Play Time
Sophie La Giraffe So'Pure Bath Toy
$30.00A fun 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 the rubber...
Sophie La Giraffe So'Pure Coloring Teether
$30.00Calisson’s Cooling Teething Ring is ideal for your little one, perfect for their growing teeth with its various soft chew parts! Made of 100% natural rubber Includes 4 geometrical shapes...
Sophie La Giraffe So'Pure Early Learning Gift Set
$44.00An ideal set to develop baby's dexterity and senses! Contains two products made from 100% natural rubber a colo'rings teething ring and 2 balls and 2 cubes. Age: 0 months Colo'rings...
Sophie La Giraffe So'Pure Natur'rings Teether
$26.00Healthy and natural, this rattle is made from 100% bio-based material with vegetal origin, pulled from starch and cassava. It is guaranteed without oil and it represents an environmental alternative...
Maileg Sofa Bed Mouse
$28.00Looking for a handy solution for your mouse family? This sofa can both be used as a couch and can easily be turned into a bed as it can be...
Manhattan Toy Soft Activity Book Deer One
$18.00Soft textured fabrics for tummy-time play. The animal-themed soft activity book folds out flat doubling its as a pat-mat for tummy time. Each page features nostalgic illustrations, various fabric textures,...
Manhattan Toy Soft Activity Book Mini Apple Farm
$22.00Soft textured fabrics for story-time fun and tummy-time play. The fruits and vegetable-themed soft activity book includes a variety of fabric textures for the baby's enjoyment. Activities include 3D...
Plantoys Solid Drum
$36.00Solid Drum is the perfect toy to inspire your little ones' musical creativity! Solid Drum Details: Age: 18 months+ Includes drumsticks with rubber heads Helps develop the infant’s spatial perception,...
Sophie La Giraffe Sophie Plush Toy with Beads
$28.00Sophie La Girafe Plush Toy with Beads is a 2in1 treat for your little one. A plush with ultra-soft micro velvet fur, and flexible thanks to the microbeads and a rattle...
Sophie La Giraffe Sophie The Giraffe Christmas Gift Set
$50.00The best set for a baby’s first Christmas! Parents will fall in love with this Christmas-colored assortment to dress their baby for his first Christmas party. Sophie La Girafe Christmas...
Sophie La Giraffe Sophie The Giraffe Cooling Teething Ring
$24.00Calisson’s Cooling Teething Ring is ideal for your little one, perfect for their growing teeth! Plastic ring makes it easy to grab with out a cold feeling Made in France...
Sophie La Giraffe Sophie The Giraffe Puppet Comforter
$40.002 in 1: Comforter and puppet at the same time! This Sophie la Giraffe puppet is made with micro velvet material to create a lot of stories and share beautiful...
Sophie La Giraffe Sophie The Giraffe Shake and Chew Rattle
$28.00Sophie La Girafe Shake & Chew Rattle is the perfect combination between rubber and textile! This light and soft rattle is easy to grab for your little ones' small hands. 2...
Le Toy Van Sophie's Doll House
$250.00Sophie's Doll House includes a wooden staircase that plays the role of room divider. Fully painted and decorated, the wallpaper is full of details children love to spot. It also...
Sophie La Girafe Sophiesticated Set
$54.00A set ready to offer to welcome Baby into our world with customizable card and a beautiful gift bag.Contains:Sophie la girafe: Baby's first toy stimulating each of his senses.Pouet Rattle:...
Plantoys Sorting Bus Orchard
$60.00Practice sorting and counting the different colors and shapes included with the PlanToys Sorting Bus! Serving as a push-and-pull toy, children can both actively play with this vehicle and also...
Janod Sound Camera Wood
$18.00A camera just like the grown-ups! camera with sound, made from beech wood. It has a kaleidoscope and capture button that emits the same sound like a camera. The camera...
Janod Sound Telephone Wood
$22.00A ringing telephone just like the grown-ups! Telephone with sounds made from beech wood. It comes with 7 soft plastic sound keys: home key, email, alarm, ring, camera, settings, and...
Wide-Eyed Edition Sounds of Nature: World of Forests Book
$22.99The Sounds of Nature series brings the natural world to life with the sounds of real animals recorded in the wild. Travel the world with the Sounds of Nature series –...
Tender Leaf Toys Spa Retreat Set
$40.00Pamper yourself and your friends with a full spa experience! A drawstring bag with a beautiful mermaid illustration holds all the accessories that you need for a spa retreat. Included...
Magnatiles Space 32-Piece Set
$60.00Interstellar imaginations are over the moon with the MAGNA-TILES® Space set! Blast off into cosmic creativity and discover new ways to play with the one-of-a-kind Space Shuttle that conveniently stores all pieces after play. Enjoy the thrills...
Crocodile Creek Space Explorer Puzzle
$26.00Blast off into fun with the Space Explorer 36-piece floor puzzle, featuring bold, colorful outer-space illustrations that young adventurers will love. Printed with soy-based inks on recycled cardboard, this large,...
Speedy Monkey Spaceman Suit
$72.00Fine Souza costume depicting an astronaut in silver with blue and red details. The Souza astronaut suit comes with an attached hood as well as long sleeves and legs. The...
Phaidon Press Spaghetti!: An Interactive Recipe Book
$22.95Cook pasta from scratch inside this interactive recipe book – fry, simmer, boil, drain, grate and more! A simple but accurate recipe takes young readers through the steps of cooking...
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.