J.P.
I really like the baby einstein excersaucer that I have for my daughter - and also the little jumper thing that hangs from the door way - they are GREAT!!!
Hi, moms! My son will be 4 months old at Christmas. My older child is 8, and so it's been a long time since I've shopped for baby toys/activities. He has very few toys/activities...a swing and a bouncer seat, basically. I'm in need of ideas for Christmas gifts for him (I have grandparents wanting ideas!)...so I'm wondering...what toys could you and your baby of this age not live without? Thanks!
I really like the baby einstein excersaucer that I have for my daughter - and also the little jumper thing that hangs from the door way - they are GREAT!!!
I would think ahead to what you want him to have between Christmas and his next birthday - blocks, donut stackers, shape sorters, books of a simple nature, etc. All the "basic" stuff that you may or may not still have around. Baby will not know the difference if you put the things in a closet after christmas day until he is ready to play with them and it will make your life much easier than buying things as he gets ready for them. I had 1 kiddo that was 5 mos old her first Christmas and that is what we did...big nursery rhyme keepsake book and a donut stacker- similar from family. Other kiddo was only 1.5 mos his first Christmas but I still had all the stuff from #1 (they are 17 mos apart) so we asked for all BOY CLOTHES since we knew it was a girl the first time around.
Congrats on your new little babe.
I love the idea of savings bonds as well - I was so happy when I was older and able to cash those in.
For people who really want to get him toys and things to enjoy now though, I sell Discovery Toys and have a few that I love for babies. You can view all of my toys at http://www.discoverytoyslink.com/karenchao Below are a few of my favorites. Also, we sell some that your 8 year old might love too. I won't include those links, but feel free to send me a private message if you want recs or just see what's on the site!
Try-Angle: http://www.discoverytoyslink.com/esuite/control/product?P...
Go Go Caterpillar (for when he is ready to think about rolling around, crawling, etc): http://www.discoverytoyslink.com/esuite/control/product?P...
Baby Moves Gift Set (available as a set or you can buy these products individually): http://www.discoverytoyslink.com/esuite/control/product?P...
Super Yummy Teether (a perfect stocking stuffer!): http://www.discoverytoyslink.com/esuite/control/product?P...
Boomerings (not a toy, but they attach to most of the infant toys so you can hook them to the car seat, stroller, high chair, bouncer, etc and then the toys won't all fall on the floor when your son learns to throw them): http://www.discoverytoyslink.com/esuite/control/product?P...
Please let me know if you have questions about any of these. They really are great products and I'm definitely going to be buying some for my baby who was born on Tuesday. : )
K.
A savings account. College funds. Think ahead. You will never regret starting a college fund early. Also, this way when people ask in the future about birthday gifts and such, you can just point them to the savings account. Babies don't really need a lot of stuff.
At this point, it's less about the baby and more about what the parents might need for him. Christmas is always exciting when it comes to babies but at 4 months old....he hasn't a clue what is going on! Next year the fun and fanfare will all start and he'll get to enjoy it more and more as the years pass. When my kids were this old, I focused on what my babies would need down the road and things that would also help alleviate the financial stress of having a baby on myslef and my husband. One year in particular, we got the best gifts EVER.....cases of size appropriate diapers and formula from my brother, gift certificates to Toys R Us from my sister, babysitting coupons from my neices, a huge savings bond from my Grandma for the baby, and a pre-loaded Visa from my parents to go buy him anything that he needed from food to formula to clothes and bigger carseats. I loved it. Our baby was too young to know what was going on but he got the spoils of things purchased by my husband and I that he needed along the way. We also saved money because of the diapers and formula cases given to us and the savings bond went right into his savings account for college....it is something my Grandma did for our baby each year and I love her for that. He has a nest-egg and I like that!
How about tummy time toy like the mats like The Boppy Tummy Play Pad, or Infantino Play Time Activity Center. He's would have fun with those soon.
My firts and foremost suggestion for any age child is BOOKS,BOOKS,BOOKS. We suggest that parents begin to read to their child in the womb. Research shows that children who are read to will usually develop the love for reading. So for babies there is such a wide variety of wonderful books. Board books can be wiped off and perfect for little hands. You can never have too many books. Soft blocks that will grow with your child is another suggestion. Try to think of things that will grow with the child, hold their interest and invite imaginative play.Look for different textures for the baby to touch and feel so that he will have opportunity to find favorites and you can use for language development as he grows.(soft, hard, smooth, rough etc.)
He's really not going to care one way or another, at that age my son just liked to rip the wrapping paper. The one toy I really liked at that age was an activity bouncer or exersaucer. Also if you can ask for books & clothes, your family won't spend a ton of money on things your baby will outgrow in a few months. Have fun!
if your son is only 4 months old at christmas and people want to by (grandparents and aunts uncles, godparents) I would suggest savings bonds. A child that young really doesn't need much in the way of toys and the savings bonds will be something that they will use later that will jsut keep growing.
A walker or exersaucer.
Board books, blocks (soft and hard), a simple plastic stacker and balls, balls, balls are favorite toys of my 11 month old. We bought him an "O-ball" that has rattles in it and he can't get enough of it; he started by just holding it and rattling it - now he throws it to us and his big brother. Also, he loved the Manhattan toy Whoozit rattle and teething parts.
We loved these: Baby Einstein Entertainment Center, Baby Einstein Around the World Discovery Play Gym, Leapfrog Learn & Groove Musical Table, Fisher Price Jumperoo.