Birthday Day Gifts for a Not So Ordinary 3 Yr Old

How about ballet lessons or dance. Girls love getting the tap or ballet shoes. My daughter loved it at that age. Other ideas, a trip to the zoo or other museum, an aquarium. Gifts do not always have to be a toy or item. It sounds like she does not need more stuff.

My kids love those Playhut pop up tents and tunnels. Sounds like she maybe a little tall for the tunnels but the tents are fun.

Otherwise since it sounds like she already has a lot of stuff I would stay away from buying more toys and just try to think of something special to take her to do or as others said sign her up for a class or something. Is there a museum or such that you could buy a family membership to so that you could all enjoy it all year long?

What about a subscription to a child's magazine such as Highlights? I know National Geographic has a kids one about animals that my son used to receive and he would get so excited each month when the new one would arrive.

Good luck,
K.

Definitely sounds like she already has everything she could need. (Love Megan's suggestion to start the tradition of donating some of her old toys to a shelter!)

Buy a membership to Boonshoft. If you already have that, too, I'd suggest just spending time with her OUTDOORS. Go for a late winter hike. Look for early signs of spring. If there is snow, go sledding or skating. Children these days don't spend enough time outside.

A special day with mom and dad devoted to her, celebrating "her" day will probably be much more memorable to her than another toy (especially if you take photos so she can have a visual reminder) . I know my children's favorite part of their birthday each year is when I spend time alone with them in the evening, reading their birthday book, and telling them all about the day they were born.

Have fun, whatever you end up doing!
J.

Since it sounds like your daughter already has a lot of things and has most likley "outgrown" some of the toys-so maybe you could celebrate her birthday by a special outing that inlcudes a stop by a homeless shelter where you can donate some of her old toys. If you start this tradition early, it can easily become an expectation each year. What a great way to celebrate- by helping others! And it sounds like she is bright enough to understand this concept.

It sounds like she is set, how about a card and cupcake.

twilight ladybug...awesome my daughter LOVES hers they are nice

also mp3 player like the sansa shaker

also portable dvd player or kids computer

Dollhouse

go to a store like lakeshore learning or learning palace or a teacher store. Bring your daughter with....see what she goes bananas over.

We bought our 3 year old an indoor trampoline.. the kind with a handle for safety, etc. It was a fabulous gift, and she was tough to buy for as well b/c she is the third, so it seems we already had every toy ever made.

This is the one we got:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00264GIFO/ref=asc_df_B00264GIFO...

.. but it was no where NEAR that expensive...we must have bought it on sale. It was a challenge to put together but it was well worth it. I am sure you can read the reviews of the current ones out there and choose the best one for you. We did this 2+ years ago.

Hope that helps! :)

What about something she can do outside. A trampoline or a swing set. My daughter is 3 and tall as well. She has a mini four wheeler. It is just like a power wheels only a little bigger. It doesn't go very fast and she loves it.

I would suggest something small like a purse or bracelet for the party but for her, give her a day. Plan something like a trip to the library, a trip to the childrens museum or schedule her for classes at the zoo. The Cleveland Zoo has classes for toddlers that are great and take place in the rain forest.
Good luck!

Just got a response from our daughter.. She reminded me that her all time favorite gift was her "Twizzler" she spent hours spinning on that thing.. http://www.playfairtoys.com/product/Twizzler-II

Our daughter loved books, still does, she could never have enough.. so we would take her and let her pick what ever books she wanted..

She liked collecting all sorts of piggy banks, dress up clothing, costumes puppets, and board games..

Skates, and all types of peddle vehicles. with a play gas tank and traffic cones... We used to use chalk on our driveway to make road ways..

I have a 3 & 5 year old and this gets used EVERY day in our house (and has for the past year...)
http://www.amazon.com/Alex-Super-Table-Paper-Benches/dp/B...

It's sturdy enough for adults to sit also.
Good luck!

