My niece is turning 2 and i have no clue what to get her. I always try to buy things she can learn from and use in the future. Any suggestions please.
If her parents don't already have one, my girls loved their wagon. They felt like "big girls" since they aren't strapped in like a stroller.
As they got older, they would take their toys (and each other) for rides. The rest of the family used it too, taking the cooler down to the lake, etc.
Wooden trains - we did mostly Ikea and Brio - they are all compatible.
Bilibo - my son LOVED this. It is anything the child wants it to be. http://www.bilibo.com/en/enter/default.aspx
Books
Good news! Two is an easy age to buy for, anything will make her happy....anything!
dr suess books.
khairete
S.
Dream lite has been my go-to gift for all friends/family this past year.
play dough, washable crayons, puzzles, a cooking set, colorforms, legos, cars, a cash register, or a leap frog thing where they trace the letters, paint and an easel, chalk, a jump rope, musical instruments.
good luck to you and yours,
F. B.
At 2 my kids favorites were push toys, ride-on toys, crawl through tunnels/tents, balls big and small, and bubble type stuff.
I agree wtih Melissa and Doug toys, they are great and they have great chunky puzzles for 2 y/os.
My daughter's absolute favorite gift was a push stroller as well. We used it a lot, lot, lot. I will say that part of it was that her baby brother was one born one week after her second birthday so we pushed our babies together a lot, but regardless, it's a great gift. Fisher Price makes a super cute one that is only like $30.
When my kids turned two they loved:
toy grocery cart with some toy food to push around
toy electronic piano (from target...looks like a big cat head)
Thomas the train tracks/trains/buildings
"Marble" run - one for younger kids that has bigger balls instead of plastic marbles
Toy kitchen and pretend kitchen things (birthday cake, ice cream cones, etc...melissa and doug and other companies make all these toy foods)
Do her parents have any suggestions? She might already have something I suggest.
Building blocks (Pottery Barn has a nice classic set), Thomas the train item (or generic since the tracks are compatible), or Alphabet magnets type item. Leapfrog has some fun learning items too. I'm a big Target shopper and usually include a gift receipt.
Legos! The medium size (Duplo). My daughter just turned 2 and got her first set. She loves them (she got a set that had some animals with it) and I love that she uses her budding imagination and we can use them to talk about colors and she counts as she makes towers. Plus who DOESN'T love Legos?!?! LOL
My DD LOVES her dry-erase table. She has used it for over a year now, and still loves it.
Legos are great too... The medium-size style. (I think they are called duplex or something...)
My son's favorite toy at 2 -- by a long ways -- was a little stroller for his stuffed animals. His eyes just lit up when he saw it, and he was so proud to be pushing (rather than sitting in) a stroller. I know it doesn't sound educational, but it really got him started walking long distances, and he used it for a lot of imaginative play.
You can't go wrong with a washable stuffed animal (not too big and not too small).
If it turns out to be a favorite lovey, then get a back up or two while they are available.
Our son loved Ty Pillow Pals (they were very popular 14 yrs ago).
Books (kids this age love look and find books and they make easier ones for toddlers), a playdoh set, Ikea has a great (affordable) train set, they also have the cutest plush play food, puzzles, play Dr kit for imaginative play, puppets...
Melissa and Doug puzzles/toys! They are the best.
When they are that age, I think it's a lot about what the parent want them to have. I'd go with two smaller gifts - something the parents could use for her (like a winter outfit or something) and something fun for her (a small, age appropriate toy). Go to Toys R Us and look in the section of baby toys - you'll get tons of ideas.
My daughter is 2.5. Right now, she loves her Little People Disney Princess Castle. http://www.amazon.com/Fisher-Price-Little-People-Disney-P...
She got it for xmas and still plays with it daily. Of course, I was a sucker and bought the extra princesses (it comes with Cinderella and Snow White), but you don't have to.
She also really likes the Color Wonder Markers from Crayola. I don't let her use regular markers because she'll draw on anything, but the Color Wonder ones only show up on the special Color Wonder paper. You can buy a set that comes with markers and a coloring book, or you can buy a pack of just the markers and a separate pack of blank paper.
She LOVES books. Some of her favorites are Pinkalicious, Fancy Nancy, Ladybug Girl, Camilla the Cupcake Fairy Tea Party (and other books by the same author - Lola the Lollipop Fairy, etc)
She likes blocks and Lego duplos.
She also loves her play kitchen and all of the accessories - food, plates, etc - that come with it. She's a big fan of her Fisher Price picnic basket too. http://www.amazon.com/LeapFrog-Shapes-Sharing-Picnic-Bask...
Finally, if you want something educational that she can learn from, check out Discovery Toys (www.discoverytoys.com). It's a home based company with amazing products. I am a consultant, but haven't been working much so I don't have an active website. If you saw something you liked, you could PM me. Or, you could just order through the main DT site.
