pattern play by threading beads.
Learn about rhythm by making music.
Upon opening the box, my littlest one immediately began drumming with the sticks and dancing along.
Learn how to sort and categorize—and how things fit together spatially by sorting shapes.
Practice equilibrium by finding how things stack, balance, or fall.
Use the wooden people/ figurines to imagine, talk about feelings, and even build empathy.
When they are a little older, build confidence, strength and balance by setting up a small hurdle to jump over!
Plus make paths, count towers, make letters, sculpt feelings, build a house, or a city… the options are endless.
I started playing with these with my youngest, and soon, my older two had jumped in.
My son (4) cannot get enough of engineering different buildings and using the magnetic portion of the wheels to make all kinds of fun creations (you can see one of his creations above). My oldest daughter (6) loves to set up the blocks to make a store, a restaurant, and a house, and then play with the doll shaped blocks included. She has since even added in her own little dolls for more play.
I would highly recommend the Lovevery Block Set to any parent. What a great set of blocks which will grow with your child! The set would also be a great gift for a toddler or even for a baby shower… baby’s first set of blocks!
Another favorite from Lovevery is their monthly subscription Montessori-based Play Kits!
We have tried “The Companion Play Kit” for our 22 month old. This box is full of toys designed for toddlers to use from 22 to 24 months of age. I am sure we will use these toys well beyond when my littlest turns 24 months.
The kit has been perfect for our little one. She can use all of the toys now, and there are so many ways she can continue to grow by using and playing with each.
Included in the Play Kit is a play guide. Here is a snippet from the guide under, “Real Life is Where It’s At”:
“Right now, her brain is craving real-world experiences: she wants to be involved with whatever exists around her and use her developing senses to understand what things are and how they work. She wants to take in the smell of the laundry soap, tip the cup over and watch how the thick liquid pours into the machine, open and close the dryer door over and over, feel the dampness of clean laundry, work to pull warm, dry clothes out herself, and heap them in a basket.”
This is another reason I love the company, Lovevery, so much! Did you hear that? Toddlers are happy and learn SO much by just doing what we are doing and helping us! No more guilt for doing chores over playing with our children. They are learning just as much from simply working along side us.
In addition to descriptions and guides for every toy in the box, which teach multiple ways to play, there is an entire section on “Real Life Play.” In this section, many additional activities are shared which you can complete with regular household items!
Check out all the ways these toys teach:
Stemming from my school counseling background, I just love a toy that teaches! And, these toys teach in so many ways!
Learn about executive functions and learn to control impulse behavior by playing pretend with Little Quinn.
Show your toddler routines can happen even in unfamiliar places with the “Bea Gets a Checkup” Book.
Learn about perceiving, categorizing, and comparing with the Animal Match.
I love that this activity can help practice animal sounds, which are the beginning of language. You can also practice matching from left to right, to train the eye for when your child eventually starts to read!
Practice “coloring” with the Carry-Along Kit.
And, the accompanying stickers help your toddler work on the pincer grasp too!
Practice Bilateral Coordination with the Buckle Barrel.
This neat tool teaches using both hands together, finger dexterity, the pincer grasp, and hand-eye coordination as your child buckles and unbuckles!
Teach sizes, stacking, and transfer objects using the Stacking Dripdrop Cups, Tweezers and Felt Stars.
These cups are fun to stack and also encourage water play! Transferring the felt stars with the tweezers helps develop fine motor skills and concentration as well! Triple win!
Strengthen the muscles and skills needed for writing with the Mosaic Button Board.
Use simple two-piece puzzles to help your toddler learn what puzzles are all about!
Or, use the chunky puzzle to teach spatial skills! Lovevery shares that early puzzle skills are a predictor of spatial skills in preschoolers! You will find lots of tips like this in the play guide!
Learn how to process and manage emotions by reading the book, “Graham Turns Two.”
There you have it! A Lovevery Play kit is an excellent gift idea for any baby, toddler, or mom! Or, subscribe and receive a box full of educational toys every two months (babies) or three months (toddlers) for you and your little one. Who doesn’t love high quality, educational toys to explore with their baby or toddler? I would highly recommend the company, their toys, and their amazing play guides which help us moms feel confident as we raise our little ones into who they will one day become!
Shop Lovevery now, by clicking here!
To learn more about me and my blog, check out: About Lauren
You may also enjoy: Are Parents Setting Themselves Up to Fail? Or 10 Things I’ve Learned From My Parenting “Mistakes”