Birthday Gift Ideas?

My son turned 2 in September. For Christmas, Santa Claus brought him a Doodle Pro. He LOVES it. He can draw, erase, and draw some more....completely on his own. Crayons and coloring books are also great options. They keep my son busy for quite a long time. Any kind of cars or trains would work great. They are small and he loves them! Another option would be some kind of bike or tricycle. My in laws bought my son a Thomas the Tank Engine bike for Christmas and he loves it. He's a little disappointed that he can't ride it right now but he sees it in the garage all of the time and knows that when the weather gets nice we can go and ride it. He is so excited to ride it. Hope some of these ideas help!

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Why not get her a really nice book that your grandmacan inscribe? Something like The Giving Tree? Then maybe put the rest in a savings bond? Or get a bear or something special she can keep fromgreat grandma?

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My daughters bday is Jan 13th. Im always at a lose when thinking of present, actually after Christmas, I dont even want to think about it. People are asking me what to get her for her birthday, I even asked her what she wants and she said I dont know! But she is a book lover. There is this book called "Grandma Read to Me", its pretty cute and your Grandma could read it to her when she sees her. My daughter loves the Fancy Nancy books, if you dont have any, they really are educational, wouldnt know that by looking at it, but they use big words and tells you what they mean. I love books and my daugthter loves them too, unfortunately our bookshelf is maxed out and I need a bigger one. You can never have too many books in my opinion. PS...I am anti-playdoh, silly putty person too! Once it got ground into my brand new couch, I said never again! She can wait until she goes to school for that mess! But I do believe in paints, and finger paints. A little painting apron is really cute too! Or you could just get her something really small and put the rest of the money in her bank account? I hope some of this helps! Good Luck!

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My son turns 2 tommorrow so I can totally relate about the "so many toys" and "very close to Christmas" thing. What we are giving him this year is a doll that has different functions: buckle, snap, zip...etc. That way we can teach him to start putting on his own clothes. I know right now it may be a little advanced, but since he only gets presents 1 season out of the year, we will need that before he turns 3. I found a Winnie the Pooh doll with this at Wal-Mart. They also had a Micky Mouse one and a purple kangaroo. The price was only about $11 too. With the extra money, I would probably get some books, or put it into a savings account for future needs (clothes when the season changes...etc).

Hope that helps.
K.

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Two suggestions:

1. Add to her library of "classics" that you can read together (Where the Sidewalk Ends, The Giving Tree, Goodnight Moon, etc.)

Or 2. Get her some new clothes...in the next size up! This way, you'll be ready for the next growth spurt, and not be buying extra clothes that aren't needed right now.

Have a good one!

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How about starting a savings account for her with Grandmas gift??? You could earmark it for her college fund...and then start asking family to cut down on the amount of "stuff" they get her for birthdays, Christmas, etc...and to give you a small donation to her college fund??? That is what our daughter is doing with her first child...and all of the grandparents and aunts and uncle helped get his account off to a healthy start this Christmas.
A child can be overwhelmed with toys and such...I have already suggested to our daughter that she pack away half of her sons things and rotate them in and out...so that he has something "new" to play with as she brings the box out.

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Why not open a savings account for her? You could ask your grandma if that would be ok, and explain the toy situation to her. I think most banks will open a child's account without a minimum deposit. My son has always gotten money from people for birthdays or Christmas, and if I had started putting it in an account for him then, he'd be rich. Now that he's older, I let him have half of whatever money he gets, but he has to save the other half. If you started saving it now, she'll have a good little nest egg to go to school or buy a car when she's older.

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it is NEVER to early for learning 'toys'
i have a 3 and half year old and at about 2 we got her dry erase boards and chalk boards and starting teaching her how to hold her pencil and actually make things. she can now write almost all of her alphabet and spell simple words.

i love games and stuff to though. anything interactive and that gets them to usetheir brains.
you can never have too many books.
oh and another thing our daughter loved was gardening
it taught her how to grow and take care of things. its almos spring and they have a of really cute little people gardening sets.
never underestimate the need for good rain boots!

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Sit and spin, crayola stuff that only writes on that specific paper, leap and learn pony(hooks up to tv and teaches colors shapes, alpabet, numbers, but 60), tricycle, puzzles, these are some of what my new 2 year old got on his day, which is 2weeks before christmas

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My daughter just turned two also and my mother gave her a bunch of dress up stuff and she loves it. I would also say puzzles or bubbles easy stuff like that.

