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I love buying presents for kids of this age. There are so many different things available for the littlest ones now, that weren’t around when my daughter was tiny. I’ve got lots of lovely ideas to share with you in this gift guide for babies and toddlers.
This multi-award-winning, 3D magnetic reward chart is really lovely. It was created by a mum of two and developed alongside Early Years educators and an Educational Psychologist. It is designed to hopefully make parenting a little bit easier, by addressing and eliminating tricky behaviours such as tantrums and fussy eating as well as establishing new routines such as toilet training and better bedtimes.
It has a great, simple format with windows rather than any tricky rows or columns, and it uses a story-telling approach in order to engage little ones – you can talk with them about where the bus might be heading and perhaps name all of the passengers together.
There is also an accompanying iOS app to extend use of the chart outside the home, which I think is a great idea. The Red Bus comes with adhesive letters to personalise it and comes beautifully gift-boxed. There are also Christmas characters available at the moment – which include a reindeer, elves and Santa, which is a super cute addition at this time of year, as well as animals which I know my daughter would love. It is all manufactured in Britain which is brilliant too.
It’s a really good quality and lovely reward chart and so beautifully designed. It gets brilliant reviews on Amazon with so many parents having big successes with it! It’s such a nice gentle reward chart that children really look forward to using.
Where to buy: Amazon RRP £22.95
I’d heard so much about these great slanted cups from Doidy over the last few years but I didn’t come across them when Ava was small. They have now added a new slanted high-lipped suction bowl to the collection, and this gift pack includes both of them making it a great gift for Christmas. The Doidy Bowl is designed to help develop motor skills, with a slanted high lip on one side to allow infants to scoop food up and load more easily onto a spoon. One of the great benefits of the new weaning bowl is its super-suction base which means it really sticks firmly to the highchair or table – making Christmas dinner this year for those with weaning babies a much less messy affair.
My sister has started using the cup with my niece who is around 9 months old and they absolutely love it! My niece loves drinking out of it and grabs it to have more, and my sister loves using it with her too. With its uniquely slanted design, the Doidy Cup helps your baby learn to drink naturally and aids the transition from breast or bottle to cup.
The Doidy range is recommended by professionals and helps your child to learn to feed and drink independently. The famous open slanted Doidy Cup with its easy-grip handles is available in 14 colours and finishes. The NEW Doidy Bowl is available in red, blue and pastel pink.
Where to buy: Amazon or John Lewis RRP £12.50
I love this toy so much. It is beautifully designed and brilliant quality and can be used as a game as well as a balancing toy (plus it looks so pretty just sat on your side as a decorative piece!).
Djeco Ze Balanceo has brightly painted wooden pieces and comes with dice to play the balance and tumble game, and it is lovely and tactile and great fun to play. As a toy for younger children it is a brilliant early manipulative toy which is great for shape matching too.
Where to buy: BrightMinds RRP £12.99
I’ve always thought Mam products were really great and we used their steriliser and bottles when Ava was a baby (not that she would ever take one!). They always make great quality products that are designed with baby in mind and they have such lovely products that would make thoughtful Christmas gifts for babies and new mums and dads.
Their glass ‘Feel Good‘ baby bottles are beautiful and have been developed and rigorously tested by MAM’s team of medical and safety experts, designers and engineers. The MAM Feel Good Glass Bottles are strong, durable and naturally BPA-free, offering greater peace of mind for parents.
Made of temperature-resistant glass, the bottle can be heated in the microwave or bottle warmer, cooled down quickly, cleaned in the dishwasher, and sterilised at high temperature. Like all MAM bottles, they include the SkinSoft teat which is silky soft and provides a familiar feel for babies.
These sweet little Dipper Sets are perfect for little hands to hold. They help to promote baby’s development and provide early successful experience of learning motivation, whilst supporting natural mimicking behaviour and increasing self-confidence. They allow food to stick well to them, making it easy for a baby to use even before they can scoop up, and they have a safety shield preventing them from going too far into the mouth.
Mam makes a great range of teethers, and my niece is loving this Bite & Brush Teether which not only massages babies gums and soothes but also cleans any first teeth with the soft bristles. I think it’s a great idea, and L (my niece) shoved it straight in her mouth!
I think a few of the different products can make a really nice gift – I love making up a hamper for new babies and their parents and Mam makes a great addition to that sort of gift.
Where to buy: Mam: Feel Good Glass Bottle RRP £12.00 Dipper Set RRP £5.50 Bite & Brush Teether RRP £5.99
This beautiful ‘Goes to Sleep’ children’s book is created in partnership with ‘The Children’s Sleep Charity’, and is proven to help children and parents sleep better through the night! The book is personalised with the child’s name and a photo of them inside as well as a character that looks similar to them. You can select a girl or boy, their hair colour, and skin tone and then preview each spread.
Using proven methods from world-renowned hospitals, The Children’s Sleep Charity and leading children’s sleep specialists, the book helps you to develop a highly effective bedtime routine. It is recommended for children between the ages of 6 months to 5 years old and I wish I had known about it when Ava was younger and a terrible sleeper.
It’s such a lovely book, and I can’t wait to give it to Lara for Christmas and hopefully it will help her to sleep much better!
Where to buy: Little Creatures RRP £16.99
Oilatum’s Junior range is specifically targeted to help soothe dry and eczema-prone skin and is developed with dermatologists for use on babies and children and can be used from day one. They have a lovely range of emollients and dry-skin friendly bath time products that soothe even the most sensitive skin (and I love to use them on me, too!).
