What are your favorite toys for your ten month old?
May 19, 2013 8:23 AM Subscribe
Our son will be ten months old soon and I'd like to get him some new toys.
I get overwhelmed by the toy choices I'm seeing on Amazon and in the toy stores, and a little advice would be greatly helpful. Toys that would last him for a year or so would be particularly great.
As I said, he's almost ten months old. He's very much into cause and effect right now. He enjoys things that play music, balls, things that he can pull up on, and things he take apart (i.e. - a little wooden farmhouse that is a series of interlocking blocks.) What he loves most - MOST - is anything electronic. Remote controls, game consoles, laptops, phones, iPad, anything with a button on it that he can press, you get the idea.
He's also pretty small, so some things that taller babies can pull up on easily are harder for him to manage, so if you've got experience with toys for shorter babies, that would be particularly helpful.
Thanks in advance.
I get overwhelmed by the toy choices I'm seeing on Amazon and in the toy stores, and a little advice would be greatly helpful. Toys that would last him for a year or so would be particularly great.
As I said, he's almost ten months old. He's very much into cause and effect right now. He enjoys things that play music, balls, things that he can pull up on, and things he take apart (i.e. - a little wooden farmhouse that is a series of interlocking blocks.) What he loves most - MOST - is anything electronic. Remote controls, game consoles, laptops, phones, iPad, anything with a button on it that he can press, you get the idea.
He's also pretty small, so some things that taller babies can pull up on easily are harder for him to manage, so if you've got experience with toys for shorter babies, that would be particularly helpful.
Thanks in advance.
Our son loved this Mozart Cube from when he was little until he was nearly 3.
posted by fings at 8:58 AM on May 19, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by fings at 8:58 AM on May 19, 2013 [1 favorite]
Do you have an ikea nearby? I love all of their wooden toys. My son has been playing with their train sets for almost 2 years now.
posted by chiababe at 9:04 AM on May 19, 2013
posted by chiababe at 9:04 AM on May 19, 2013
We've had success with the Playmobil Push and Pull Train Set - it's a very simple, self-contained set, with plastic track pieces that are easy to snap together into a circle, two train cars that hook together, and two little people. The box is a carrying case too. At first he won't be able to snap the tracks together or hook the cars together, but he'll learn. The train cars roll well, the people are easy to seat in the cars, the set is rugged without being ugly, and the whole thing just works well.
posted by LobsterMitten at 9:10 AM on May 19, 2013
posted by LobsterMitten at 9:10 AM on May 19, 2013
I got my niece a metal bucket and some plastic balls from Baby Einstein. The balls are cool because they make noise when they the metal buckets sides (it's not a special bucket btw it's from the dollar store) and the balls also have really simple kinetic puzzles inside them. So in theory when she's older she'll still like them. I got her about 110 dollars of gifts that day and those remain her favorites... And were also the cheapest.
She also likes my goth Lolita bear from build a bear but primarily bites her face.
posted by spunweb at 9:26 AM on May 19, 2013
She also likes my goth Lolita bear from build a bear but primarily bites her face.
posted by spunweb at 9:26 AM on May 19, 2013
This toy was by far the most used toy in our house of 4 kids at that age and after 6 years of almost daily use, I have finally retired it. It deserves a design award imho. Seriously, best toy ever.
This one is pretty classic as well.
It's hard to recommend electronic toys as they seem to lose their appeal quickly, but you can't go wrong with a kids keyboard.
posted by tenaciousmoon at 9:57 AM on May 19, 2013
This one is pretty classic as well.
It's hard to recommend electronic toys as they seem to lose their appeal quickly, but you can't go wrong with a kids keyboard.
posted by tenaciousmoon at 9:57 AM on May 19, 2013
My 14 month old boy really uses an activity table I bought at Costco. Such as this one. But really any one that looks good to you and fits your budget might do well. My kid isn't walking yet, just cruising, and the table helps him with coordination motivating him to walk around and use his hands.
posted by CrazyLemonade at 10:15 AM on May 19, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by CrazyLemonade at 10:15 AM on May 19, 2013 [1 favorite]
Our fifteen-month old has enjoyed ball-pounding toys for a while now; we'd get him this one if he didn't already have two other (inferior) versions. He also really likes cars/trucks at this point. The GreenToys Fire Truck and Recycling truck are real favorites right now (plus, they're well-made and can take a beating).
We just broke out the Vtech Walker that some family got for him. It's quite good for what it is. Probably only a 6 out of 10 on the "annoying audio sounds" scale (which is pretty decent considering what is typical). It combines the electronic buttons thing with the "learning to walk" toy. He loves it and is a fairly late walker, so it's likely that your son might like it now.
posted by Betelgeuse at 11:13 AM on May 19, 2013
We just broke out the Vtech Walker that some family got for him. It's quite good for what it is. Probably only a 6 out of 10 on the "annoying audio sounds" scale (which is pretty decent considering what is typical). It combines the electronic buttons thing with the "learning to walk" toy. He loves it and is a fairly late walker, so it's likely that your son might like it now.
posted by Betelgeuse at 11:13 AM on May 19, 2013
These rainbow bowls from IKEA (the ones currently pictured on the IKEA site itself are proportioned differently; dunno what's up with that) were a huge, huge favorite with our daughter from about 8-24 months. Stacking, wearing as hats, putting stuff in, scooping stuff with -- just totally beloved in every way. She's 3 now and still uses them for stuff all the time, but peak BEST TOY status was from about your kid's age through her second birthday. Extremely high value for the money!
posted by redfoxtail at 11:35 AM on May 19, 2013
posted by redfoxtail at 11:35 AM on May 19, 2013
Response by poster: Hey, thanks everybody. Great suggestions, all.
posted by TryTheTilapia at 3:37 PM on May 19, 2013
posted by TryTheTilapia at 3:37 PM on May 19, 2013
I'm about to buy a Pewi Ybike for our 10.5 month old- I figure he'll be able to use it for awhile.
