Elle is one clever, exuberant, and impassioned little girl.
And shopping for her birthday gift, when our house is already overflowing with entertainment options, is a bit challenging. I recently stumbled on a website called ebeanstalk, dedicated to helping us select high quality, safe, and educational gifts for children. Fortunately, they requested help from moms like me to offer feedback on their toys.
About a month ago, they sent us the Activity Bus from Plan Toys, who create eco-friendly wooden toys.
Like all things new to this house, the bus was an instant hit. Its quirky little people with bungee cord arms and legs are fun to manipulate and surprisingly durable. The Bus opens up into a classroom, giving Maya an instant opportunity to take charge.
"Now Elliot, it's time for circle time, come over to the rug," she instructed for quite a while. To my delight, Elliot happily played along.
Unlike too many of our things, the bus did NOT fade away into the toy room blitz. Instead, it is frequently pulled out in coordination with the little people farm and the horse barn, becoming part of some grand, indecipherable play world that distracts that girls long enough for me to get the laundry out on the line.
After a month of play, the bus is still in top condition, still has all its parts including the tiny chalk board, and still holds their interest.
I now have a list going for the other items they want (and I need in order to survive winter hibernation), including the little playground and the rescue center, featuring the same cute bungee people. I have already spotted excellent Christmas gifts for my new niece on ebeanstalk, too!
Of course, the only downfall to high quality toys is that they are expensive. But I'm definitely more in favor of having a few really nice, durable, nontoxic toys that the kids actually play with than a thousand toxic plastic toys that simply litter the playroom floor.
So I'll be scrolling the two and three year old gift lists on ebeanstalk for the big birthday later this month, and if you want to get a jump on Christmas shopping, it's not a bad place to start!
Two years! How is that possible?
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1 comment:
wait until seventeen years slaps you upside the head! :)))
my kids LOVED the little tykes playhouse and farm, those little figures so much a part of their childhood. toys don't need to be flashy and loud, just durable and imaginative!
Happy birthday to Elliot!
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