Must have toys for 6-12 months?

[deborah_r]

Jumping from Beth's great idea in the "how to stop family from spoiling a child" thread - she suggested telling family what toys you will need in the future, not necessarily right now. So I was wondering what the must-haves or really great toys are for 6-12 monhts (or even a little older if something really stands out)

Thanks!

[MelissaTC]

One toy that Matthew really loved was the Fisher Price Nesting Action Vehicles. He loved these from the get go. He was able to stack them, push them on the floor, play with the different features on the cars and shake the smallest car (makes a rattle like sound). For $9.99, this was a great toy and he still loves it to this day.

Matthew also loves Little People. We have a few sets we bought second hand and he plays with these ALL day long, ALL the time. It is so cute to see him have the people interact. He puts them on the roller coaster, drives them in the cars and just holds them and talks to them. It is so cute and I love the fact that he is developing his imagination.

Another very popular item in our house are board books. He loves to read to himself these days. He'll pick up a book, sit down and turn the pages, reading outloud. Sometimes he'll let me read to him but most days, he wants to look at the pictures. He likes the touch and feel books as well as the books with real photographs. He particularly enjoys photos of children.

A great outside toy is the Little Tikes Cozy Coupe car. It is a MUST have in our house. Matthew couldn't live without it!

HTH some!

[mharling]

There's been a lot of talk in the Around The House forum about the Gertie ball. I think 6-12 months is a good age for that. Also, the Leap Start Learning Table seems to be popular around this age. Ds is getting that for Christmas.

Melissa -
I have the nesting vehicles on our Amazon Wishlist. Thanks for confirming they're great! I thought they looked like something ds would really enjoy. :)

Mary & Lane 4/6/03
http://www.shutterfly.com/osnt.jsp?i=67b0de21b356c32425b2 - Halloween Pics!

[amp]

Cool, we just bought the nesting action vehicles for DS for Christmas. They were $8.88 at Big Lots and then I saw them at the KB Toys Outlet for 7.99 if anyone's interested in them.

[amp]

Mary - I just posted this above, but the action vehicles are cheaper if you don't buy them at Amazon. Look at Big Lots or a KB Toys Outlet if you have one near you. See my reply above.

[August Mom]

I agree with Mary's suggestions. The Gertie ball, Leapfrog Leapstart Learning Table and the FP nesting/stacking vehicles are great. DS also loves the FP Happy Vehicles, especially the cement mixer. I think the Parents Alphablock sorter is great too. (It's a set of 8 fabric-covered foam blocks with removable teether or rattle shapes. The blocks are about 3x3, so easy to manipulate. DS and I love them. I've seen them at BRU and Target). A shape sorter would be good for a 11 month+ child. We have the Shape-O from Tupperware and DS has a ball with it. http://tinyurl.com/csta I really like the Curiosity Cube. It has several different activities. http://tinyurl.com/w4uv A bead maze would be good for a child closer to 12 months, as would MegaBlocks. Also, you may want a push walker to assist with walking. I really like the ones by Radio Flyer. There are several to choose from: http://www.radioflyer.com/specialty/specialty_11.html http://www.radioflyer.com/specialty/specialty_12.html http://tinyurl.com/w4t3

Other ideas are a push toy or pull toy. DS has these: Spotty the Dog Pull Along Pal http://tinyurl.com/w4u7 and Push Along Thomas http://tinyurl.com/w4ud DS loves the Thomas push toy, but I don't love the removable handle. He removes it and then swings it around.

Also, any kind of ball drop toy will be a big hit.

HTH

[mharling]

Thanks!! I'll check out Big Lots.

Mary & Lane 4/6/03
http://www.shutterfly.com/osnt.jsp?i=67b0de21b356c32425b2 - Halloween Pics!

[Momof3Labs]

Colin has those, too, and they have entertained him longer (age-wise) than most toys!

[Momof3Labs]

Books, books, books. They are Colin's favorite toy - and he's an active boy! But he sits by his basket of books and flips through them... and throws them around... and carries them to us to read or to show us a particular page. They are the one toy that has stood out over the last 6 months - he runs hot and cold on just about everything else.

[parkersmama]

We love the Gertie ball and have had several (our dog likes to pop them!). The fact that I'm willing to buy replacements ought to tell you how wonderful they are!

Another great toy is the [link:www.pufferbellytoys.com/pbt/Home/Page/Product_Detail/Item/3173|Tomy Ball Party]. It's a lot of fun from about 12 months on. My boys both loved it so much and so did everyone who came over to play.

[starrynight]

I agree with Denise on the ball party! Alex received it when he was 2 yrs old and still plays with it from time to time(he is 5 now) and it has held up enough so that Daria now plays with it! And every kid that comes to play loves it too. :)

My kids also love little people sets. And in the 6-12 month age balls, books and shape sorters are great like others mentioned.

[jubilee]

My 7 month old just played with a friend's toy today, and now I will be on a search for it because it was a huge hit!! It was a Fisher Price toy with four "doors" and each door had a simple activity under it- 2 levers, push button, and a wheel to spin. The baby does the activity making the door open showing the farm animal. Logan loved closing the doors and doing the activity. He played with it for over an hour solid... and for him that is a long time!!

[wendmatt]

Little tykes push and ride. We just gave it to Emily for her first b-day and she LOVES it, wish we'd given it to her before. Discovery Toys stacking cups have also been a huge hit for months. Board books (but not the sets that come in a box of 4 from Ross!! I have no idea why but she won't look at them!!)