Play and Learn Every Day

Christmas Gift List for Toddlers

8:30 AM

This is a very fun Christmas for Ethan, now that's he's three he really understands what we're doing and is getting very excited for the big day!

Stocking Fillers

In Ethan's stocking this year there are going to be all kinds of things to keep him busy in the morning for as long as possible (as I suspect he'll be up from about 4am and the rest of us won't be quite ready to start with all the presents yet!) So he'll be getting little toy cars, surprise packets and sticker books.

Of course it wouldn't be a stocking without a few treats, so he will be getting a few of these healthy Fruit Frollipops that we were sent to try. They're yummy and 1 of your 5 a day, perfect!

Books

We have so many books, but I just can't help but buy Ethan more for Christmas, so as well as all of the Christmas books that he's getting as part of the 12 books of Christmas he will also be getting a few other books that I'm sure he's going to love.

Toys

Of course it wouldn't be Christmas without toys! Ethan got these lovely toys to review from Learning Resources as an early Christmas present, and he absolutely loves them (read our full review here.)

Another early gift for Ethan were these fun WOW Toys, a brand that we love already. Their toys are always a hit in our house, I love that there are no batteries required but they have fun features that Ethan loves. This is the Construction Crew set that includes Roll it Riley and Lift it Luke, giving Ethan the opportunity to make his own little construction site and pretend to build all sorts of things.

Another great gift idea for three year olds in craft supplies! There are so many things that Ethan can make now, so it's always good to have lots of crafty bits in the house, play dough, coloured pencils, lots of paper, glue, paint and so many more things. Getting messy and crafty is a great way to learn the skills that he'll need to start writing soon.

We were also sent this great game of Dotty Dinosaurs from Orchard Toys. It's a fun game and a great way to help learn about colours and shapes, as well as the rules of games, such as turn taking!

We were also lucky enough to be sent the LeapFrog Read With Me Violet to review as a Christmas gift. We love Scout and Violet, so Ethan was excited right away to see a character that he recognised. This is a great gift for a toddler as it teaches early reading skills, you can follow along with the 5 books that Violet reads, and also answer comprehension questions. Of course she is also cute and cuddly, and Ethan has fun playing with her along with his other soft toys.

Clothes

Ethan will be getting some clothes for Christmas as well, of course he will get his traditional pair of pyjamas on Christmas Eve, but he'll also get some fun clothes with his favourite characters on them (like Octonauts and Fireman Sam.)

From Santa

We can't forget the one thing that Ethan has asked Santa for, 'everyone from Frozen' so he'll be getting these Frozen figures, and I hope that he'll be very excited to open them!

* This post contains items that we were sent to review (the Fruit Frollipops, WOW Toys, LeapFrog, Learning Resources Toys and Orchard Toys) as well as affiliate links. *

10 months old

12 Books of Christmas

8:30 AM

3 years old

Christmas Elf Family - An Alternative to Elf on the Shelf

4:49 PM

We absolutely love Christmas!!! So, of course, I want to introduce my children to every Christmas tradition there could possibly be. I've seen everyone doing Elf on the Shelf for the past few years and always thought that I would give it a try when Ethan was a bit older. Now this year Ethan's 3, so it is a great age to start, but of course December 1st came and went, and I saw everyone else's brilliant elves popping up everywhere, and thought that I was too late to start. But then I thought...Ethan doesn't know what anyone else on Facebook is doing, so really we could do our own little elf thing in our own little way, and he would be none the wiser! Of course I was inspired by all the brilliant bloggers doing Elf on the Shelf fantastically, have a look at this compilation on Kids Activities Blog and by the Elf alternatives like Imagination Tree's Kindness Elves, and Little Page Turners' Christmas Mouse.

So we have a whole little elf family. There's an Elf Mommy, and Elf Daddy, an Elf Boy and a Baby Girl Elf. They all live in their little elf house (which is just a really cute house shaped gift box). Ethan loves their house and likes to take the elves in and out and play with them. My idea was to have elves that Ethan could play with and be a part of the process and the fun of seeing what they're up to everyday. We didn't start with our elves on December 1st, but as it's 12 days until Christmas it was another perfect time to start. Another way to get Ethan even more excited for the big day!