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Puzzles, books, You can always go thru her toys she has and get rid of some you think are to young or the ones she dont play with anymore, its what we did with our son before he got all his new gifts for xmas, and his birthday is this month 27th so he will get more gifts.

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I am not sure where you live or how close grandma lives but what about gift cards for fun with grandma.. like lunch out or a movie maybe a playdate at a ceramic shop. Even something like a McDonalds gift card and promises of lunch at the park. There are also all sorts of fun places to go and use your money, the zoo (get a membership), science center or children's museum. just a few ideas hope this helps. good luck

I was in a similar situation - my daughter had lots and needed nothing.

When someone asked me what she needed, I told them that I was putting money in a savings account for College and/or lessons she might go to. (Such as swimming, dance, soccer, music.) Most people liked that idea and gave use some money. I make a big deal out of it with my daughter when we take it to the bank. Now, she likes taking it to the bank.

We contribute to our son's money market account anytime we get cash for him. We also do it in lieu of buying him more gifts for Christmas and his Birthday. He gets PLENTY from everyone else and doesn't know the differce. Hopefully the money will help him go to college, etc when he get's older.

I have a little one who turned 2 6 days before Christmas so I totally feel your pain. Do you have any color wonder stuff from Crayola? They are not toys and encourage your little ones creativity all without making a mess.

Another craft route would be foam things. They sell the kits with letters and such that you peel the back off like a sticker and just stick them to paper. You can peel the back off for her and she can just stick them to whatever. They are not too much of a mess but fun for little ones.

Wooden puzzles are another fun thing for 2 year-olds.

I just went back and read some of the other responses and I agree that a college fund would be a great idea but if your grandma wants her to get a fun gift/toy then I think the things I suggested would be good.

Also, my birthday is the day after Christmas. And once I got into the school-aged years I did celebrate my half birthday on June 26th. No one could come to a party the day after Christmas, plus I got to spread my gifts out.

Hope this helps.

I know how you feel. My son's b'day is on jan 12. I also want to go no toy route. He will be 4 this year. But for a two year old, maybe coloring sets - the wonderart sets and elmers sets are nice, because they cannot color on anything but their paper. I found out the wonderart fingerpaints are really greasy. Books, puzzles are also good. One of my mom's in my mom club had a really good idea. She told her family not buy presents, but to get family memberships to various attractions (zoo, botanical garden, science center, etc.) I thinking about doing the same thing. That way when we go to an attraction, everything is paid for and we can just enjoy the day. Hope this helps! Also Happy Birthday to your precious one!

Do you have a college fund for your little one? If not, use your grandma's money and some of yours to open one. It may not be what your grandma has in mind, but it's for her future!!

Do you need any toys for the car? Maybe invest in stuff you only let her play with in the car?

Or take her to Build a Bear and let her go wild and pick out a stuffed animal and dress it!! Maybe you could get a programmable button to put in the hand that says "Great-Grandma loves you" (obviously you'd have to say it, but I know they have ones you can program).

What about something for her room? A clock, new picture frames or something that would match her decor?

Good luck!

a 123 bike or other type of ride on toy if she doesn't have any already. This is the age they start riding tricycles and little bikes. A Magna-Doodle would be great. My son started writing his letters at age 2 using a magna doodle. I also had stencils that he used with it and enjoyed it. Just take the small parts out and save them until she gets older. We used it as a learning tool and did it together. Do not put a magna-doodle in the toy box as it won't last. The weight of other toys on it ruins it and won't work right. We kept it on a shelf with the stencils and he used it a lot. It was also great when we went to the Doctors office or out where he needed to have quiet toys.

Another idea could be a toddler bed comforter set or whatever size bed she is using or will be using soon.

Yeah I understand your frustration my daughter was born on Jan 2. We just had her first birthday and I had been dreading it. When I got her Christmas presents I just took a few things out for her birthday. And since everyone else just got her a gift they just gave me money to get her something cause they had no idea what to get. I used some of it to get bonds and put more in her collage fund. Then with the others I got educational stuff like puzzles.

