Play Time
Jellycat Jellycat Leffy Elf
$20.00 – $27.50Leffy Elf is a helpful pal, making toys and games for Santa. It's cold at the North Pole, so Leffy's cheeks are as red as those boots and candy cane...
Haba Haba Clutching Rainbow Ring Toy
$20.00Your little one will be delighted with the Haba Rainbow Ring Clutching Toy. This adorable clutching toy features brightly colored wooden pieces tightly and securely fastened together with a unique, tested...
Hape Rotating Music Box
$22.00The Hape Rotating Music Box is a soothing and gentle toy that will encourage baby to experience music in a unique and interactive way. It plays delightful musical notes as...
Grimm's Authentic Grimm's Rainbow Ball
$22.00Awaken your child's curiosity with this colorful little Rainbow Ball has a velvety soft texture will engage a baby's senses. A toy that infants and toddlers will use over and...
Grimm's Authentic Grimm's Beads Grasper Natural
$22.00A beautifully natural grasping toy to keep the baby's interest. The beads--held together by an elasticized string--can be safely moved about to provide a tactile experience. Feels so great to children...
PlanToys PlanToys Shape Matching Puzzle
$22.00Learn about basic shapes: Square, Circle, and Triangle. This knob puzzle helps develop fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination while tracing each shape and then placing it back in its...
Maileg Maileg Iron and Ironing Board Toy
$22.00The new iron and ironing board are sized just right for the dollhouse and just the right height for our Mini friends, including Size 1 Bunnies and Rabbits. Includes bright...
Fat Brain Toys Infant PipSquigz Ringlets
$22.00Connect them to anything and let your little one explore! Each of these six silicone rings features fun, vivid textures and suction cup connectors that are quick to fascinate the...
Maileg Maileg Soft Small Bunny Plush Toy Brown
$22.00This adorable and squishy brown bunny has a brown ribbon on his neck that adds cuteness to it. Your little ones will surely fall in love and will make playtime and...
Maileg Maileg Soft Small Bunny Plush Toy Off...
$22.00This adorable and squishy off white bunny has a brown ribbon on his neck that adds cuteness to it. Your little ones will surely fall in love and will make playtime...
PlanToys PlanToys Triangle Matching Puzzle
$22.00Learn about basic shapes: Triangle. This knob puzzle helps develop fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination while tracing each shape and then placing it back in its place Can...
Bajo Wooden Classic School Bus Yellow
$22.00This bright yellow bus is perfect for playtime and its little windows provide a comfortable grip for little hands! Made for ages 1+ years and up Size: 5"x2"x3"
Hape Creative Peg Puzzle
$22.00Hape’s Creative Peg Puzzle is the perfect toy for your growing child, challenging them and introducing critical thinking while also being fun and they feature bright colors!_x000D_ Suitable for children...
Jellycat Jellycat Nimbus Hippo
$22.50Nimbus Hippo is marshmallow-soft in scrambly lilac-brown fur. This cuddly calf has a tasselly tail and a beany bottom for sitting upon! With perky petal ears and a squidgy snoot,...
Jellycat Jellycat Didi Hedgehog
$22.50Jellycat Didi Hedgehog is a roly-poly scamp, with a soft ruched caramel tummy, bobble nose, and silky ombre fur. This happy hoglet loves ambling around the garden, snuffling for bugs,...
Grimm's Authentic Grimm's Pebbles Blocks River
$23.00These pebble blocks are perfect for balance and stacking challenges, decorating scenic play, making a stony puppet show landscape, and building cairns. This four-piece set is painted in gorgeous graduated...
Grimm's Authentic Grimm's Pebbles Blocks Fire
$23.00These pebble blocks are perfect for balance and stacking challenges, decorating scenic play, making a stony puppet show landscape, and building cairns. This four-piece set is painted in gorgeous graduated...
Grimm's Authentic Grimm's Pebbles Blocks Moss
$23.00These pebble blocks are perfect for balance and stacking challenges, decorating scenic play, making a stony puppet show landscape, and building cairns. This four-piece set is painted in gorgeous graduated...
Grimm's Authentic Grimm's Pebbles Blocks Flam...
$23.00These pebble blocks are perfect for balance and stacking challenges, decorating scenic play, making a stony puppet show landscape, and building cairns. This four-piece set is painted in gorgeous graduated...
Jellycat Jellycat Wally Whale
$23.50 – $32.50Fresh from the ocean and full of smiles, it's wonderful Wally Whale! He's a beautiful buddy with vibrant teal fur and the softest, most tickly underbelly. This quirky whale holds...
Jellycat Jellycat Perry Polar Bear
$23.50 – $48.50For the coziest cuddles in the whole North Pole, skate on over to Jellycat Perry Polar Bear! Unbelievably snuggly, this cloudy cream cub is as soft as freshly fallen snow....
PlanToys PlanToys Rain Maker
$24.00Turn this Rain Maker over and hear the sounds of tranquil rainfall. Combine with other PlanToys musical items to create a band!
Sophie La Giraffe So'Pure Bath Toy
$24.00A fun Sophie La Girafe takes on the traditional rubber duck! Fun bath toy made with the same all-natural rubber as the original Sophie teether. Made with 100% natural rubber from...
Grimm's Authentic Grimm's Mixed Forest Toy
$24.00The small Mixed Forest is perfect in combination with our building blocks. Perfect to combine with: Grimm's Houses, Geo-Blocks, Small Bobbins, and 7 Friends Authentic Grimm's Mixed Forest Toy Details:...
Play is essential for children because it contributes to their intellectual, physical, emotional and social development. When children play, they exercise their creativity, develop their imagination, master their dexterity, improve their cognitive ability and build physical strength. Experts agree that the best kinds of play allow kids to set their own goals, negotiate challenges, develop and share ideas, and make their own rules.
But how can we make sure our kids are getting enough healthy, unstructured play time when they’re growing up in an overscheduled and stressful environment, when parents are overly focused on producing high academic achievers, and safety concerns prevent us from letting our kids roam around freely and unsupervised? Perhaps the best thing we can do for our kids is to make sure they have the right kinds of toys at home to make play time most rewarding.
First and foremost is safety. Safe toys for young children are sturdy, without sharp parts or splinters, free of pinching hazards, and easy to clean. If the toy will be used by an infant, it’s important that parts aren’t small enough to become a choking hazard.
Toys must be made from non-toxic materials and coated with lead-free paints. You should steer clear of antique toys, second-hand toys and homemade toys that have not been tested and approved by a certified testing lab, or may have been produced before the current regulations governing toy manufacturing were in effect.
In addition to being safe, a good toy will match the child’s appropriate stage of development and abilities.
The best baby activity toys for infants between 0-6 months are things they can reach, grasp, suck on, shake, and make noise with. Some age-appropriate toys for little babies are squeeze toys, teething toys, soft dolls, textured balls, and board books.
Infants between 6-12 months are starting to crawl, sit up and pull themselves to a standing position. They are capable putting things in and out of containers and placing objects on top of each other. Some of the best baby activity toys for this age group are dolls, vehicles with wheels, bath toys, large beads, nesting toys, large soft blocks, wooden blocks, and push & pull toys.
As your child continues to grow, look for toys that will encourage them to explore, create, pretend, imagine, and learn from trial and error.