Play Time
Jellycat Carniflore Priscilla
$50.00Forgetful with plants? Carniflore Priscilla is your girl. This stunning green diva has a grey suedette pot, fluffy brown soil and scalloped stitch leaves. With a plump bulb head, neon...
Janod Cart with ABC Blocks
$76.00An early-childhood development cart to accompany your baby's first steps. With 20 blocks illustrating letters from the alphabet, numbers, and basic shapes, as well as 3 abacus rows to start...
Magna-Tiles Castle 25-Piece Set
$42.00Fairy tale dreams come true with the MAGNA-TILES® Castle set! Open the working Drawbridge and step into a world of magnetic wonder or soar through the skies with an exclusive Dragon Figure. This set also includes our first Balcony and Spiral Staircase, along...
Magna-Tiles Castle DLX 48-Piece Set
$74.00Imagination reigns supreme with the MAGNA-TILES® Castle DLX set! Open the working Drawbridge and step into a world of magnetic wonder or soar through the skies with an exclusive Dragon figure. This set also includes our first Balcony pieces and Spiral Staircases, as well as microMAGS pieces and plenty...
Hape Caterpillar Fruit Feast Set
$14.00Each time one of your caterpillars nibbles through a new piece of fruit you can add it to the string until you have a whole line of delicious snacks! Caterpillar...
Janod Caterpillar Wooden Ball Track
$49.00This garden themed Ball Track toy will provide hours of entertainment while developing your little one’s fine motor skills and visual acuity. The three balls pass through the sun and...
Oli & Carol Cathy the Carrot Car
$28.00Roll, play & learn with the coolest & healthiest cars for babies! Introducing Cathy, the sustainable baby car toy! With a design inspired by carrots, Cathy is meticulously crafted using...
Manhattan Toy Celestial Stim Mobile To Go
$16.00This unique travel mobile is a celestial take on our award-winning Wimmer-Ferguson Infant Stim-Mobile To Go. Space-themed graphics cover this compact travel mobile that easily attaches to strollers, carriers, and...
Brio Central Fire Station
$106.00At the rescue fire station, you have to be prepared for action. When the alarm goes off, slide down the slide to the fire truck which is ready for take-off,...
Tender Leaf Toys Charcuterie Basket
$28.00A handcrafted wicker basket with a slice of ham and egg pie, a black sausage, a rasher of bacon, a string of butchers sausages, a large salami, a Spanish chorizo...
Charlie Bears Charlie Bears Greg
$105.00Size: 13" (33cm) GREG is made from the very popular silky soft plush that is dubbed "tyber plush" so you know how buttery and delicious he will be to cuddle!...
NINI and LOLI Charlie Bears Loveydovey
$115.00A little about me... Lovey dovey is part of our 2020 plush Collection. She is made from biscuit-brown plush and her fur is extra soft and thick, making him just...
Charlie Bears Charlie Bears Mono Polly
$139.00A little about me... Brand-new for 2024 Mono Polly is a bear-utiful pink panda from our Plumo Collection, she is made from the softest plush fur and finest alpaca. The...
Charlie Bears Charlie Bears Nadine
$137.00A little about me... Recommended for ages 3 years + Bear height: 38cm/15in/13 Bear Paws
Charlie Bears Charlie Bears Pyjama Party
$133.00A little about me... Recommended for ages 3 years + Bear height: 39cm/15.5in/13 Bear Paws Bear Bio Height: 39cm/15.5"; 13 Bear Paws Primary Colour: Cream Material: Synthetic plush Material Composition:...
Charlie Bears Charlie Bears Vanilla Pudding
$161.00A little about me... Vanilla Pudding is a charming bear with a giggling expression, sculpted paw pads, and a cozy scarf. With soft plush and alpaca fur, this bear...
Mon Ami Charlie Bunny
$34.00So hoppy to see you! Mon Ami's soft blue Plush Toy will brighten Easter baskets and year-round adventures. The floppiest ears, plushest fur and sweetest face make him a fast...
Hape Checkout Register Toy
$38.00Will you be paying with cash or card today? The Checkout Register from Hape has the ability to take both! This best-selling, innovatively designed play set features a money drawer,...
Tender Leaf Toys Cheese Chopping Board
$30.00A mouse-shaped wooden cheese board with a mousey cheese knife. A baguette in 3 parts, an Edam cheese in 3 parts, a Gruyere, a Rouleaux, and a blue cheese in...
Hape Chef's Cooking Toy Set
$28.00Bon Appetite! Your future chef will learn to feel comfortable and familiar with cooking in their pretend kitchen with this seven-piece basic cooking set. Hape’s Chef’s Cooking Set is the perfect...
Le Toy Van Cherry Tree Hall Doll House
$350.00A grand 4 storey dolls house with floral motif. Each room is decorated differently to define room space. It features numerous window styles including functioning shutters and back windows to...
Mon Ami Chester Chicken
$42.00Chester Chicken Plush Toy will brighten an Easter celebration with his fiery comb, two-tone faux fur-feathers and show stopping orange feet and beak. Quirky but cute, this fluffy fellow proves...
Bear Company Chewie the Yorkie
$28.00A fluffy and cuddly realistic dog stuffed animal with 13 inches of cuteness. This adorable furry friend is ideal for babies and kids, offering comfort and playtime fun. With Chewie...
Play is essential for children because it contributes to their intellectual, physical, emotional and social development. When children play, they exercise their creativity, develop their imagination, master their dexterity, improve their cognitive ability and build physical strength. Experts agree that the best kinds of play allow kids to set their own goals, negotiate challenges, develop and share ideas, and make their own rules.
But how can we make sure our kids are getting enough healthy, unstructured play time when they’re growing up in an overscheduled and stressful environment, when parents are overly focused on producing high academic achievers, and safety concerns prevent us from letting our kids roam around freely and unsupervised? Perhaps the best thing we can do for our kids is to make sure they have the right kinds of toys at home to make play time most rewarding.
First and foremost is safety. Safe toys for young children are sturdy, without sharp parts or splinters, free of pinching hazards, and easy to clean. If the toy will be used by an infant, it’s important that parts aren’t small enough to become a choking hazard.
Toys must be made from non-toxic materials and coated with lead-free paints. You should steer clear of antique toys, second-hand toys and homemade toys that have not been tested and approved by a certified testing lab, or may have been produced before the current regulations governing toy manufacturing were in effect.
In addition to being safe, a good toy will match the child’s appropriate stage of development and abilities.
The best baby activity toys for infants between 0-6 months are things they can reach, grasp, suck on, shake, and make noise with. Some age-appropriate toys for little babies are squeeze toys, teething toys, soft dolls, textured balls, and board books.
Infants between 6-12 months are starting to crawl, sit up and pull themselves to a standing position. They are capable putting things in and out of containers and placing objects on top of each other. Some of the best baby activity toys for this age group are dolls, vehicles with wheels, bath toys, large beads, nesting toys, large soft blocks, wooden blocks, and push & pull toys.
As your child continues to grow, look for toys that will encourage them to explore, create, pretend, imagine, and learn from trial and error.