There's so many responses, I didn't read them, but I'll share my idea in case no one else has yet. My daughter's birthday is in Feb, and when she turned two last year, we faced the same dilemma. I decided to put a note in her party invites that said "in lieu of gifts, please consider a donation to the XXXX charity." Being that my father passed away shortly after my daughter turned one, and had battled MS for 25+ years, I had people donate to MS research. Many of our friends did this, and then some also provided her a small gift, such as a book. I just felt she really didn't need all the toys, especially so close after Christmas, and hopefully now someone else can benefit from the donations! Just an idea...

I also haven't read all of the response, but I think a membership to a fun children's place like the Magic House or Gymboree would be fun. That is fun for the child without creating clutter in your house! Or maybe use it for a fun toddler dance class or something similar.

My kids are all older now so it has been a while since I remember what a 2 year old can and can't have or do. But it will be getting warmer outside before we know it and maybe you could get her some outside games or something. Some skates? A little bike?

Hi S.,

How about a rose bush that you can plant. Then your daughter can see it grow and be able to pick the flowers that are from great grandma. She could also press some in a book and when great grandmas birthday or grandparents day (Sept or Oct) comes around you can put them in a frame with your daughters picture.

I can think of tons of things. Many stores are already starting to carry spring things. How about some pots and seeds. Plant so veggies and flowers and share them with grandma. Lettuce and radishes come up pretty quickly.

If the items are out, how about some beach toys, she can play with them inside (pretend beach) until it's time to go out. Or get her swim suit and beach towel and take her to a pool. Take some photos and share with grandma. If she hasn't had any parent child swim lessons, she should. Drowning is a leading cause of death in children under 14.

Buy savings bonds for college, at least one.

My son turned one 5 days before xmas so I was stumped what to get him for his birthday when my pop-pop sent him money, too! With so many gifts coming, I didn't want the house, or him, overloaded. So I ended up purchasing some Tadoodles (beginning crayons) - one that writes with water on the board it is attached to and a set of ones with actual crayons in them for later. That way, it's not exactly a toy, but it's something I could take a photo of with him to send to my grandfather that lives on the east coast.

If she likes to "read", get her a magazine subscription. If you look in the kids' magazine section at your library, you will see age-appropriate magazines like "Ladybug" and "Ranger Rick" and others that you could order. That way she gets a gift all year. :)

We LOVE bathtub crayons. They are fairly expensive, like $6.00 for four, and they don't last long but you could do a couple of packages. They are great for learning to write. We also do a lot of painting. I put my two year old in her high chair, tape a piece of paper to the tray and let her paint. She's contained, entertained, I feel like a good mom having her do something creative and clean up is easy.
You could also get something more for summer or when she is a little bigger so she has something "new" later.

If you want a toy that is from grandma, my parents got my daughter something from Parents magazine that is like an etch a sketch. This way she can draw on something and not the walls. My father in law and his wife got my daughter a rocking horse and my daughter loves it. If you are looking for something that isn't a toy I probably can't help much there because the only thing I can think of is clothes.

Books are always a great idea!! I love to read, and have instilled that love in my girls, ages 3 and 4. My four year old can already read books on her own!! I put a great value on books, and never think that spending $ on them is wasting it!!

You know, it would be a great time to start a 529 college plan for her. There are great tax advantages, and it doesn't necessarily have to be used for college, or even for her; it just has to go toward the education (broadly defined) of some person. I know your grandmother wanted to provide a toy, but just think how proud she would be to know started her great-granddaughter's college fund. Good luck.

princess pjs, playdoh, coloring books, things for outside, books. hope that helps.

Hi S....why not open her up a 529 College Savings Plan? Or at least put half in it to start. The minimum is $25 to open one up. Use the other half for a gift. I have a two year old, and let me say that anything you get will be fun. They cannot comprehend gifts at that young age so some building blocks, a new doll or something of that nature is fine I think. Then for other birthdays, and opportunities for gifts, when relatives ask what your young daughter "needs" you can simply tell them that a contribution to her college plan would be fantastic! Just another idea for you. Good luck!

My daughter is turning 2 this Sunday I know what you mean so close to Christmas last year I was able to over buy for her so for I can have Birthday gifts this year I have to wait.She loves My little pony's so I have found a few of interacting ones she loves baby dolls as well so she will receive another from mom and dad she has her ears piereced so another gift is a new pair of earrings and I want this to be a tradition for her and her baby sis on their Birthdays.I don't like playdoh much but they do play with it we have an extra room where it is only allowed in it is good for them to let out some creativity and it is also good for them to use fine motor skills.If she is still in a highchair give her some and a tool or 2 it won't hurt.

