Gift Ideas for a Almost 3Year Old.......... Have No Clue What to Get My Daughter

Things my almost-3-year-old loves:

Magnetic paper dolls by Doug & Melissa
tea set
tent
tunnel
shopping cart
dress-up
picnic table

My little girl, who just turned 4, has fallen in love with the Calico Critters figures. You can find them at the Learning Express, the toy store at SE corner of Royal and Preston (don't know the name), and possibly at Target and Toy 'R Us.

They are adorable and sweet! Even my 7 year old daughter loves them!

http://www.calicocritters.com/

I 2nd the Magnetic paper dolls by Doug & Melissa. My 3 yr old just got 2 different ones for her birthday in September and she hasn't stopped playing with them yet. Her 4 yr old sister loves them as well. I'm not sure how their pricing is, but honestly I think they are well worth the expense. You can also check out Amazon.com and they have TONS of really cool puzzles and other educational toys. Good Luck!

The best thing about that age and Christmas is they have no conception of the amount of gifts they receive. Try not to get caught up in the whole pile of gifts thing and get her the things she will really use. If she likes blocks, maybe get her some Lincon Logs or big legos. Kinex is also a good building thing. You could also get a new box of crayons, markers, and pads of paper and coloring books. Doll accessories are always good too.
Have a merry christmas,
J.

My daughter LOVES Littlest Pet Shop pets. They aren't too expensive... about $5 for two or $10 for three with accessories. Plus they have "houses" of all different price categories. My daughter is 9, but also plays with them with our 3-year-old neighbor. They are so much fun!! I love them too!!! One thing to watch - their accessories are very small (like barbie accessories) so if you have another small child or a pet, you have to be careful about picking up the other pieces.

What about a bouncy ring. They have them at wal-mart and we use our indoors. My son loves his.

ok- this is the easy age- it 15-6 that really confuses you- there are SO MANY things out there
Its not quantity- its quality and sometimes i think moms of dgt tend to steer clear of sports items- Go For it- What better than a fisher price basketball hoop!
Or two scocer goals and a soccer ball- in this great state of Texas its year round fun! and its something the TWO of you can ply- and play doh for the stocking along with puzzles- you cant go wrong- right now this is such an "absoring" time in their brains- expose expose expose!

-Mom of a dgt that plays basetball and volleyball and is totally girl too!
D.
www.partyangelsus.com

Check out discovery toys they are awesome and educational.

Toys that are for learning would be the best to get right now. Or you can get a bedspread set w/wall decors to match like Winnie the Poo etc. or even for the bathroom w/rugs, towels, shower curtian or even toothe brush holder an soap dish matching or what ever. When tight on cash you can get just a couple big gifts an then get a bunch of stocking stuffer gifts. Little ones don't even realize the difference half the time an they love it cause they feel like they have gotten more gifts. Since there is more to open when getting lots of little gifts from dollar stores or at Walmart that only cost a dollar or around that much. You look around you will see alot of little things they will like. An wrap each one makes alot of gifts.

Last year I found the coolest thing for my princesses at WalMart, if it's there again it's great. It was only $15, and it was a princess tent, with a really nice princess sleeping bag and a princess flash light. My twin girls just love it and it lasts a long time. But like others, there have been times that I do not buy them a lot for Christmas; they have just about everything they want already. Buy small things and wrap them separately so that she has a lot to open...

My daughter will be 3 a few days before Christmas. We are getting her her first bike with training wheels and a wagon. Also, I know she's getting a little backpack, a little chair, and some videos (she loves Curious George) for her Christmas/birthday as well.

Hi Natalie,

Since your daughter is so young, she really doesn't get christmas yet. Why not go on a trip? My daughter has plenty of toys (she is also 2). So for xmas we are going on a family vacation. It is also my gift to my husband. I recommend expdia.com Choose the last minute ticket option. You can find weekend trips for under $250 for plane ticket and hotel. Or go to a bed and breakfast?

L.

If she's the creative type, what about outside things like chalk, or sidewalk paint. Do you have a swingset and/or teeter totter? I love outside toys. What about a sand box?

Another option would be a class. Tell her that for Christmas she gets to take dance lessons or something like that and enroll her a class - the gift that keeps on giving.

The big thing is that she's only 3, she doesn't need a lot, and if she already has a bunch of stuff, don't go over board. Get her things she needs - clothes, underwear, maybe something to decorate her room with?

A lot of the games are for ages 3+, so it might be a good time to buy Memory, Candy Land, Chutes and Ladders, Hi Ho Cherry-O and/or Sequence Junior. I didn't read the other responses. Hope I didn't repeat.

Well we learned a little to late that they really dont know the difference yet about how many gifts they get. Especially if family members also buy for her it is a little over whelming. But we got some of the LeapFrog stuff for her age I think one starts at 18 mos. & up it was fun and we sat and did it together. Hope this helps.

A.

my daughter turns 3 tomorrow! we got her a train table - she loves trains! also some pajamas and books. my mom got her a v- smile video game system , something to keep her occupied for our weekly car trips! she is also getting some much needed (she thinks she needs them) boots - dressy kind.

what does she like to do? my daughter loves drawing, magna doodles are good.. maybe an easel? or an art set.. if she likes to go outside and doesnt have a scooter or a bike yet, they are a must! my daughter got a scooter for her 2nd birthday(the kind with 3 wheels) and a bike a little while before that. she is a pro on them, goes a little faster than i'd like - but she loves it!

good luck and happy almost birthday to your princess!

