I have an almost 3 yr old daughter and for her it is the Little People All around town playset. She could play with it for hours if I let her. It was definitely worth $40!! With Christmas coming up, just wondered if any other moms had such toys they have bought in the past. I get tired of buying toys that get played with twice and then thrown in a corner!
My sons love legos. They are 10 and 13 and still sit around and build things. We have friends with girls and they love to come over and get in the legos too!
For my daughter its barbies. Since she was about 2 she has always played with barbies. Every afternoon while her brother naps she sits in her room with her barbie dream house and plays with them. My mom says she is my child cause I was the same way, obsessed with barbies.
They go through stages, constantly. As a gma, what I remember the longest was the kitchen, the food, pots, shopping cart. The longing for stuffed animals of their choosing has not left, they are now, 4 and 7. As of late, groovy girls, they never have enough, and puzzles. The puzzles, are good sized, 100 pieces and up, they do these as a family. Their books are precious. They have always liked the playsets as you mention. Another always has been dressing up- they love costumes, all kinds. Especially one that is a dog, and they can be puppies. They have always loved art-love paints, but you have to sit next to them.
Leah -
I don't have girls, but I have 3 boys....when there is something that I know they play with over and over - I continue to add to that collection. For instance - when the olders were a little younger it was Lincoln Logs - now my youngest is moving into that and for Christmas he will get an extension pack for Lincoln Logs that build on the sets his older brothers got a few years ago. My older 2 LOVE legos and now that there are the sets themed in Indian Jones, Star Wars, Pirates, Racers, etc I can get them new legos all the time in a theme that they are currently "in to". My kids all three still LOVE to play with their Thomas the Tank Engine stuff - okay they are boys - they love to lay out, design, destroy and rebuild the track more than play with the trains. So my best advice is GO with what she is currently into. If it is still Little People - build on that.
Good Luck
T.
Depending on your climate, etc..for us it was/IS the Nemo Sand and Water Table. I about choked when I bought it 3 summers ago ($85) BUT, it has been a God Send since we set it up. My daughter, month shy of 5 yrs LOVES this thing. LIterally hours will go by with her playing in it and when her friend comes over it's a hit with her too.
She doesn't get to play with it too much during the cold months unless it is sunny out and we agree on no water, but you CAN set it up inside on a shower curtain and let her have at it.
Best thing we ever bought. Came with a cover and an umbrella as well. Even though my daughter has since grown taller, she pulls a chair up to it to sit down and play rather than bend over and stand.
THe table has held up very well, through snow, rain, the sun. The cover did end up cracking, but I think that was more to our neglect of it than it's quality. The umbrella is faded from the sun, but it still works!!
Good luck!
for my kids, it's always been the "play food". I started sewing pieces out of felt to add to their collection and they all (all the way up to 12) love to play restaurant, grocery store, etc... It's been worth the labor to see them playing with them over and over again.
For us, our kids love to play with LeapPad and Leapster games. These are great because these are educational for the most part and you can change to a new book and/or game as needed. We also bring Leapster on trips to keep the kids entertained. The down side is that the books/cartridges can be expensive, although sometimes you can find great sale on Amazon. We have bought some used ones from eBay as well. Hope this helps.
My son will be 3 in Feb. Everyday he will play with his train set, legos, blocks, and puzzles.
He also has a container of adventure toys we take out every week. It has a canoe, kayak, tent, jeep, trailer, 4 wheeler, dirt bike, a hand ful of people and their accessories, and then some odds and ends like miniture dinosaurs or animals. He loves setting them up to "fish" or be "attacked" by the animals. He plays differently each time and these are all toys that have no fancy lights or sounds. Pure imagination can't be won over in the long run by technology.
My daughter is almost 4. She loves to play with her brother's toys. He is nine and has trucks, trains, tractors, etc. But, I am very fortunate that I get girl toys handed down from a lady at work. Her daughter is 7 and everytime she cleans her daughter's room to make room for other new toys, she gives the older toys to my daughter. Some examples of the toys are Princess Barbie vanity table, A huge Barbie Doll house w/furniture, vaccum cleaner, grocery cart, etc. My daughter has no more room in her room. She will play with them for a couple of days, then she ignores them.
For my 2 1/2 year old daughter it is her kitchen and tea sets, she loves to cook and serve, she even takes our order with a notepad. She plays cook and eat at least 3 time a week.
A shoebox full of haycorns, sticks and leaves. Seriously that is a hard age. I swear that is what they like to play with. Here is another one. A laundry basket full of socks. That was always a favorite in our house. Sometimes the sticks and leaves would make it to the laundry basket for an all day event. LOL!!!