One of the most popular gifts my son and his friends got (they are between 15 months and five years old, boys and girls) was an magnetic magna-doodle. It can stick to a refrigerator, and it's travel size. They are awesome!

Although your gram lives out of town, you can have her write a personal letter and mail it to your daughter to be opened with your help and read and saved for years later when she will understand what it means. Ask Gram to do this as often as she can-perhaps telling her about what life has been like for her growing up and where. Things that were important to her and how much they all cost. These thigs will be special to your daughter when she has her own family and can look back at her own past. it will mean so much to your Gram also to know you want your daughter to know all about gram.
Now something else to think about which again won't be all that neat looking for your daughter but agin in the future will do so very much to help her-is open an insurance policy. Some smaller ones have a small payment per month or even set up a yearly payment. (Sometimes $5000. can cost a small monthly portion.) Gram will know you are caring about future of you child and hopefully understand that with all the toys and things-this will do more than you can think about. She want to cash it in to go to college or get married or buy a new home to start her own family some day.
Start a picture/letter book with her with all the things she will cherish later-especially being with you and doing something you both will treasure. Have fun! (By the way my own daughter's birthday is Jan.12.)

At age 2, she won't know if grandma got her a gift or not. I would take the money and buy a savings bond for her. When it matures, she will have doubled her money. My parents spend $50 every year for each child's birthday, and that gets them a $100 bond. They also do a small gift that the kid can open. When the kid is 18, they will have $1,800 saved up. That's so much better than extra pj's or toys they will have forgotten about!!!! My grandparents did that for me, and I cashed them when they were fully matured a few years ago and cried as I thought of my grandparents.

Just an idea. Good luck.

What about a sit and spin? My daughter is two also and loves hers. She also has a big easel size pad of paper and washable markers which she also loves. Good luck!

What about books? Why not take the money and take your daughter to the book store and let her pick out some books in the kids section. She may be young but she'll still see books that appeal to her. Make it an outing for her and maybe take grandma with you. Good luck and God Bless.

Good Morning S., I read your edit and there is a place in Town East Mall that can do engraving in one day. Forever Memories? It's on the upper level of the food court on one of the corners. I have taken things in and also bought things there and they will do the engraving. Once it took 2 days as i have stiens engraved for our son's groomsmen.

How about Books? Kids love books or maybe stories on CD. We have alot of Both. Imagine That Toys is a Awesome place to find something really different.

Oops Gr ma lives outside or Wichita, I didn't look to see where you lived. Sorry!!

A few mama's mentioned books like I did, we keep all the kids books in a basket on the floor in the livingroom. When Papa comes home Corbin grabs some books and they read. Books are great for any aged child.

God Bless
Happy Birthday Angel
K. Nana of 5
Ps. Sorry for my brain freeze...lol

Hey S.:

I am sorry I haven't read the other posts, but my mom always gets my kids a savings bonds for their birthday. Since your daughters b-day is so close to Christmas & she is so young, she might really appreciate the Savings Bond when she gets older. Just a thought!

S., this may be a little late getting to you, but what about a CD player and some kiddie CD's? She can learn all the kid songs and nursery rhymes and sing to them!

S.
If your little girl likes to read then go get some new books for her. That way you, your husband, and even grandma can snuggle with her and spend great time reading. My kids always liked it when grandma read to them.

What about movies or books ? My grandkids love those.

When my kids were small, and my father-in-law was still alive, it was his tradition to get them their shoes every birthday and their winter coats every Christmas. Those were both big ticket items for us,(as a struggling young family) but not so expensive for him, and it created such a nice tradition. He really knew how to make memories, and my kids have never forgotten the special things that Grampa did for them. That is exactly what he intended. :o)

I totally understand what you mean about having too much STUFF! That is an issue for us too. I would say that if your grandma would be satisfied with you SAVING the money, that would be the best way to go. Or you could "buy" her an experience-- take her to a kids' play place, a special kids event, an indoor pool, or the zoo. You can take photos of that to send to your grandma to show her how much your daughter enjoyed it.

I love to give activities as gifts. So we have done tunnel town gift cards, paradise park, zoo, and swimming pool. Nice to have to get out and get active.

