Baby’s favourite toys – Age 0-10 months

There are so many toys that we as parents know our babies need! Am I right??? When really, for the most part, they are happy playing with a remote control, an empty plastic bowl or other items you’ve had around the house since long before they were even born. Hopefully this post will serve as a guide of which toys babies actually play with (for more than a day…) and give you lots of pictures to enjoy.

About the pictures… I feel like I need to warn you before you start reading through this post. I had a great time looking through pictures of my little dude to go with this post, and, well… let’s just say I had a hard time choosing between pictures of him with his favourite toys. Enjoy!

In no particular order – here is the list of my Little Dude’s top 10 favourite toys from age 0-10 months:

Both toys have rattles in them helping to keep little dude’s attention. The car helped him learn to play interactively and push it from one place to another (with the occasional throwing, tossing or kicking of it to make it “go”).

2. Wooden Teething Ring – I received this as a gift from a friend of mine. It has always been one of the toys I carry in my diaper bag, brought to baby group and made it available at home. My little dude has chewed on it (ALOT), played with the crinkle material, taken it apart, etc. For something so simple it has provided more entertainment than I ever thought possible. And, it’s from a local company!

3. Sophie la Girafe – Before even becoming pregnant I had heard other children’s parents talking about Sophie and I had to know what the fuss was all about. I was amazed when I looked at the website and read about all the things Sophie does to encourage development etc. Basically, the website (to me) made it sound like you need Sophie for your child to live a normal healthy childhood.

I gave my little dude Sophie from a young age (1.5 months or so) and let him try to hold her, kick her to the ground, etc. until she ultimately became his BFF. Although I believe he would have developed just fine without this rather pricey giraffe – I am happy to report that he has certainly made the investment worth while. He still (at 11.5 months) looks for her occasionally as his favourite chew toy/squeek toy. Sophie has been a favourite through all situations… travelling in the car, watching football with the boys, playing outside and hanging out inside.

4. Captain Calamari – It attaches to car seat handles, strollers etc. and is the perfect companion for “on-the-go”. It has so many different activities all incorporated into one octopus that it is sure to keep your little one entertained. It kept (and still keeps) my little dude entertained in the car longer than any other similar toy (except for his fabric book when he was younger, but we’ll get to that). This toy is colourful and has a great name…win win!

5. Books – There are really 3 parts to this one… The “fabric book” that attaches to things, books in general and “Good Morning, Canada”.

The “fabric book” was very inexpensive and my little dude LOVED it! There are many more expensive versions of these books, but it is likely more you (the parent) that likes the look of the more expensive ones better vs. what baby thinks. If you can find a good deal on one of these I highly recommend picking one up!

I received a ton of books at my baby shower as it was requested that people give books instead of cards. That said, I started putting them around the house so they were available for my little dude to grab for instead of just taking one out at a time for “reading time”. It ended up being a great idea! He is a pretty wild little child but he will sit (at younger ages) or stand at the coffee table and look at books for a good 30 minutes. I’m not sure about you, but there are very few things that I have found to amuse a baby for that long!

And finally, “Good Morning, Canada“! I was reluctant at first to put books out with pages he could rip, but then figured they are his books… if he rips them it will just add character. This book quickly became his favourite! He wants to read it several times per day, likes trying to turn the pages with his finger and he can find this book no matter where you put it or where it is in the pile of books that now live on my coffee table. It calms him down when he is upset… all in all, I can’t say enough about this book. He LOVES it!

6. Hape Double Bubble Wooden Bead Maze – I bought this as a result of my little dude throwing his toys on the floor when sitting in his bumbo chair or in his highchair. He had shown interest in moving beads on his Activity Jumper and so I thought this might be a good solution. And, it was! He played with the bead maze from the time I bought it (when he was 6 months old) and still plays with it while we (his parents) are eating dinner or even when he finds it in his toy box.

7. Coo Coo Clock – It sings many different songs, makes fun noises and I am hoping that in the future it can be a fun tool for me to use to help teach my little dude to tell time. He plays with the buttons, tries to pull the bird out and seems to really like this toy.

8. Sensory Balls – My little dude is shaping up to be a true little boy; he seems to like all things traditionally for boys. Playing with cars and balls are at the top of the list – the Little Tikes sensory balls are his favourite balls to play “catch” with. He loves to chase them around, hand it to you and have you throw it back to him or he will throw it and fetch it himself. They are easy to hold and provide for a fun way to play with your little one.

9. Pour & Float Froggy – Bath time just became WAY more entertaining for both you and your little one. If you are anything like me, by the end of the day (bath time), you are starting to lose steam from entertaining your little one all day (if you on maternity leave) or from a long day at work (if back to work). My little dude loves buttons and toys that sing, so this froggy from V-Tech is the perfect solution for bath time entertainment! We started using this toy as soon as my little dude started using the “big” bath tub and we use it at every bath time to this day. Oh, and did I mention it works well for the pool outside as well? Bonus!

10. Scout (or Violet) – This might be a situation where I have saved the best for last… Scout, by LeapFrog has been a fan favourite since my little dude was about a month old! He doesn’t use it or play with it everyday anymore, but still smiles when he sees it and I assume he will play with Scout more and more once he figures out how to push the buttons on his hands.

Cousins at 4 months old (Little Dude) and 2 months old (Baby E) being entertained by Violet

Scouts key features that make him a favourite are: he plays bedtime music for 5, 10 or 15 minutes replacing other mobiles etc.; he has your little one’s name, favourite food, favourite color and favourite animal programmed in so his messages are personal; and he sings all kinds of songs etc. making this toy “less annoying” for the adults listening. I have purchased Scout (or Violet) for a few people and everyone seems to love them!

I hope this list was helpful and gives you some ideas when buying toys for your baby, your nieces and nephews or any special little one in your life.

If you found this post helpful why not share it with everyone you know shopping for little ones? It would make my day 🙂

My shoes for that:  Little Dude’s FILA sneakers, since we are talking about favourites… these were the only shoes he would keep on his feet for quite a while!