Birthday gifts for the under 3s

This post originally appeared on From the Wolf’s Den. I’ve updated it to include gift ideas for children under 3.
Disclaimer – I’m not receiving anything for the products I link to. They are just ideas or products I personally own or sites I have bought from before.

My goodness, that has snuck up fast! Miss A will be one in a couple of months. I’m so not ready.

We’ll be doing lots of birthday prep sharing soon but today I wanted to share a list I’m working on that I thought might be useful for other mums of littlies – what to get a 1 year old

We’ll be asking guests to Miss A’s party to not buy toys this year. Now don’t get me wrong – toys are awesome but we have heaps. Boxes of toys that belonged to Miss K, most of which are still in great condition. Miss K and I will be sorting them soon into toys to keep for Miss A, toys that have sentimental value, teddy bears (cause you never get rid of teddy bears lol), toys to give to the needy (cause I really want to instil this in my girls each year before birthdays and Christmas but more on that another time) and stuff that can just get chucked out.

So what does one buy for a 1 year old that isn’t toys? With the help of the internet, mums in my birth group, friends and family, I’ve compiled this list of handy non toy suggestions for you.

  • Books. Kids can never have too many books. Write a little note inside to the recipient with the month & date.
  • Clothing. Check with the parents for size/season recommendations or if they have any preferences
  • Vouchers. Grab a voucher parents can use to buy baby goods – things like nappies & wipes. Boring but useful.
  • Memberships. If you have a zoo nearby grab a membership.
  • put some money in their saving account
  • A coin set (My mum has done this for Miss K – a set each year since she was born)
  • A dish/cup/spoon/fork set
  • a little something special for the mum & dad
  • Music CDs designed for little kids
  • DVDs for kids
  • Something my godmother did was to buy me a charm bracelet then a charm each year
  • Something personalised – towels, bowls, cups
  • An IOU for babysitting/day out with the little person
  • Adopt an animal on behalf of a child (eg. through WWF – yeah I know it comes with a toy but it’s sooo cute AND a good cause)
  • Have a toy made out of a special piece of baby clothing – like the onesie they came home in. Check out Beary Special Memories
  • Something knitted or crocheted. I can recommend the Beanie Bunch
  • Pram liners or car seat liners. I can recommend Max & I
  • Handmade bibs

Over to you. What non-toy gift would you give a 1 year old?

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