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 4:09 PM on May 19, 2013
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 4:09 PM on May 19, 2013
Do you have a toy rental place in your area? We used one for a while to test out expensive toys and decide what we would buy, especially because we live in a small apartment. That ball popper toy linked above had zero interest for our daughter, for example.
Open-ended toys are the best - the plainer and simpler, the longer it will last. I had the same question as you recently and gave myself a budget to stock up. I bought a bunch of blocks (duplo is great) and magnetic building toys, a doll, etc, and then thinking it was a toy guide, read Sally Goldberg's Baby and Toddler book and it changed how I was thinking about toys.
When my older kids were little, we lived literally next to a jungle, and while they had some toys, they mostly played outdoors. We were also pretty broke. With the new baby, a decade later I have more to spend but no big outdoor and toy stores are just so so gorgeous and full of cool and exciting things. But what she plays with the most in order are: siblings, pets, toys we have made just for her, toys that are open-ended. The toys I love in the store are not often toys she loves or uses.
Make These Toys is a good book on very fast simple toys that work well for children, although you can basically go to Pinterest and search for "toy pompom" and get a bunch of ideas.
I get anxious and wound-up in toy stores, and the time to go to a store or to shop online (reviewing, comparing etc) is for me much more pleasant to spend making a crappy toy that she can use instead. The toys you make will not look as adorable and polished as store-bought toys. But they are used as much if not more, and by mixing it up - her duplo with our home-made box castle to build on - she gets a lot of mileage out of them. If she breaks it - sorry, when she breaks it - I just make a new one, which is less painful than replacing a $40 toy.
And I really don't see the point of giving a baby toy versions of things. She uses a cake-knife (dull edge) and spare measuring cups etc and cuts up bananas for fun, rather than getting a "play kitchen set".
Although she will get a tiny porcelain tea-set with little roses on it whether she likes it or not because I dreeeeamed of one as a little girl and never got it.
posted by viggorlijah at 9:41 PM on May 19, 2013 [1 favorite]
Open-ended toys are the best - the plainer and simpler, the longer it will last. I had the same question as you recently and gave myself a budget to stock up. I bought a bunch of blocks (duplo is great) and magnetic building toys, a doll, etc, and then thinking it was a toy guide, read Sally Goldberg's Baby and Toddler book and it changed how I was thinking about toys.
When my older kids were little, we lived literally next to a jungle, and while they had some toys, they mostly played outdoors. We were also pretty broke. With the new baby, a decade later I have more to spend but no big outdoor and toy stores are just so so gorgeous and full of cool and exciting things. But what she plays with the most in order are: siblings, pets, toys we have made just for her, toys that are open-ended. The toys I love in the store are not often toys she loves or uses.
Make These Toys is a good book on very fast simple toys that work well for children, although you can basically go to Pinterest and search for "toy pompom" and get a bunch of ideas.
I get anxious and wound-up in toy stores, and the time to go to a store or to shop online (reviewing, comparing etc) is for me much more pleasant to spend making a crappy toy that she can use instead. The toys you make will not look as adorable and polished as store-bought toys. But they are used as much if not more, and by mixing it up - her duplo with our home-made box castle to build on - she gets a lot of mileage out of them. If she breaks it - sorry, when she breaks it - I just make a new one, which is less painful than replacing a $40 toy.
And I really don't see the point of giving a baby toy versions of things. She uses a cake-knife (dull edge) and spare measuring cups etc and cuts up bananas for fun, rather than getting a "play kitchen set".
Although she will get a tiny porcelain tea-set with little roses on it whether she likes it or not because I dreeeeamed of one as a little girl and never got it.
posted by viggorlijah at 9:41 PM on May 19, 2013 [1 favorite]
Hands down, the Zany Zoo Activity cube (or any variation of it). My son is 4 now and still drags it out sometimes.
posted by Mchelly at 5:25 AM on May 20, 2013
posted by Mchelly at 5:25 AM on May 20, 2013
My kid spent 45 minutes with this toy when it first appeared in our house (then a record for attention/focus) and played with it probably every day for months, then intermittantly for almost a year. Totally worth the money, even if you can't find one used on Craig's list. Lots to manipulate, explore, try out, even learn. Plus, the sounds aren't so loud that they make you nuts.
We also had a music table that earned its keep by regular visits while it was in our main play space, although over time most of that time was playing through its repertoire of songs.
posted by acm at 7:26 AM on May 20, 2013
We also had a music table that earned its keep by regular visits while it was in our main play space, although over time most of that time was playing through its repertoire of songs.
posted by acm at 7:26 AM on May 20, 2013
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posted by dawkins_7 at 8:40 AM on May 19, 2013