Hey there,
it sounds like your little one has everything and then some more :-) Although our kids are a bit older then your daughter I think that you could go down the same road. We have thought a lot about the presents (birthday/christmas) and we came up with more "family time ideas". How about tickets to the Zoo, "Disney on Ice", Cedar Point (they have a great toddler section), indoor pools like Kalahari or as we did for Christmas (a present to the whole family) a trip to see Mickey Mouse. It saved us the shopping around for all of us, it's special, no more unused toys and she can actually learn a lot too. It sounds like she is smart enough to realize that it is something really special and there is nothing better than family time :-) Good Luck and Happy Birthday

Chalk board paint...and maybe you and her could paint one wall in her room...then once it dries she has a chalkboard for a wall...I would love it lol..... I saw online one time I wish I had the site for you..I am sure you can google it...But you can put her name and names of family member \s into a book...they have spongebob dora the explorer and all sorts... that's about all I got..lol I hope it helps :)

For our birthdays my parents always let us pick out where we wanted to go to dinner and then our own present. Our present could be a toy, book, or we could choose to do something for the day. We did this with our son this year when he turned 3 and he wanted to go visit his cousin for the day, so that is what we did. Good luck.

Perhaps you could try something less traditional. Maybe going to a play. I took my daughter to see Alice In Wonderland just before she turned 2. She loved it! I was lucky enough to find a children's production and it was geared towards kids and family so everyone was able to relax and enjoy the show. She watched in wide-eyed wonder and she did cry out a couple "wow"s and "look, i see it"s. It was so much fun for both of us. Not sure what ogther things are in your aea, but we are planning to take our little girl to COSI for her 3rd birthday. There are tons of fun activities there. They even have a special area dedicated to stimulating play, activity, and the minds of youngsters. Including a room with chickies for them to pet or even hold. There are all kinds of less tranditional ideas like these. Zoo is another option. You know your daughter better than anyone so I am sure you will be able to figure out what is just right for her. I am not sure if her hieght was an issue for falling short or being too tall, but if it's the later...there's 2 versions. One for the bigger children. My niece and nephew got one when they were 3 & 4. Hope this helps. Happy Birthday to your little girl!

Hi I feel your frustration I also have a three year that will soon be 4 and we too are running low on options. We were going to do a build a bear party and let her create her own bear but we decided to allow her to go with us and choose one special thing weather it be toys crafts, clothes, something that she really has a interest in. That will be the item that she will enjoy the most the other items are mainly things we think she would like. It isn't easy when your children aren't typical... Good Luck!!

What about a piece of jewelry? A braclet or ring, necklace or earrings?

I'd get something from Fat Brain Toys. The Plasma Car is a favorite of mine.

http://www.fatbraintoys.com/specials/top_sellers.cfm?tid=...

I'll also add that it's good for little girls to do sewing cards. Check out one called Moringa at www. beleduc.de It is a German sewing game. Very nice.

I would recommend Quadrilla. I just got it for my son (3.5) and he loves it. You can google it to see what it is. They are changing distributors so they are not sending out new shipments to their retailers till June. A lot of stor essold out at Christmas, but I did find King Arthur's Court in Cincinnati still had a good selection. So, if she is good at reading and puzzles, this is a good way to build on her spatial and problem solving skills.

Some ideas:

Leapster, Leappad, bead and necklace sets (Melissa and Doug), scooter, sand and water table, easle stand with a chalkboard side and wipe board side and roll of paper at the top, or a class at the Y (gymnastics, swimming, etc.) If you decide to do the class, you can get her the clothes and extras that go with it - like a leotard & ballet slippers or new swimsuit & googles. What about Spanish or French lessons? You can even get her a doll that speaks some Spanish words, like Dora.

Another big ticket item she may like is an interactive kitchen set. We have one that talks to you...it recognizes the food it is "cooking", has a washer and dryer, etc. It's all very cool. Ours is Little Tykes. My kids play with that for hours, making me dinner, taking my order, and then make a 9 course meal.

Good luck

We had the same issue with our three year daughter. She LOVES crafts! A friend of mine suggested Orb Factory Mosaic Sticker kits - she loves them! Check out the link: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_1_6?url=search-ali...

Other ideas: Craft projects. Movie tickets. Anything fun outside the house that you typically don't do - museum, zoo, etc.

Is she into jewelry? I make little girl sterling silver bracelets - standard requests are "name and birthstone" but you can design your own. Send me a message if you're interested.

Hope this helps - best wishes and happy birthday to your daughter!