Their scientists are constantly working to improve their understanding of skin and the latest developments in dermatology to ensure Oilatum is at the forefront of skin science.
The Oilatum Daily Junior Head to Toe Wash is a gentle formulation that offers everyday protection for healthy skin and helps to reduce the occurrence of dry skin. The product contains ultra-gentle, effective cleansers for dry skin and respects the natural moisture barrier in young skin. It is also kind to eyes and soap-free.
Oilatum Daily Junior Soothe & Protect Bath Foam is a lovely, frothy bubble bath, that helps to reduce the occurrence of dry and itchy skin and can be used every day. It helps to prevent further dryness by respecting the natural moisture barrier of young skin.
Where to buy: Boots RRP £4.99
These cute Deeno-Saur Toothbrushes make great stocking fillers for little kids. The Deeno–Saur battery toothbrush and 100% environmentally friendly bamboo toothbrush have just been launched by British tech design start-up company “deeno” to appeal to children and make teeth brushing teeth more fun.The battery toothbrush comes with fun stickers and a hatchable Deeno Egg that kids will love and help to encourage them to brush their teeth twice a day. I know my daughter loves to have a fun electric or traditional toothbrush and it does make a difference to her desire to clean her teeth!
Children can personalise the Deeno-saur electric brush with the Sticker sheet, where they can dress and accessorise the character and the extra special egg turns into a Dinosaur after 48 hours submerged in water. The toothbrush has the choice of three brushing speeds, soft, medium and hard, offering personalised brushing for each age or speed preference. The two-minute timer and quad pacer ensures an effective dentist recommended clean. The premium protect brush head and tongue cleaner has a specially designed bristle pattern to ensure it reaches all the hard to reach areas of a young child’s mouth, coupled with soft bristles and also a rubber silicone overcoat around the head to be extra gentle on teeth and gums. On the reverse are the rubber spikes to give the tongue a thorough clean.
For parents concerned about protecting the environment and the recyclability of products they purchase, Deeno-saur offer a truly environmentally friendly alternative. With 100% recycled packaging, the Blue children’s bamboo toothbrush has a specially designed bristle pattern to fit in young mouths for a fantastic and thorough clean. The nylon used in the biodegradable toothbrushes’ bristles is completely BPA-free and feels incredibly soft against teeth and gums to help clear away food debris and give teeth the perfect polish.
Each toothbrush is made from a single piece of naturally sustainable bamboo so no glue is needed. Unlike other bamboo toothbrushes, they are free from any harmful paint, dyes and other chemicals. Bamboo is naturally anti-bacterial and water-resistant. Perfect for little hands, the wave style handle is ergonomically designed for maximum comfort and easy grip.
Where to buy: Amazon: Bamboo Toothbrush RRP £2.99 Electric Toothbrush £17.99
I have bought this for my niece for Christmas who is so desperate to crawl but isn’t quite getting it, and it sounds great. The fox has three wheels which allow it to zoom about and it works on multiple surfaces including carpet. It also has light-up buttons to activate songs and phrases as well as a spinning and zooming motion.
The Fisher-Price Sit-to-Crawl Learning Fox helps with a baby’s development and has two different ways to play as they grow from sit-at play to crawling. The exciting songs, sounds and phrases introduce your baby to the alphabet and numbers, and the encouraging phrases and music keep your baby crawling after their foxy friend , helping with their gross motor skills.
Sitting babies will love exploring their foxy friend’s soft face and plush crinkly tail and pushing the light-up buttons to see the fox spin around as music and sounds play. As your baby grows, turn the front wheel to switch modes and watch as the Sit-to-Crawl Learning Fox rolls forward, encouraging your little one to crawl after their little buddy.
The price changes a lot on Amazon (It was around £18 when I bought it!) so keep an eye out.
Where to buy: Amazon RRP £34.99
This is a lovely skincare bundle to give to someone this Christmas, helping them to settle into a bedtime routine and care for baby’s delicate skin with the Baby Daily Care Hair & Body Wash, followed by a realxing mum & baby massage with the moisturising lotions. I love Aveeno products; they are so good and really do help keep skin moisturised over the freezing winter months.
This AVEENO® Mum & Baby Giftset includes:
Where to buy: Boots or Ocado RRP £20
I bought this book for my little nephew for his birthday after he had loved it at a children’s group, and it’s really good! I’ve read it a few times with him, and he and his older brother really enjoyed it and I had to persuade them to take it in turns to lift the flaps!
The flaps open in two different ways and this original design is fun and makes it a bit different from other lift-the-flap books. It has lovely brightly-coloured illustrations and funny rhymes.
For some reason it is pretty hard to get hold of – I got it from Amazon so it’s worth checking there, but at the moment it is £26 or more for some reason! I managed to find it on Book Depository to pre-order for £8.05 (which is not very helpful for Christmas!) – I will try and update this if I can find it anywhere else. (Aahh! I think it might be being re-released and that is why it is currently hard to come by).
Where to buy: Amazon or Book Depository RRP £8.99
Some of the products featured in this gift guide were sent to me for inclusion, but all words are my own.
Welcome to Birds and Lilies! I'm Lou: mother, blogger and freelance writer. This is my lifestyle blog, where I talk about motherhood, infertility and IVF, beauty, my love for food and wine, as well as my thoughts about stuff, and our real-life and travel adventures.
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