Five best presents for under-fives!

Well that’s it, Halloween is done, so all that’s left this year is CHRISTMAS! I know I’m not the only one starting to think about the big day as my sales for the mini photography session, literally went crazy after Halloween and I’ve sold out!

Whilst I love buying gifts for my gorgeous children, I also find it hard to find new and exciting toys that offer value for money and will keep them entertained for hours. This is something I find even harder for my second child as he’s already been exposed to his older sibling’s toys already.

So, like every mum of young children I’ve hopped online to see what the experts say. This coupled with my own experience I have developed my top five best presents for under-fives!

Top five!

1/ Up first I have a classic for a busy pre-schooler Brio Deluxe World Set. Made by Swedish company Brio, one of the world’s leading manufacturers of wooden toys, are experts at creating fun, engaging toys for young children. The Deluxe World Set comes with a whole host of different scenarios, including a harbour, a farm and a house. It’s perfect for a three-year-old’s newfound love for mimicking the real world. Constructing the whole set also helps develop key motor skills, but it’s probably too tricky for a child of that age to do alone. Whilst it comes with a large price tag it is timeless and can be kept to pass on for future generations or you can get a reasonable resale amount if that’s the option you chose.

2/ A firm second favourite in our house, is Learning Resources Pretend & Play Doctors Set. From a young age I have tried to encourage doctor play to help those emergency doctor trips go a bit easier. This pretend doctor’s kit comes with 19 pieces of plastic equipment, including a stethoscope, syringe and tweezers. It’s designed to encourage imaginative play, develop speech and language, and it taps into a child’s fascination with the world around them. With so many pieces of equipment, it’s also perfect for group play, at an age where playing and sharing with others of the same age is to be encouraged. Throw a toilet roll into the fun and it can provide endless hours of amusement for all!

3/ Third on my list is the pop-up toy by Galt. I had seen this on various shopping trips when looking for gifts for my little one but really did not see what the attraction was. At a friend’s house my baby was drawn to this toy and played with it for the duration of our visit. I was still struggling to see what captured his attention for so long, however, it did! On speaking to other mums about it, they agreed, totally confused but a hit nonetheless! So it really is just an amusing wooden toy with 4 colourful figures which bob up and down on concealed springs. Designed to encourage hand and eye coordination and introduce colour awareness.

4/ My children love playing outside, so fourth on my list would have to be an outside house to play in. From ‘painting it’ with water, to running around it, to cooking in it, it is fair to say it has provided endless hours of fun.  We opted for the Little Tikes Go Green Playhouse: Eco. The Go Green Playhouse incorporates eco-friendly features and activities to help kids learn about environmentalism through imagination-driven play. I love how Little Tikes always adds lots of cute details to their playhouses, like little ledges, moulded coat hooks and an embossed bonsai tree. My kids help with the recycling in our house, so they loved having their own little baskets. There’s a working LED light inside powered by a real solar panel. It also has a doorbell and a mail box slot too. The tap works with rain water it has collected from the drain system and a moulded miniature cutting board. It really does have it all and well worth the money.

5/ Finally, a tip I was given from a fellow mummy friend, an annual pass to a local farm park. Most of them and you only have to go five or so times in a year to get your money worth. It was a great tip, especially when little one starts walking and has lots of energy to burn before tiring themselves out for a nap. I would go to the farm park for the morning and not feel aggrieved for not getting around all the activities and gaining value for money, I just thought, it was fine as I could do that next time. Equally I’d pick one that has some indoor areas to play in as well. One of my favourite local ones, Umberslade Farm Park, has a indoor play barn, which is perfect for rainy afternoons with not much to do!

Next weeks blog is on how to best prepare for your newborn session. My super talented friend Brooke at Sandpiper Photography in Noosa and Sunshine Coast pregnancy photographer has a wonderful guide to prepare for a Maternity session this week, if you have time go and have a little read, he work is stunning!