Top 5 Must Have Toys for 1 to 3 Year Olds

There are so many different toys for kids these days. They have big toys, little toys, soft toys, hard toys so how do we even know what is best for our child. Some cost a bit more than others, but does that mean more fun? Not necessarily. Does anyone really have the time to try out all these toys or the knowledge of which are going to be the most useful? Not really. Most parents go by trial and error or word of mouth. I can say my daughter has had a lot of toys so far and she is only 18 months. She also has a huge list of family and friends so with that said I compiled a list of the top 5 must have toys for 1 - 3 year olds.

Starting with #5, we have Little people Play n' Go sets. It basically is like a lunch box with a handle that opens and closes and stores all the people and objects inside. There are several different themes such as farm, school and house all made by Fisher Price. My daughter has the house one and she loves to put the objects in front of the house and put them back inside. She carries it around by the handle and even when its time to visit grandma and grandpa. Each piece has lots of color and is so detailed and the parts are not a choke hazard.

Next #4 we have Little People Animal Sounds Farm. This is like a real farm that includes a sheep, horse, chicken,cow,pig and farmer. It has moving doors and gates that make animal sounds when they are opened. My daughter learned about which animals are which and what sounds they make. She loves hiding the animals and then finding them.

On to #3 which is the Fisher Price gumball machine. It comes with clear plastic balls that are placed in the top of the gumball machine and the toddler then presses the blue lever and music plays while the gumball rolls down the curved slide. The balls are not a choke hazard and they have different objects inside the clear plastic such as a car. My daughter picked right up on how to operate this after a few times showing her. Now she is a pro and presses the lever so fast that 5 gumballs come out one right after the other. This gives good hand eye coordination and allows her to count the gumballs.

The #2 toy would have to be storybook rhymes by Fisher Price. This interactive music book sings nursery rhymes and has a colorful caterpiller holding the book that opens and closes easily. The book is strong and can withstand many drops. It can go whenever and where ever. The music keeps the childs attention and they will enjoy learning songs.

Finally #1 must have for toddlers is Your Baby Can Read DVD. They a have a set or individual stages. I played this for my daughter once or twice a week for a few months mostly just before bedtime and she started saying the words and doing the actions all of the sudden. I was amazed. She said Hi, opened her mouth, touched her nose and raised her arms all before she was 15 months. Not only that she was so excited to watch this dvd each and everytime. It held her attention and she started to interact with it.

Those are my top 5 must have's for toddlers ages 1-3. From experience these toys will last the longest and provide nothing but positive results. Each one of these takes some time for the child to understand and be comfortable with and remember all children are different.