Drake and Juliet were born 3 years 2 weeks apart from one another. As their 4th and 1st birthdays draw near, I am starting to think ahead to their party and presents. While thinking of gifts for Drake is easy, Juliet is much harder. Since Juliet is my second, many of Drakes toys are there for her to play and grow into. I don’t like the idea of buying toys for the sake of buying toys, as we simply don’t have the room for that. The more I have been thinking about it, the more I would like to get Juliet a gift that she and Drake could use together; since she is so young she won’t know the difference anyway. But I figure she’ll be happy if we get her something that Drake can play with too, as she adores her big brother and when he gives her attention.


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1) Fisher Price Play House– We didn’t have the space in our apartment for this toy, and I just didn’t know how entertaining it would be for one kid to play. But the barber shop where Drake gets his haircut has this toy in their waiting room, and he loves this thing. It’s hard to tear him away from it when it’s time to leave! I don’t really see why he loves it so much to be honest, but that’s why I realized that this might be a great gift for Juliet since she is right at the age for this kind of exploration of open/shut, on/off type play. Drake would also probably enjoy playing with her. In time maybe they could play house when Juliet is older. I have seen this on sale a lot on Craigslist, garage sales, and consignment stores, so I do hope I can find it for less than retail.

2) Puppet Theater – I really love the idea of the kids doing puppet shows for us when they are older. I have saved a bunch of puppet theaters in my Pinterest folders hoping one day Mr. Chocolate will indulge me and make one for the kids. For right now I think it’s perfect as Drake has gotten to the age where he likes to make up stories, usually from pieces of ones he has seen or heard of from books and TV shows, as well as his own imagination.  I think how sweet it would be if he would do a show for Juliet, who probably would be mesmerized by it. When they are older, they could continue to play together using their imaginations.  FAO has this puppet set that would be a great gift for Drake to pair with Juliet’s puppet theater.

3) Cozy Coupe – We didn’t have anywhere to store such a large toy when we lived in an apartment, but now that we have a garage it’s not such an issue anymore. Drake has a bike he got for Christmas, so I thought that this little car might be a fun way for Juliet to also be outside in the fresh air during the summer.  I like that there is a bottom so when Juliet is still small and can’t push herself she can be pushed in it, and when she gets older she can pedal herself. It looks like there might be enough room for them both to squeeze in together, or maybe I can convince Drake to push Juliet in it when they are older.  I remember playing with this toy as a child at my neighbor’s house, so it brings back some nostalgia for me as well.

4) Playhouse – What kid doesn’t love their own little house?  I am on the fence about this option because while we have the space outside, we also have a swing set with a little clubhouse with doors and windows. Juliet won’t be able to get in the clubhouse for a while since it’s up higher, so it might be nice to have a small little playhouse lower on the ground for her to use when she is smaller. I was also looking into this cardboard one they could play with inside.  The bonus would be they could color and decorate it together, making it more personalized. I have seen some really neat DIY playhouses which I could also try doing with them as fun craft.  I wish that I got a Rose Petal Cottage before they were discontinued, as I think that would have been such a perfect toy for inside.  Drake played with one when he was much younger at a friend’s house and enjoyed it and I’m sure Juliet would too.

5) Instrument Set – All children like music and Juliet and Drake are no exceptions. We got Juliet this Mozart Music cube for Christmas and Drake and Juliet both really like listening to it.  Juliet likes the lights and Drake kind of likes it as background music as he does other things like color. We have some instruments from various sets but not a set of instruments.  I think it would be sweet if they made a little marching band together, though I’m fairly sure there will be more noise than music if we went with this option.

6) Duplos – Duplos is one of those things that you can never have enough of.  Juliet has taken a keen interest in Drake’s Duplos recently, as they are often scattered all around the playroom. I have seen some cute sets and thought maybe they would be nice for her to bring some different colors into Drake’s sets. They can play and build together and still be able to distinguish which ones are Juliet’s in case there is fighting.

Do you have any recommendations for toys that siblings can share?