How about a V-tech v-smiles or leapster game system. They're educational and fun.

If your daughter is girlie... dress-up clothes. Halloween is over and you can go to Target/ Wal-mart etc. and can get costumes for dirt cheap. I did this for my daughter and she still plays in them. I bought diff sizes (so she would have fun for years and with freinds of different ages. Plus they don't take up alot of room!!

When my daughter was three, she loved her own doll stroller to push around, and her own vacuum cleaner. She also really loved her own play dishes and play food. She used those for at least a couple of years.
L.

Our twins will turn 3 this week and we had their party yesterday. We got them the Loving Family doll house by Fisher Price. It has been a huge hit! It was about $65 at Toys R Us and was about the same price at Walmart. We got them a couple different furniture sets to go with it. Toys r us also has the same doll house with all the furniture included but it was more than I wanted to spend for their birthday.

Another thing that was a huge hit was the rollercoaster by Step 2. It's an outside toy and they love it. I've heard of people putting it in their playrooms but I don't know if we'll do that.

Dear Natalie:

If your daughter really doesn't need anything, you don't have to go crazy to find the "perfect gift". There were a couple of times when my boys were little they they really didn't get much (one year a Hobbyhorse and one year a matchbox racing set). They were too young to really notice anyway.

I love the ideas for outdoor toys. One year my grandparents shocked us with a toy box full of games (or art supplies, etc.)

The best "toy" I ever had as a child was an amazing playhouse (I think it came with the house). I always wanted my boys to have something like it, but I have to admit it was pretty extravagant. It was a little house out in the backyard with gingerbread trim, electric lights, and a sink with running water. It even had two rooms. The room with the sink had a linoleum floor - a perfect place for a budding artist to work. The other room had carpet and was either our babies bedrooms, our living room or often our school. As your daughter grows, it could be a fort, a place to store bicycles or become a workshop. Add heating and air conditioning, and it could become a mother-in law suite or guest room. I know that this may be a crazy suggestion - but oh well.

Good luck.

Jen

Does she like to sing and dance? Try a personalized music CD or personalize singing alarm clock from Kiddos Delight.
www.kiddosdelight.com

Sicne she likes drawign so much, why dont' you get her one of those easels that is a chalkboard on one side and magnetic on the other. She could get lots of use out of that. Or maybe get her a small ride on toy, like the Fisher Price Quad. My daughter has one and loves it.

Another item that my daughter loved was a small trampline with a handle. That was the best money we ever spent. She is now almost 4 and still plays with it. http://www.educationalgalttoys.com/product/116

Hope this helps.

Get her a Bilibo. These are awesome toys and have so many possiblilties since kids really have to use their imaginations. My best friend recently got her kids these and my kids won't leave them alone when we are over. Santa is bringing a Bilibo to my 5yr. old son and my 20month old daughter for Christmas. Here are a couple of websites with some awsome toys. www.fatbraintoys.com & www.hearthsong.com.

I swear the best purchase we ever made was the twin time dollhouse by fisher price! It is part of the loving family series, and we bought it for our 3 year old daughter, and 3 years later it is still played with often. Good luck ~A.~\

I hate to say it........but, my 3 and 4 yr old (now 4 and 5) LOVED their baby alive dolls that they received last Christmas. This year they are already asking for more baby alive stuff. The trouble is that these dolls are soooooo much trouble for mom :) They eat, drink, potty and need diaper changes. ARGGHHH! If you are a patient enough person you might both have fun with the doll though.
Good luck!
J.
http://J..yoursmh.com

my daughter loves stuff to go with her dolls like a stroller, diaper bag, etc.

also last year (when she was 3) we got her a v-tech computer & my daughter loves hers, she plays with it all the time & it has really helped us to teach her letters, numbers, directions, bigger & smaller, matching...we love it

also last year we got her some games like candy land & sesame street dominos, & dora memory. (we got great deals at big lots!) she loves these too. she still plays with them

& we always get things like play jewelry, a new purse or bag etc. my daughter is really into accessories

hope this helps!

mine usually plays more with the empty boxes than the gifts. try giving something to go with what she has and likes such as different kinds of paper for art or maybe some books.

I know where you are and I have a 3rd birthday 11 days before Christmas to get through first. We got my son a wagon for his birthday since he doesn't have one yet and ALWAYS asks for one when he sees them. He has also discovered Lego Duplo Blocks, he has a very small set and we bought him one of the large "starter" sets for his birthday. For Christmas we're considering the Fisher Price camera and will probably will do some art supplies type stuff like play dough and finger paints. I had considered an easel - I've seen a really nice one at Big Lots but decided we just don't have room for it that whole too much stuff (toys) issue. If you want something kind of practical, he has a cleaning set he got for Christmas last year and he loves to help me clean, it's even got a mini swiffer type mop so I put him to work on the kitchen floor!

We got my daughter the Dora talking house at age 2 and she still plays with three years later. I think it was the longest lasting toy we've ever bought. Good luck!