So, each day we get the elves out of their house, and there may be a clue in there as to what we're going to do that day. Today Santa was also in their house with them, because we're going to visit Santa! I told Ethan that we're going to visit Santa today, and so are the elves. We also went out for a special breakfast first, so then it was Ethan's job to make breakfast for all of the elves. I cut out little bowls for each of them, and he drew their breakfast (he decided that they were all having cornflakes.) And then when he finished, he said that Santa needed breakfast too! So we made an extra bowl and the elves shared their cornflakes with him. I am loving our new tradition already!

* This post contains affiliate links *

3 years old

Baker Ross Christmas Crafts - Review

8:30 AM

3 years old

Make Time to Play

8:30 AM

3 years old

Room on the Broom Live - Review

8:30 AM

10 months old

Christmas Gift List for Babies

8:30 AM

It's Ivy's first Christmas and I am so excited! There are just so many traditions that I can't wait to introduce her to, and of course, so many gifts to buy her! So here's our list of great gifts for babies for their very first Christmas (or even their second).

Stocking Fillers

The first gifts that Ivy will get to open are the little ones in her stocking. I like to put things to keep the kiddies busy first thing in the morning while we get their breakfast ready (and maybe even start to prep dinner if we're feeling ambitious!)

This year Ivy will be getting this Anywayup Cup that we were sent to review from Haberman. It's so cute, and we're always searching for cups that don't leak and that she can drink from by herself, and this one fits the bill.

She will also be getting some WOW Toys Pocket Figures of Santa and Rudolph, which I'm sure that she will be putting into her different WOW cars straight away.

The rest of her stocking has a bit of a bath time theme, I've got her a bath book, bath toys, and some Bedtime Bath products. We were sent the baby wash, baby oil and powder as part of their 3 step program.

Keepsakes

As it is Ivy's first Christmas she will need a few special little keepsakes. I've got her this Mickey Mouse Christmas stocking from the Disney Store and we're ordering her a special personalised ornament for the Christmas tree as well.

Toys
We have already got so many toys in the house that it is difficult to choose new and exciting toys for Ivy, but there are toys of Ethan's that she absolutely loves, so we jumped at the chance to review some WOW Toys that were just for Ivy. I chose Penny's Pooch and Ride and Rosie's Royal Ride as they were different to ones that we already had. Ivy loves the little dog that sits in the back of the car and the horse that pulls the carriage the best.

Another great toy that we've been lucky enough to be sent to review for Christmas is the LeapFrog Roll and Go Rocking Horse. First of all, it's so cute! And it's so much fun for Ivy to play with, it plays music, which she absolutely loves and reacts to her pressing on the saddle or pushing him along. Ivy is already crawling, but it is suitable for babies from 6 months old, so would be great to encourage babies to start crawling and chasing it around.

Ivy also really loves dolls, she's got the Baby Stella which she adores, so we are getting her some accessories to go along with her. She will also be getting this doll to hang on her pram that she can play with when we're out and about.

Books

Of course Ivy will get a few books in the lead up to Christmas with our 12 books of Christmas that she and Ethan will share. But I have also got her some lovely new board books, as she has always enjoyed looking at the pictures, but is now also turning the pages and lifting the flaps on her own.

Clothes

One of our traditions is to get a new pair of pyjamas on Christmas Eve, so I've chosen some really cute ones for Ivy. She will also get some new clothes on Christmas Day, a few things that are a bit too expensive to buy day to day, but perfect for a gift.

We have also been given these lovely clothes to review from Darlo, not only are their baby clothes made from lovely organic cotton and so very soft, but they are also doing good. For every Darlo product sold, they give to charity to provide a weeks worth of meals for a child in India. What a better way to celebrate Christmas than to buy a gift for your little one as well as helping to feed a child in India. We got the vest and joggers as well as the dribblecatcher which is free with every order for Christmas.

From Santa

Because of Ivy's love of dolls, and because she is just learning to walk, we thought that she should ask Santa for this doll pram and walker, which is just going to be the perfect gift for her to walk around the house with her favourite dolly.

* This post contains review items (Anywayup Cup, WOW Toys, LeapFrog, Bedtime Bath and Darlo Clothing) as well as affiliate links. *