Play Time
Plushies Palm Marius Nutcracker
$12.00Marius Nutcracker – The Holiday Guard of Cheer & Christmas MagicStanding tall and proud in his vibrant red uniform, Marius Nutcracker is the ultimate protector of holiday surprises and festive...
Oli and Carol Palm Peach Teether
$22.00Feeling peachy? Meet Palm Peach, a natural rubber teether and bath toy. Its realistic textures help stimulate babies’ senses and relieve teething gums, making it ideal for sensory play. Introduce...
Phaidon Press Pancakes! An Interactive Recipe Book
$22.95Cook pancakes from scratch inside this interactive recipe book – readers whisk the eggs, flip the pancakes, and more! Simple, straightforward recipe text brings readers through each step of cooking...
Maileg Panda Plush Toy
$38.00 – $80.00This sweet panda is made of cotton and corduroy. It is a dear friend to all the other animals in the popular Maileg Safari friends category. Maileg Safari Friends Panda...
Mon Ami Paris Mauve Poodle Plush Toy
$40.00Meet Paris, our bestselling Poodle! In a beautiful mauve color, and perfectly coiffed fur, she is sure to put a smile on anyone's face! 100% Polyester for enhanced softness and...
Brio Parking Garage
$100.00Parking Garage is the perfect addition to any BRIO World, connecting the railway and roadways together in a single destination. Each of the three levels of the Parking Garage...
Plantoys Parking Garage Toy
$156.00The Parking Garage has 3 floors of parking space, a working elevator tower, a helipad, 2 cars, and an electric charging station. A perfect toy for pretend play. Age: 3 years+...
Parklon Parklon Double Sided Mat ABC / Urban ...
$105.00For use at home or on the go, Parklon Portable Play Mats are a customer favorite for their versatility and convenience. Lightweight: This mat is made of PE, a lightweight...
Parklon Parklon Silky Portable Play Mat Cloud...
$120.00For use at home or on the go, Parklon Portable Play Mats are a customer favorite for their versatility and convenience. Lightweight: The Silky Mat is a lightweight play mat made...
Parklon Parklon Silky Portable Play Mat LeMans
$120.00For use at home or on the go, Parklon Portable Play Mats are a customer favorite for their versatility and convenience. Lightweight: The Silky Mat is a lightweight play mat made...
Parklon Parklon Silky Portable Play Mat Vinta...
$120.00For use at home or on the go, Parklon Portable Play Mats are a customer favorite for their versatility and convenience. Lightweight: The Silky Mat is a lightweight play mat made...
Hachette Party In A Book (Uplifting Editions)
$17.99What makes a birthday better than rainbows, unicorns, and being told how amazing you are? Party in a Book provides all of the above. The pages feature eight pop-up surprises (a...
Oli and Carol Pastel Floating Blocks
$36.00The Bauhaus Movement geometric figures are the coolest interactive blocks for littles & not so littles! Easy-to-pile while educating babies into basic shapes and colors that surround them. Kids...
Beyond123 Pat Bells Station
$140.00Pat Bells Station is music made simple and fun. No more broken strings, and no tuning required. Simply pat the bells, secured on a wooden station, for vibrant and colorful...
Cuddle + Kind Paxton The Panda
$84.00 – $104.00I come from a deep green forest with tons of trees to climb and delicious bamboo to eat. I might look different than most bears, but I love that I’m...
Tender Leaf Toys Peacock Colors
$30.00See the world in different colors, or mix the colors to create as many color combinations as you like! This peacock has 5 tail feathers with colored acrylic windows and...
Gund Peek-a-Boo Flappy the Elephant
$22.00Flappy’s back — and cuter (and smaller!) than ever! This award-winning elephant is now in a travel-friendly 7” size, making him the perfect on-the-go buddy for babies and toddlers.With his...
Penguin Peekaboo Apple Book
$9.99Ingela P Arrhenius’s unmistakable, enchanting artwork, combined with an ingenious slider mechanism on every page, make this a totally irresistible board book for toddlers. Young children will be captivated by...
Penguin Peekaboo Bear Book
$9.99Ingela P. Arrhenius’s unmistakable, enchanting artwork, combined with an ingenious slider mechanism on every page, make this a totally irresistible board book for toddlers who love nature. Young children will...
Penguin Peekaboo Farm Book
$9.99Ingela P. Arrhenius’s unmistakable, enchanting artwork, combined with an ingenious slider mechanism on every page, make this a totally irresistible board book for toddlers who love farm animals. Young children...
Penguin Peekaboo Sun Book
$9.99Ingela P Arrhenius’s unmistakable, enchanting artwork, combined with an ingenious slider mechanism on every page, make this a totally irresistible board book for toddlers. Young children will be captivated by...
Plushies Penelope the Bunny
$32.00Soft, sweet, and irresistibly huggable, Penelope the Bunny is sure to become your child’s favorite companion! With her delicate caramel-colored fur and endearing charm, she’s the perfect cuddle buddy for...
Cuddle + Kind Penelope The Flamingo
$84.00 – $104.00I’m from a fantastically sunny place where palm trees sway and tropical flowers bloom. Of course, I have confidence in myself, why wouldn’t I, darling? No one’s better at being...
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.