Plea for toy advice--what to get & where!

[pritchettzoo]

She's 12 weeks, and I don't want to waste money. So far, we've gotten an Ultrasaucer, Baby Einstein blocks, and a set of Peek-a-Blocks. I want to get her cool toys that will be fun for as long as possible (and preferably not give me migraines!). I am not opposed to plastic toys, but I'd like some funky ones or wooden ones to make her experiences well-rounded. She's got and will get plenty of books, so just toys or educational tools please!

Maybe a Skwish?

And where's the best place to get toys? Online favorites?

If you were stranded on a desert island with a 3 month old, what would you bring? 6 month old? 9 month old?

Anna
Mama to Gracie (9/16/03)

[stillplayswithbarbies]

definitely the Skwish. And any of the Lamaze toys. We have the cat, the dog, the fish, and Freddie the Firefly, which is still a favorite at 8 months. She also likes the Ambi/Brio octopus, which is a small rattle just the size for her hands.

http://store.yahoo.com/kidsurplus/bri31043.html

I like www.kidsurplus.com for quality toys cheap.

...Karen
Jacob Nathaniel Feb 91
Logan Elizabeth Mar 03

[houseof3boys]

Ryan and I both love the skwish! There is a really cool little toy store in Decatur that has all kinds of good toys if you want to see them in person but they are all retail prices. I bought some of the same ones on kidsurplus including the brio rattle that Karen mentioned in her post. I like the O Ball since it will teach her how to hold. The exersaucer is great too!

[amp]

I recommend any Lamaze toys, Manhattan toys (such as Skwish, Winkel, etc) or even Sassy toys (we buy these at Target). We also have a Munchkin teether that is blue on one side, green on the other with thick textured nubs all over it. Just right for teething! It also rattles a bit and the two sides twist around making a noise.

For specific toys...Jacob's favorite toy at that age was a Tiny Love mirror (ours was a garden theme) that hung on the side of his PNP. It had a snail that hung off the top of the mirror and a link on the bottom to hang another toy. It played a couple of tunes if you bopped the mirror in the right general area. It also had a rabbit on the fabric part that had ears that crinkled. I believe they also had a fish themed one. We found ours at BRU and thought it was a bit pricier than the other mirrors, but bought it anyway. That darned thing earned it's keep and then some! Would buy it again in a heartbeat! He spent so much time looking in the mirror and then later trying to grab that snail. It was amazing to watch his progress.

We also have one other beloved toy that we borrowed from friends. It's a FP kick and drive toy. He *loved* that thing. He still plays with it now, but it's lowered so he can reach with his hands these days. That toy was the only way we managed to eat any meals at the exact same time! LOL!

HTH!

[sntm]

Jack loves the Lamaze Celeste the Sun and one that we call Scary Bug that I think is actually called Buzz? One of his absolute favorites is the cheapy FP plastic stacking rings -- hours of fun in our house and his favorite toy when sitting. Linking rings are also big, for teething, tossing, and just shaking. And nipple ball, which was this miraculous $3.95 yellow thing with nipples sticking out all over and a nice vanilla smell and he adores it. Not really a toy, but beloved.


shannon
not-even-pregnant-yet-overachiever
trying-to-conceive :)
PREGNANT! EDD 6/9/03
mama to Jack 6/6/03

[deborah_r]

The classic plastic Fisher Price ring stacker is a big hit here. A bargain at $6 or whatever it costs.

Other things DS likes:

A cloth book (I have a Mamas & Papas/Neurosmith one).
The O-Ball and the Skwish.
The windchimes that add on to the Gymini.

He's getting the Leap Frog Discovery Ball for Xmas. He has the Learning Table - can't tell yet if he likes it or if it's worth the money.

I would like to get him a Gertie Ball too.



EDITED to add: and he's starting to really like his Peek-a-blocks I put them in a big plastic colander and he dumps them out and plays with them. he has not figured out putting them back in yet (which would make clean-up at the end of the day easier!)

Hope these help!

[ScrapNancy]

Another vote for the FP Rock-A-Stack. A bargain at $6, it's one of my daughter's faves since she learned to sit up about 2 weeks ago. She hasn't figured out the stacking part yet, but she loves to wave the rings around and chuck them. Another one of her favorite toys for quite some time now is the Sassy Circle Rattle. Also Sassy's Pooh and Tigger soft rattle toys and Sassy's "Who Loves Baby" Photo Albums. You can put pictures of anyone you want in it and she can bend and chew on it and they are fine. She has (and loves)the FP Peek-A-Block Giraffe and is getting a bunch more of that stuff for xmas. I expect it to grow with her for quite a while.

[jackiekatz]

>
There is a really cool
>little toy store in Decatur that has all kinds of good toys if
>you want to see them in person but they are all retail prices.
>

I just moved to Decatur and would love to know the name and location of this store. So far, we have been limited to Target and Toysrus.

Thanks

[caleymama]

The Celeste the Sun toy was a huge hit with DD for a long time. She also really liked the FP Kick and Drive Gym (hers is similar to this one: http://www.fisher-price.com/us/babyu/product.asp?s=bubrilliant&id=5641). She preferred kicking to driving, though! It is noisy because of the music but she had so much fun using it that I didn't mind.

For teething, she really liked this First Years Bristle Buddy Teether (the purple and yellow one): http://www.thefirstyears.com/products/product.asp?pValue=1453. The duck shaped Gerber plastic teether (it's water filled) was also a big hit.