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When your kid turns one it’s the fun stage in between being dependent on mom and dad for a lot but also seeing their little minds grow and take in new things to learn. I wanted to share some of our son’s favorite things that really capture his interest and attention and might be some fun additions for your one year old too!
Books
Every day Bubba goes into his bookcase and grabs these books out from the thirty or so books in there and opens them up. They are the most tattered at this point but it’s because they are his most loved!
The Very Hungry Caterpillar
This book has a lot of color and variety in the illustrations. He likes the page with alllll the food the caterpillar ate when he ate the most during the week.
Ten Little Ladybugs
The way we read this book may have some weight in why he likes it so much because it’s a bit sing-song-y. He also likes to touch the ladybugs on each page because they are raised up and smooth so it’s a fun way to keep him involved without having flaps on all the pages. The colors are also great.
Goodnight Moon
This book is great for singling out specific things in an otherwise busy picture and using repetition to keep looking for them. We point out the red balloon, the kittens, and even the bunny in his bed to show Bubba. I’ve been trying to mimic the book and get him to say “goodnight” to things around his room at bedtime and he doesn’t have it down yet but I know he will get it eventually!
Little Blue Truck
This book is special to my hubby because his dad had a blue truck a long time ago so we always love reading it to Bubba. I think he likes it mostly for all the fun animals and the sounds we make when we read this book to him. Beep beep beep! But when he’s older he will get to understand the lesson in the book- to always lend a helping hand.
Toys
At this age, most of Bubba’s favorite toys are electronic and that’s totally okay with us and he enjoys them whether we are in his room playing or driving in the car. We try to incorporate other kinds of toys that promote motor skill development and he is starting to like having those in the mix too. I think it’s totally realistic to have some of both.
Story Book Rhymes (Fisher Price)
Oh my god. He opens this book/toy multiple times a day and I’m constantly hearing all the nursery rhymes BUT it’s cute because he’s familiar now with the classics and God knows I don’t think to recite nursery rhymes to him like, ever.
Blocks
This might sound cheesy to you but I really love his blocks because he made a big leap in development with these. They’re squishy and colorful and the perfect size for a baby to play with. I’ll take two or three and make a little stack and then hand him a block and he understands that his job is to put it on top of the stack. I was so proud the first time he did it and it is so cute to watch his little wheels turn. But more than that he loves to knock them over and chew on them, which is adorable when he’s crawling around on the floor and he cracks up when I constantly ask “Are you a puppy??”
Activity Center
This one deserves an honorable mention because it’s great for so many purposes! It’s essentially a seat to keep your child in with the ability to turn 360 degrees. Our son likes the toys that come with it that attach to the surface and there is so much space on all sides of him for giving him other little toys and animals to play with. What I personally love about it so much is that it’s a safe place to put him in when I need to run into another room for something or get a task done. He’s happy, I’m happy- it’s a win! But what’s also awesome about this activity center is that when he gets too old for sitting in it in this configuration, we can remove the piece he sits in and replace it with the lower platform that his feet currently rest on. In this form it will become a little play table for him! Two birds, one stone, mama!
Follow-Me Bee
This toy is such a smart interactive invention for little ones. It features a bee with little handles that sits atop a cloud base and moves around the room. When the bee is grabbed off of the cloud base, the cloud will spin around, play different sounds and light up to tell your child that they succeeded! The toy either goes in circles or in a random pattern across the room and can work on carpet or hard floors. As a heads up, this one did startle Bubba a little bit at first when we introduced it months ago but once he got over that it became a favorite. He feels so victorious whenever he manages to snatch the bee off the cloud.
Chomp and Count Dino
First of all, this toy is adorable. It is a dinosaur with lots of buttons to push, a mouth to feed and a tummy to retrieve his “food” from. The food is little circular disks of all different colors that represent common foods. It’s fun to teach your little one the concept of feeding the dinosaur but over time it will also help teach different foods, colors and numbers.
Take Along Tunes Musical Toy
Surprisingly, this toy is the most simple electronic toy Bubba has but he loves it so much. One button push and this toy will play an assortment of classical tunes while turning different colors. The nice thing about this one is that the tunes never bother my husband and I. As a parent, you know this can be a problem especially if it’s one of your kid’s favorites but it’s definitely not an issue here!
Sophie La Girafe
This is technically a teether but the kiddo loves it so much and never gets sick of it. The various parts of the giraffe are soothing to bite on for a teething child and it is very easy for them to hold. The toy also has a great squeak that kids love. We will definitely get this for any future children we have. This one is a favorite for a lot of littles but it’s worth mentioning that it can only be cleaned by wiping on the outside so that moisture doesn’t get into the hole.
Laugh & Learn Puppy’s Remote
This one is maybe a little more of a favorite for me than my son! There are tons of different buttons, phrases and songs on this toy that keep Bubba occupied and because of this, it’s my go-to for diaper changes! If he’s being too wiggly and grabby and I just need him to be still on the changing table I will give him this toy and it always does the trick! It’s also great for car rides and takes up very little space.
I hope these items gave you some helpful and fun ideas for your child or to use as great gifts for any younger kids you may be shopping for. Comment below to let me know what books and toys your one year old loves so we can all share ideas!