I go to the store shopping errands. Then i swing by the toys & we do pretend shopping. Kids look through all the aisles & tell me what they would like most of all. This also lets me see what is out there & I get ideas for other stuff too. Even though we don't buy anything, they do seem to love this "game" they tell their Granny while shopping, "lets just go look at the toys....she was too scared thinking they would throw fits if she didn't buy something, but I explained the game & now they play with her too.

Does she like the computer? Webkinz, or Webkinz Jr. might be just right. Or a magazine subscription to Highlights/National Geographic Kids or the like. My daughter LOVES stationery sets with pens/pnecils. You could also get her a membership to a pool/museum, etc. in your area. Look at the building toys like legos, k'nex etc. Legos are still a favorite at my house and come with easy to follow instructions. Finally, how about some logic puzzles? Like pentominoes or brick by brick that have hundreds of solutions?

she might enjoy a personalized photo book. I order mine through Shutterfly and they are always a hit. Maybe you could make a story out of a trip you took or an adventure story with some picture of her favorite stuffed animal out on the town.If you are not feeling that creative they also have books that feature popular characters and put your child's photo and name into the story.

I would normally suggest these for an older child but she could do them with supervision:
The butterfly habitiat or the ant farm habitat. Or a betta fish.

Card games like Slamwich or other educational, maybe math type games. My DD loved bugs so bug-pedia books to look up specimens that she found was always fun. We made a bug journal and she would draw the bug and color it, or we'd take a pic of it and paste it intot he bug journal. These have become my favorite keepsakes of hers. As she got older we bought bird guides, tree guides, butterfly guides, etc.and of course finally a good quality microscope at about 8 that she used with supervision. There is solar paper which is fun to use, you put things on it and lay it in the sun, it leaves the imprint of it on the paper.
I tend to lean away from the toys found in places like Toys R Us- because they are cheap garbage. (even most of the pricy educational stuff is garbage).

I bought some science experiment kits for my son online- you could consider something like that- look for age appropriate simple kits that you can help with.

She sounds like my son, he loves to read also. Since she likes to read a lot, maybe she will like books with hands-on activities like a craft book showing step by step instructions on how to make something, science books testing out elementary experiments. My 8 year old sister likes books where they teach her how to sew or provide instructions on making masks, door hangers, decorating flip flops, etc. I don't know what the age of most of these are, but I've seen miniature scooters and glide bikes where they use their legs instead of electric ones. Hope this helps and happy early birthday to her.

J. had a lot of great ideas, loved the ballet class idea. Here are some of mine. Take her to build a bear workshop. It is such a fun experience. How about a pair of pink or whatever color cowboy boots. My son LOVES his and he is about your daughters age. A savings bond is always a great gift, so are silver dollars, or coins from her birth year. A butterfly growing kit is fun and educational, there are also frog ones too. Or get her a goldfish in a pretty bowl with her favorite color rocks on the bottom. Make her a special blanket. Flannel rag quilts are so easy--if you sew. How about a box full of new hair accessories, bows, clips and those darling headbands with flowers on the sides. Good luck!

doll house or build a bears

How about a family membership to a Children's Museum or Zoo. This not only would appeal to her interest in learning but guarantee her some one on one time with her parents/grandparents/siblings.

My 4 year old son is extremely tall also and we bought the Power Wheels 4 wheeler instead of a traditional car. He has much more leg room than with the other vehicles we tried.

My son is the same and I've been disregarding "age appropriateness" for a long time. The educational toy store always has things that I think he'll find interesting, but I just tell them I'm looking for something for his developmental "age", not his chronological age and double-check for safety and appropriateness (such as content in books or things requiring greater attention span, dexterity). Also, I try to look for things that are for imaginary or open-ended play or suitable to a wide age-range. We were blowing through puzzles and things really quickly for a while because once he mastered them he'd be done with it. So, I try to go with the classics: blocks, legos, play food, cash register, etc. which it sounds like you've figured out as well.

Although you say she already has a ton of books, if it's what she loves, it's never a bad thing to have more books, in my opinion. My son has recently gotten interested in space, so he got a lot of books about that for Christmas and his birthday. (I occasionally go through the books and put some away or donate them to keep things under control.) I think there are storybook kits where she could tell you a story and then draw pictures to go along and you send it in to have it made into a book.