I also wanted to take the opportunity to mention my cupcake business. I don't know if you have cake plans already. But cupcakes are a great alternative especially for little ones. Check it out.

www.crumbscustomcupcakes.com

S.,
This is in response to the "so close to Christmas" part of your ideas. I know it is not the same, but when I was growing up my cousin's birthday is the day after Christmas and her parents always had her party on her "half birthday." So, on June 26th of every year, she had a birthday party. I know this is not helpful with the party idea, but have you thought about putting her in gymnastics, or a class with the money? Good Luck & I hope this helps!

Tell her the money is from grandma and then take her on a little shopping spree. Let her pick out some of her own things.

Discovery Toys or Usborne Books. You shop on their websites.

At this age, the best thing to do is to keep it simple. Two year olds don't know or care how much you spend, and they don't know their birthday from any other day. You said she likes to "read" - I'd invest in some good quality books she can can grow with.

Dress-up clothes and accessories, play food or play kitchen stuff, Music Cd's (Pottery Barn Kids has great CD's my kids love to dance, we love Funky Mama too & Raffie), Puzzles (we like the Melissa & Doug floor puzzles and their wooden puzzles), Melissa & Doug toys (puzzles,birthday party cake, pizza party, ice cream set, cookie set, the magnetic dress-up set (we have all of these and my girls love them))

Hope this helps
M.

Oneo f my favorite things to give as gifts, especially to younger children who could care less about the actual present 5 minutes after they open it is savings bonds, stock shares, or CDs from the bank. For both of my kids 1st birthdays we got them 1 share of Disney stock, for my daughter's 2nd we got her a savings bond and we plan on getting her a CD for her 3rd. The nice thing about the CDs for kids is that most banks have them for about $250, which if you have money from several people it is not hard to come up with that amount. The CD usually lasts about a year and I was given the option to either have the money go to her savings account after the year or have it re-enrolled into another CD year term. The savings bonds are quite a bit cheaper, you pay what you want, let's say $25 and in 7 years it is worth $50, they are the EE bonds. And, if you wanted, you could get her one of those for $25 and then spend the other $15 on something like a coloring activity kit, which I think are also wonderful, although they are in the $9-$15 price range so I don't buy them often. Hopefully this helps, good luck!

My daughter just turned two as well, and it was very hard so close to Christmas. We gave her a magnadoodle and she loves it! She also got dolls, a kitchen, and a cash register. Just a few ideas...good luck!

I would look at only spending half or less and put the rest into a saving's account for her. Start teaching them young to save their money... Now what you spend the half on, maybe a new little top or dress that she wears on her actual birthday or the next time she see's Great Grandma. And make sure to explain to your daughter that what she is wearing her GGma bought her and she needs to show it off to her and tell her Thank You.....

Or go to the bank and for $25 you can purchase a bond which will double the money over the years and is still teaching her the value of saving.

I would also ask GGma to write a small letter to her telling her something of her past birthday's when she was a child and what made her happy, so you can put it into her baby book to preserve some special memories for your precious daughter

My son got a "Story Reader" for Christmas. He three but its fairly simple to operate. He really enjoys reading his "Little Einstein" books. For about 40 dollars we got the reader with 4 books and an extra set(3) of books. They have alot of great title like Dora, Princesses, and Mickey Mouse too.

I am a educational consultant with Discovery Toys and we have a huge sale going on right now. It is a home based business and you can go directly to my website and see the sale and everything else we have in our line. You can click on the age level and see what there is for your child. Hope this helps---wwww.discoverytoyslink.com/S.
S. C.

BOOKS, BOOKS, BOOKS! I have two with November birthdays and one with a December birthday. Between the holiday season being so close and what they already have in general, the last thing we need for birthdays is more toys. So, we always go with books. You can't go wrong with them. They last for a long time, cane be used over and over, can be passed down to other children, you name it. We've developed quite a wonderful collection of children's books through the years as a result, and we love it. We'll usually write the name of the person who gave the book on the inside cover, along with the year given... just as a keepsake reminder. And the best part is, giving a child books is giving them the gift of a lifetime by encouraging a love of reading. You really can't go wrong!

The best thing I did for my kids with the $20 my mother would give them each birthday was to start a savings account. They each had over $1000 by the time they were 18 and were happy to have it for car insurance and other things. Maybe you could get a book or two and write your child's name in them from Grandma and the date so they will always be special to her and then put some in savings too.