8 Toys Your Toddler Will Actually Play With

My toddler has a room full of toys. I promise you, we don’t even buy him that much – I’m just really bad at getting rid of things he doesn’t play with and most toys hold his interest for about two minutes. That’s why I felt compelled to write this post. I finally found some toys he loves, and if any of you out there also have a finicky child who turns his head up at everything, I thought you might be able to use these recommendations.

This could be a complete waste of time since all kids are different – but I know how hard it is to find something your child likes, so it can’t hurt. These recommendations are really for the three-plus crowd. I think our biggest problem with our first child and certain toys, was buying them before he was ready for them.

Dave The Minion

I know everyone has moved on from this movie and is still all about Frozen fever, but this toy rocks. We got this for my son for Christmas and he’s still totally entertained by it. I’m thinking it’s because it farts. Who knows. All I know is, it’s been six months and the thing still hasn’t lost it’s luster. Plus, it’s adorable. It says a few nonsense minion words, giggles, farts and says “banana.” Also, his eyes move when you squeeze him. So even if the movie is kind of “old” now – it’s still a fun doll.

Imaginext Stuff

These are great toys, because you can start small and relatively inexpensively to see if your kid has any interest. We bought him the Batmobile to start and when he didn’t put it down, we added to his collection. Now he has this Batcave and Wonder Woman’s invisible plane and he seriously plays with these things for very long stretches of time. They have a ton of other characters, too – like Jake and the Pirates, Monster’s Inc.

Balance Bike

This thing was sent to me before Christmas by a company that wanted me to review it.  I wanted to get on this bike – it was so beautiful. My son took no interest. Sorry, company. Here I will add that my son took no interest in anything that rolls or moves until about a month ago – at which point he began loving this bike. These bikes are great because unlike bikes with training wheels or three wheels, your child actually pushes, lifts his legs up and then rides along balancing himself (hence the name). Seems like this will be a way easier transition to regular bike. We’ll see.

Mega Blocks

I know – you’re probably thinking booorrrrinnnng. These giant lego-type blocks are owned by pretty much everyone for a reason. Kids like to build things.

Ikea Train Set

I guess any train set would work here – I’m just choosing Ikea’s because it’s affordable, it’s made of wood, and it’s easy to put together. This is one of those toys I thought was a fail because I gave it to my child too early. He loves it now.

Picasso Tiles

These are like blocks that encourage your child to think outside the box. They are magnetic – and as you can see from the pics that means a lot more building options are available. It’s not just the same old stack-to-build toy.

V-Reader

I know some of you may not be into electronic toys for your kids, but this thing is awesome. The reader comes with built in word puzzles and games, but you can buy cartridges to mix it up for your child. We have the Toy Story and Mickey Mouse ones – and they are interactive and terrific. The word games help kids recognize letters, put sounds together, and identify word combinations.

Toy Kitchen

Okay – kids love these. We have a membership to the Orlando Science Museum. There is a kids section, and even though the museum is filled with all kinds of amazing things – the kitchen is always full of kids. I didn’t actually believe this toy could possibly be this entertaining, but I do now. I’m investing in one because my youngest will be able to enjoy it, too. I linked the Ikea one because it’s pretty affordable as these kitchens go.