My son also loves using the computer, so we have a few educational games for him. You could also look at a Leapster or Leapfrog Clickstart First Computer (it hooks into TV). He also really likes board games, but again, you will probably want to look beyond Candyland. Try What's Gnu? which is a basic reading/spelling game, Boggle Jr., and the Cranium games (especially Hullabaloo). We were just given the Ladybug game, but have yet to play it.

Hope this helps. Feel free to msg me if you have any other specific questions.

What about starting her on a collection of some sort? A doll house that you can start adding furniture, dolls, etc to at each holiday/birthday/event etc ?
Build a Bear would be really fun too!
Take her to the American Girl factory in LA and get her a doll with the matching American Girl book (a little pricey).
Leap Frog hand held games were popular with my kids.

How about getting her a medium size child's basketball hoop?
I know they have one that is for children between toddler and regular.
Also, you could look for easy craft kits that you and she could do together to get her started.
A special outing for lunch/dinner and a trip to Build-a-Bear would be fun.

We just bought our one and three-year-olds a piano from Sam's Club. It was about a hundred bucks. Super fun!

How about an inexpensive camera (not the fisher price kind!) and an inexpensive scrapbook...she can 'make her own' book!

Or what about lessons of some sort...dance, gymnastics, sounds like she's ready and will listen in class and participate...and of course, that'd mean she'd need ballet shoes or gym leo or whatever...it could also help with her coordination and body image since she is so tall for her age...

For Christmas, I got my 12 year old (yes...b/c she loves artsy things) the Crayon maker from Crayola...it's a fun little gadget, if she would like to make her own crayons...invent colors, etc...

Above all, I agree with these other moms that you should just all have fun!

And happy birthday to your daughter!:)

Most kids don't need more 'stuff'. How about a magazine subscription? You can search online or go to a website like magazines.com to get an idea of what is out there. There are literally hundreds of magazines for children in a huge variety of topics - but most you will not see at the local store so many people do not know about them. My kids love Ranger Rick and National Geographic (not the kid version, they like the 'real' one).

You could also do something... like a special day at the zoo, Children's Museum or Conner Prairie with just mom & dad and maybe invite a best friend along (no siblings, though!). Or go ice skating, bowling or mini-golf. My son's favorite birthday present is when I take him to ride go-carts - just me and him, no sisters along. We started that when he turned 3. One of my daughters likes to go ice skating, just her and dad, every year for her birthday and we started that when she turned 3.

How about sports gear? You didn't mention that. My girls love their hockey sticks, rollerblades, soccer balls, basketballs, scooters, etc. We started buying stuff like that for their 2nd birthday.

Take her to the library to get her own library card. My kids loved that - they also love to read and I was going broke buying books all the time. Our library has a great children's section.

Does she have favorite toys or activities? I would build upon and around those things, because otherwise you are just adding something more to the mix, making it more difficult for her when she needs to choose what to play with. I think we all tend to acquire too much and this in turn frustrates our children. Stay simple and build upon what she likes and has. Have fun!

My little boy sounds a LOT like your little girl as far as books and reading goes. I always go to teacher supply stores to buy for him. Another thing you could get is the Word Whammer from Leap Frog. It's a magnetic game that uses 3 letter combinations to form words. He played with that thing all the time!!!! He's 6 now,and I finally passed it on to my friend's son because he's now reading at a 2nd grade level, so it was getting a little boring to him. It's a great way to teach words to kids who love letters! Also, since she likes the tag, she would probably really love the Leapster. The games are all very educational. I recommend the I Spy game and there are some preschool games too

Bring her in to Let's Pretend Tea Parties for "Cupcakes and Tea" She can do dress up, make up and have a tea date with mommy! That's the greatest gift of all!

Come check us out! We are in Historic Grapevine off Main
www.letspretendteaparties.com

We love this website: http://www.montessoriservices.com

I don't know if you're familiar with the Montessori method or not, but it doesn't really matter. Tons and tons of real tools and things for little people - we are getting my little boy a real mop and bucket, leaf rake, and gardening set for his second birthday. They also have books and activities.

An activity or destination present might be fun too - a trip to the zoo, a museum, or a concert plus dinner/lunch somewhere she likes.

Musical instruments could be another option - you mentioned a musical set but maybe there is something else you could add.