Okay friends, I know it is only September, but I am bound and determined to make holiday shopping super seamless this year so that my head space and time during the actual holiday season can be spent being fully present for all of the fun the season brings!
My hope is that by me sharing our kids’ favorite gifts over the years + some items we have already purchased for this year’s Christmas, I can help minimize the ordeal of planning/shopping for you too!
So let’s get to it!
Jump to….
Gifts for Babies – 2 years old
- Fischer Price Laugh & Learn Car– I have pictures of multiple kiddos piled in this car. It was such a hit in our home!
- Piano Play Mat– Hours of entertainment + great for tummy time 🙂
- Noah’s Ark Shape Sorter– I love that this toy ties in the Bible with a necessary developmental skill- our kids loved this toy!
- Sassy Wonder Wheel– Such a great toy to create distraction on long car rides
- iBert Bike Seat– We get asked about this seat every time we use it! All four of our kids have LOVED this seat! And have loved having our littlest ones riding in front where we can see them and interact better during our bike rides.
- Lovevery Block Set– These blocks are so good! Pricier because they’re well made and will last through your grandkids. 😉
- Lovevery Play Kits– I would 100% ask for a play kit subscription from grandparents for your littles! Every month includes a. new box of well-made, age-appropriate toys and a little booklet that fosters parent-child interaction. We have LOVED our play kit boxes!
- MegaBloks– Ryan got these for his 1st birthday. He is 9 now and we have 3 more kids, and they are STILL used all the time by all of our kids.
- Stacking Alphabet Boxes– It seems basic, but all of our kids had so much fun with this set!
- Radio Flyer 4in1 Tricycle– A great transitional bike that is basically an alternative/more fun stroller before they can use the pedals!
Gifts for Ages 2-4
- Toddler Roller Coaster– Oh my goodness this toy has been well loved. It can be used inside or outside!
- Matching Eggs– I was always surprised by how much ALL of our kids loved these eggs. They were a favorite in our home during the late toddler season!
- Magnetiles– Currently, our kids are 4-9 and these Magnetiles are literally used every single day by all four kids. It’s usually the first thing they do in the mornings and the first thing they do after school. There are knockoffs, but we have gotten so much use out of this brand and they have all held up so well.
- Train Table– Who doesn’t love a good train table?! I love this one because of the storage drawers underneath.
- Play Kitchen– This is the one we have and I love it because of the height, but it’s not always in stock, so I’m linking another option here. They also love this shopping cart – so much so that we have 2 of them!
- Melissa and Doug Play Food- a list of all of our favorites: Scoop & Serve Ice Cream / Smoothie Maker / Pizza Party / Cookies / Condiments / Star Diner Play Set
- Scooter– All of our kids started riding scooters at age 2. We’ve tried a couple of different brands, but this one is our fave and the price is much better than the first brand we tried! I also like that this one has a ride on option if needed early on.
- Doll House– We have a KidKraft brand like this one (they change it slightly each year) that has held up great. Also check Costco as they often carry one around the holidays!
- Baby Stroller and basinet– Our girls got these as gifts one year and they have LOVED them so well and they have held up so well!
- Bounce House– We got this as a grand finale gift for all of our kids when Ryan, Natalie and Emily were 4, 2, and 1. Our version is slightly different but I can’t find it anymore! We keep ours inside so I would use the water area as a ball bit and purchase some extra balls separately. I’m telling you, this is the most fun gift to give your kids as a huge surprise at the end of Christmas morning!
Gifts For Ages 4-6
- Giant Uno– How fun is this giant version?! We are big Uno fans and our kids were so excited when we found this big version last year!
- Power Wheels Jeep– For whatever reason I was very unsure about this when Ryan got it for Christmas when he was 4. Well, 5 years later, it is still one of our most used outside toys.
Bike- A bike is such a fun grand finale gift! - Pretend Makeup– Oh my goodness there is little sweeter than watching your little girls play with pretend makeup!
Dress Up Clothes- See above because it applies to this too. 🙂 - Hot Wheels Dinosaur Track– Another fun grand finale gift idea!
- Doctor Kit and Vet Kit– Our kids have had hours of fun with these play sets!
- Light Bright– Our kids love using the light bright! In fact, this year, we’re adding a refill kit in stockings this year!
- Coogam Jigsaw Puzzle and Hexagon Puzzle– I really love this brand for all of their great logic games. Our kids love this non-electronic version of Tetris and the hexagon form too.
- Kid Explorer Kit– If you’re kids are like ours and love bugs and being outside, they will love this explorer kit!
- Grocery Store– This was a grand finale gift for one of our kiddos one year and it is still such a hit! The scanner makes a beep noise when you roll items over it and there’s a cash register underneath. It is so much fun!
- This food set is great to get with the grocery store!
Gifts for Ages 6-8
- Krazy Kart– Oh man Matt and I have joked about getting the adult version of this car for ourselves. It is so fun!!
- Roller Blades– The family that roller blades together… 😉 But for real, we all have a pair. Ryan has this version.
- All things Barbie: Ambulance / Spa / Jet / Camper / Gymnast set
- Traffic Jam– This is a great logic game that is really fun and challenging. There is a younger version as well.
- American Girl Doll and Coordinating Gear
- Science Experiments Kit and National Geographic Kits– These are great to pull out on a rainy day!
- Butterfly Kit– We did one of these kits several years ago and had the best time with it. It was so cool to watch the butterflies move through each stage of their life cycle and then release them in our backyard!
- Tangram Pattern Block Set– These are great for travel too! Anytime a game can be fun and involve logic, we are in!
- Ice Cream Truck– This is such a fun gift to open and one that has been a huge hit in our home for YEARS!
- Trampoline– Actually it may be a tie because we got this as a grand finale gift for our kids when they were 7, 5, 4, and 2 and it was also such a huge hit!!
Gifts for Ages 8-10
- Hover Board and cart attachment– This is actually really cool. The cart attachment makes in operate like a go cart. Ryan was so excited when he got this for his 9th birthday.
- Pop a Shot– Such a fun grand finale gift for your kids! I recommend ordering early and paying someone else to put it together, hahah. We started together on 12/23 and Matt gets all the credit for finishing it solo on 12/24.
- Fuse Ball– Another super fun grand finale gift. The kids loving playing with this and it’s also a big hit when friends are over.
- Mini Air Hockey– This is a great mini version. Ryan actually has this in his room, so if you want a more affordable, more portanle option for air hockey- this is it! The price fluctuates quite a bit so it may be worth adding to your Amazon cart and waiting for the price to drop. We bought it when it was $36 for refernce.
- Kanoodle– This is a great travel logic game! It would make a great stocking stuffer. 🙂
- Woodworking Building Kit– Ryan really got into building and was so excited when he got this kit for Christmas last year. The steps are easy to follow.
- Rock Tumbler– This thing is legit- as in we were tumbling rocks for weeks on end to get through the entire refining process, haha. A very fun gift for your rock lovers though!
- A few of our favorite games: No Stress Chess / Clue / Monopoly / Giant Checkers
As seen on LTK….
