Wells turns 2.5 in January, so I consider him to be about that age for this Christmas when it comes to what gifts we are choosing for him.
I intentionally chose Christmas gifts that encourage his imagination.
He really enjoys building little worlds with his cars and trucks. I'm not all-in on the Montessori methods, but I want the pretend play, not the stimulation. We generally don't do toys that make noise (for my own sanity). He loves his little tool set and his crane and construction vehicles and he will happily play for 45 minutes by himself with those types of toys. We're not super into coloring right now, but he does like to paint. He can get involved in a puzzle if he wants to; same with books. Right now, he is anti-book and I haven't even been reading to him at bedtime. He yells "no book!" if I suggest it. He seems to prefer non-fiction and explanation, not stories. His favorite books (when he likes books) are about animals and vehicles. We've tried Disney movies and cartoons and he's just not into them right now. He loves Blippi and any cartoon that depicts how vehicles work or are put together (Leo the Inquisitive Truck or Ethan the Dump Truck).
I kept all that in mind when I made a gift list for Wells.
We go to a playground occasionally and he loves the slides. I bought this before I figured that out but I'm assuming this will keep him amused at times this winter. (Worth noting: I hate red, so I actually got the *last* green/blue one at the local Target. Woo hoo. There's a really pretty teal/green one too, but it's almost double the price and I wasn't sold on that aspect.)
I love the idea of getting him a play kitchen, but I didn't want to go forward with a kitchen set because he doesn't have much interest in the kitchen. He loves to follow me around when I'm vacuuming, with his pretend vacuum. This is from my parents. They just mailed it here so we don't have to haul it home next month.
We've gotten a lot of mileage out of the LP School and the LP Farm. This is perfect for him. I *think* my parents may have my old LP House...I'll have to check.
Time to work on the fine motor skills.
He loves to count and particularly loves shapes, and the idea/premise of these books by Danica McKellar is just the best.
I also got our 1 1/2 year old niece a busy board and the same math books.
He was never super into MegaBlocks and just likes the Duplos you can build vehicles with, like the fire truck and the tow truck. He's very into "building towers" so I thought more traditional blocks would be a good fit.
This was an impulse buy. Will be useful though, I'm sure.
He loves flashlights? And we never have one around when one is needed. So he and Scott are both getting a flashlight (or four).
Plus: Slippers! And new winter boots. And another water bottle. And some cups.
I know he's getting gifts from grandparents too, so that might be all for this year. I grabbed some water beads and kinetic sand and little crafty things, but we might be forgoing stocking stuffers and pulling all of that out to make it through December.
What do I need to get through a long winter at home with a two and a half year old?
Kinnetic sand and playdough entertain Zoe for a long time. I got Zoe one of those playdough kits I keep seeing around everywhere that come with lots of fun little things to decorate it with. They have some really cute boy kits with trucks, trains, dinosaurs, etc. I got Zoe a Christmas themed one for now...and then a Frozen one for Christmas. She legit played with it for at least 3 hours this morning alone.
ReplyDeleteStart him off young with that love of flashlights. It's a boy thing - for sure :)
ReplyDeleteHow fun! The twin nieces can spot a slide from a mile away and we always have to stop and play! Might need an inside tent/fort.
ReplyDeleteMy kids just loved that LP garage, along with the house and farm. He'll really enjoy it. Thanks for linking up with Prime Purchases! Tanya - The Other Side of the Road
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