Schleich Animals. They will last forever. My twins have hundreds and they started with a few farm animals but you can find any animal. They are rather expensive $2-6 but have endured for years. They spend hours playing with them.
some toys my kids always go back to are the play kitchen with the play food to do grocerie or mcdonalds a sit and spin and stuffed animals
The veterinary kit by Parents
http://www.amazon.com/Parents-PM9403R-Animal-Hospital/dp/...
Wow, it got pricey, check wal mart. I bought it 4 or 5 years ago for $19 - but my kids still play with it today.
Both kids (boy & Girl 6 & 4) play with the little kitchen set - fairly easy to find a used on at a reasonable price, check Craigs list. Also, my daughter loves Barbies & the clothes. Also My little pony "ponyville" stuff.
Those have been the winners in my house. When they seem like the dont play with the kitchen any more, I put it away for a few months. When I pull it out again, it is just as popular as ever.
P : )
an empty box!!!! LOL. Anything they can build with. Merry Christmas!!!
Our boys have always loved the wooden train tracks, and our 3 year old daughter has recently become intrigued with them as well. She has also fallen in love with a little tea set that she got for her birthday. A word of caution though: they want to constantly fill the tea pot and cups with water, which has led to many a mess in the past few months.
The play kitchen is a big hit in our house!
Let's see with each of my kids it has been different.
My sons: Lego's, Craftsman workbench playset, tools, the old 1970's Fisher Price toys, you can get them at antique shops
My daughters: Polly Pockets, one still asks for theses and she just turned 12, Dollhouse, baby dolls and stuffed animals, puzzles, kitchen set,
All of them loved the kitchen sets, the dirtdevil set with the vacuum and broom and all the little brooms. I still have it from when my oldest was a little guy, he's 20, it still gets used.
Bikes and scooters
I also still have pieces of the first doctor kit from when he was 3. I think we have been through 2 or 3 of them.
I have one daugher that is into crafts, at three she wanted books and "making things", simple crafty things for little people.
We have sons but for us it was Lego's, blocks, tinkertoys. Anything that you could build and it lets them use thier imagination! When I was growing up I loved dolls of any kind, and anything to use with them. Whatever your daughter is really interested in should be a winner!
My sons loved to help in the big kitchen with us. We found a kitchen set @ a yardsale and they loved it. When it was falling apart we bought one that was made of some type of wood. I thought it would be sturdier. It lasted for a year or so then started to break apart. We ended up buying a Little Tykes kitchen set that lasted through not only my kids but my in home daycare kids and then I gave it to some one at church for their kids. It was definetly worth the $$. You can try looking on craigs list, newspaper classifieds, thrift stores or re sell it shops.
My daughters are starting to grow up (they are 8 and 10), but these are some toys that they have played with regularly since they were in preschool:
Legos
Lincoln logs
Tinker toys
Puzzles
Littlest Pet Shop playsets
Finger puppet set
Assorted little plastic, lifelike, colorful animals (in the tub and out of the tub)
Dollhouse
Art supplies
Kitchen set with pots, pans, dishes and lots of fake food (has always been a favorite)
2 toys that are a huge hit at our house are 1) doctor's kit for interactive pretend play. We take turns being the patient and doctor. We also play doctor and nurse with the baby dolls and stuff animals. 2) Play Dough - any set, any theme - easy for all ages and can be done with little parental assistance.
Our daughter
A kitchen
Little People (or any other brand) dollhouse
cash register and groceries to ring up with grocery cart
baby dolls and bottles and diapers and clothing
at 4 she is now getting into Barbies...
for our son
Legos, legos, legos! The new little ones....
star wars men
costumes to dress up
matchbox cars
lincoln logs
Did you have favorite toys as a kid. The apples don't fall far from the tree. I loved dolls and do does my little girl. My husband loved lego's and so does our son. Depends on their temperment too. My kids cycle through all their toys pretty regularly. A lot of it has to do with their accessability. My kids are two and four and most of their toys are good for any age kid. We avoid the electronic stuff to a large degree. They are well organized and within reach. Here are some of their favorites:
dress-up clothes
matchbox cars
basket of dino's
building blocks
train set
play kitchen
doll stroller
baby bed
Magna doodle
playdough (by request)
toys castle with knights
fake swords
One of the only toys that my 2 year old son plays with over and over again is the Little People Farm set. We have lost most of the animals that came with it, but it is so easy and fun to buy different animals for it. If she isn't that into farms, I would suggest a dollhouse. You can probably find an inexpensive one on Amazon. Most girls can play with those for years.
The Step 2 Art desk. Not exactly a toy, but my daughter spends so much time there painting, coloring, playing with play doh- you name it! We also ordered it through Walmart's site to store pick up to avoid shipping charges.
