Hellobee

A G E  < 1

Lilly (8 months) went crazy for a rocking horse that her aunt purchased for her. She is still so small that she can barely sit on the horse, but she squealed so loudly when we put her on and rocked her – I’ve never seen her happier! Audrey (7 months) has loved this singing goat hand puppet. She smiles widely when the goat “sings” and kisses her nose.

Jujube, 7 months: She got the book, We’re Different, We’re the Same for Christmas and it’s been holding her attention at night even though it’s a little longer so I think she likes it!

 Chip, 10 months: A busy ball popper. It is really loud (thanks Grandma and Grandpa!) but both boys have so much fun with it.

Panda, 11 months: Panda hasn’t really opened up many of his toys yet. His favorite is probably the coffee table with hidden train table that I built for both kids because it’s easier for him to cruise around now and he enjoys playing with the trains inside the table. He also loves the Picasso Tiles cars that we purchased to go with an existing set of Magnatiles, probably because he loves anything with wheels.

A G E  1

Little P, 14 months: Little P’s favorite gift this year, the Vtech Ultimate Alphabet Train, came from one of her grandparents. It’s not something I ever would have looked at for her, but I’m so glad she received it because she seriously loves it. It’s got two of her favorite things, buttons and music. It’s also big enough for her to push, pull, or ride on. She has played with it every day since Christmas.

Baby Oats, 15 Months: He was so happy to rip open boxes and shred paper. But, once those were recycled, he became obsessed with the electric drill from this tool bench. Forget the rest of the bench- but he walks around with the drill non-stop.

Dash, 18 months: Dash was absolutely in love with a huge stuffed giraffe my mom got him. He was much more interested in snuggling with the giraffe than opening the rest of his presents.

Little Bug: 18 months. He floats from toy to toy, but these bath drops have been a huge hit with him. He loves taking baths anyway, but this has made it even more fun for him.
 Little P (age 1 1/2) really loved opening all his gifts. I’m not sure he has a favorite as he loves playing with any and all toys, but he especially loves the little harmonica his Gramma and Grampa got him!

Baby Pizza 19 months: I got Baby Pizza a doll stroller. Baby Pizza and Lil’ Pizza are constantly taking turns (or fighting over) the stroller.

H (20 months) has made a beeline to her new vacuum every morning since Christmas. I’m not going to complain…already dreaming of the day she can start vacuuming the whole house!

Max: (Almost 2) got a this IKEA play kitchen and shopping cart. He has been having so much fun preparing food and making waffles for us.

A G E  2

Bug, age 2: Bug’s favorite gifts so far are his trampoline (which I love as well, we have him do a few minutes before bed and it really gets all his wiggles out!), his new Peppa Pig tea set (the stuffed dinosaur is his new full-time companion), and the simple IKEA easel, which is used at least 10 times a day!

  Crumb, 2.5 years old: A grocery cart. This kid loves to push things!

Lion, 2.5 years: By far, Lion’s favorite gift was the set of superhero capes and masks that he received from one of his grandparents. Lion has been in these superhero masks and capes pretty much non-stop since he opened them up. Eating dinner, sitting on the potty, building with magnatiles, reading books, going to school — pretty much any activity imaginable and he’s dressed up as a superhero! We’ve drawn the line at bed and bath, but otherwise he’s a superhero. A close second and related to the first, is a Flash costume hoodie that we got him even though it’s a size 4T and he is swimming in it!

Lele: Almost 3! She got this Peppa Pig house set and has not stopped playing with it since. She actually asks to take it in the car with her everywhere.

A G E  3

M, age 3: She loved everything she got, but she’s been really using this Hot Wheels mat! It goes nicely with the stunt track she got for her birthday, and Mac Daddy is playing with it just as much as her.

Jackson (3) requested superheroes and an elephant, and those have been huge hits in our house! We got him several different superhero action figures, and a big stuffed elephant to sleep with, and he’s loving them!

Baby C, 3.5: She was showered with Lego Duplo sets with her favorite Disney characters. She has 5 sets total now (Sofia the First, Doc McStuffins Pet Vet, Doc McStuffins Ambulance, Mickey Mouse Train, Mickey Mouse Beach House) and has been absolutely in love with them.

Little Oats, age 3: Everything she got was a hit, but even with her short attention span, she spends ages decorating and playing in this rocket.

Big P (age 3 1/2) loved all of his gifts this year! If he had to pick a favorite though, he’d probably say the firetrucks that Santa brought him. Shopping tip – you can often find Bruder trucks discounted at Home Goods!

A G E  4

Finn, 4: Finn is very into dinosaurs right now so he loved everything dinosaurs he got including dinosaur underwear and socks. But his favorite was a green T rex toy. He also really loved a Mr. Potato Head my brother got him.

Little Cotton Candy, 4: The biggest gift hit for Little Cotton Candy this year was, no surprise, the construction trucks he received. Santa brought him a trencher, and my brother and his girlfriend bought him a dump truck. Little CC loves playing with them indoors and out. He is truck-obsessed, as he has been since he was a babe.

 Lil’ Pizza, 4: I got Lil’ Pizza this dish set for her kitchen. The quality is great and they have lots of fun setting up the table with their pretend food.

A G E  5 +

Olive, 5: Our options of what we can buy here are limited, but luckily Olive is happy with small toys that are all the rage right now. Her favorite toy was a small Skye Paw Patrol stuffed animal (she loves dogs) that Charlie bought for her with his birthday money as a stocking stuffer. Both kids are obsessed with small stuffed animals and always carry one with them! I also bought the kids a rope hammock (we had a straw one that broke). If you have the outdoor space, I highly recommend getting one because my kids have loved them since they were babies.

Charlie, 7: Charlie got a play tent that he asked Santa for (their last one broke) so he was excited when he woke up to that on Christmas morning. That is one toy that has gotten nonstop play for the past 5 years! We also got him a body board that we’ve already broken in because he loves the ocean! The kids were gifted walkie talkie watches from a friend which work better than regular walkie talkies, and we got them headlamps that they’ve been playing with every day — perfect gifts when you live in the jungle like we do, but I’m certain every kid would love the headlamps!

.  .  .  .  .

Which gifts were the biggest hits in your home?