Gift Ideas for a 1 Year Old

How about contributions to a college fund? One year olds have no concept of gifts, and when they get inundated with toys, it is a waste of money.

A couple of my friends have had "no gift" parties because their kids already have so much. One of my friend's kids has a list of his favorite children's charities on justgive.org and asks that you make a donation to one of them instead of giving him a gift. This is a great idea that I plan on doing for my twin boys when the holidays and birthdays because all my nieces and nephews have way more stuff then they need and play with.

I had similar issues as my kids are 14 mos. apart and felt overwhelmed by all the toys. Ask relatives to contribute to activities, i.e. gymnastic lessons, Kindermusik, things like that. Then take pix of kids doing the activities they supported and send those as thank yous. You don't get overwhelmed by stuff and loved ones see kiddos doing things they love!

Your 1-year old isn't going to remember much at all about his birthday party. He'll probably enjoy playing with the empty boxes & wrapping paper more than some of the gifts!

Instead of asking your family & friends to buy things that you don't need, perhaps they can buy your son gift certificates or baby-sitting services. I would have loved to receive a 3-month membership to Kindermusik, Gymboree, Mommy & Me classes, or even art classes for my toddler. How about a "coupon" for babysitting your little ones, so you can have time for yourself? What about purchasing a savings bond, or starting a college fund for your child(ren)? What about having someone make a scrapbook or memory book for your son? I've also heard of grandparents videotaping themselves reading goodnight books to their grandchildren who live far away.

If your family & friends insist on buying your son something tangible, ask that they buy your son THEIR favorite childhood book. Maybe they could write a little something inside the book explaining why they liked the book so much. Then your child will not only have a great library of books, but he'll also have lots of memories to go with them.

Hope your son has a fun party!

Shameless plug for my business, Usborne Books at Home - www.booksforalifetime.com - we have great board books for 1 yr olds, and at age 1 is when I started putting together my kids' library (I have twins). We really emphasize reading in our house, even reading to them every night before they could even walk - and it's been really wonderful to see how they now love to read, and are starting to read by themselves (they're 3-1/2) !! Rather than another toy (which you probably don't need, or have already!), I suggest an Usborne Book... your friends/relatives can even get on the website and order from your 'wish list' that you've created... remember, literacy lasts a lifetime.
C.
www.booksforalifetime.com

I would tell the truth - we have so many of the wonderful gifts received from our first child, we're hoping to add to his savings account for college.

my nephews 1st bday was this weekend and my in-laws got him a Mickey Mouse toy that was a hit with all of the kids. My nephew has played with it non-stop. It's one that he can sit on and scoot himself or push from behind. This one, in particular has cool lights and music as well as blocks that he can play with. It's perfect for the kid who's learning to walk.

Hi M.. My son loved his b-day present- a little people train set... it makes noise and moves, it was cute. He's 3 1/2 now and he still plays with it.

I got my son the Bounce and Spin Zebra from Fisher Price and he absolutely LOVES it. They can ride it until they're 40 pounds.

My boys' favorite gifts at this age were Balls, and Chairs for their size. My favorite gift FOR them, was a Birthday picture frame. It has 18 small photo opportunities for each Birthday. I love that!!!!

How about family memberships to fun places (zoo, discovery museum, tumble and tea, etc...). It' more of a gift for you, but at one-year old your son won't care or know.

Whenever people have asked me in the past what my daughter would like for her birthday, I've always said "her taste change day by day, that even I can't keep up" (which is so true!) Then I suggest a gift of things that I know she will always love (new crayons, markers, art supplies etc...) However if they are close friends who you feel comfortable with, I would say he has everything he could want or need now, but a gift card to Target (or where ever) would be great for when he sees something he "has" to have! I know I would rather have someone tell me what they could really use rather than me buying another toy or another outfit that they don't really need!
Hope this helps! Good Luck!

books. you never get sick of having them around, and hopefully your kid wont either.

kids music -- sleep or fun-time

You can go to fisherprice.com and click on the age group and see what toys they suggest for that age group.

My granddaughter who is 2 now liked the the toys you can sit on and/or push.

I would ask them to put money towards a collage account or bonds. That is always nice. We did that and it helped us start to put money away.

I am not too sure if you have it already, but my son loves his Fisher Price ride and spin zebra. I am not sure if that is its official name, but I am sure you will be able to find it. He also loved foam blocks, I think little tykes or step two makes them. They come in several sizes and we have three of those different size sets. He loves to stack them up and then push them over. I hope that helps.

C.

Well I don't know what items you have saved from your older son, but my daughter just turned one and I struggled witht he same question. I eventually decided on suggesting books, toys for outside and bath toys.

Enjoy the birthday!
L

If you don't need anything--ask for a donation to a local charity. Or books are always helpful in our house.

My kids' favorites have been the giant Tonka Dump Truck (we still have it after 12 years and 3 children!), pop up tents (my daughter has a castle one and even my boys 9 and 13 like to sit in there and read to her) and my daughter (now 3yo) loved and still loves the Leap Frog Fridge Farm with the animal front/back magnets. It sings, plays music, makes animal sounds and tells a couple of animal facts when they do make a match.

I was also going to suggest gift certificates (movies, ice cream or zoo, etc.) or just a store gift cert to us later when he does really need something. Books are always wonderful too.

Books!! You can never have too many books for your kids. I have to get my 14-mo old daughter board books still because she chews on them, but she sure loves to "read", or when I read to her :)
A.

For my son's first birthday, we put together a "time capsule" with things like pics from his first year, favorite items, a list of events that happened that year, etc. The adults also dropped in fun little cards to predict what our son will be when he grows up and my husband and I wrote personal messages for him to read when he opens the capsule in 18-20 years, depending on how long we can wait. It was a fun way to spend his birthday and we plan to do the same with our next baby, when she turns one. Good luck!

What we're doing for our boys (the first turns two in a couple weeks, the second is almost three months old) is we're starting to give them a train collection- Colin will be getting the basic train set for his birthday, and we're going to be asking for trains and track pieces for both of the boys for Christmas/birthdays for the next few years, or until they get tired of it. Any sort of "collection" that both kids could play with and add on to is a good idea because it limits the toys they get, and teaches them to share. Also, art supplies, CDs, or money for a specific gift (like a swingset) are good ideas. He doesn't have to use the gift just then- he'll be growing up a lot before he turns 2, as I'm sure you've learned from your first child! Then, put away the older toys until he's more developmentally ready for them.

Hi M.,

I still have this same problem. My sons are 3 yrs apart and I saved everything to pass down to my younger son. My sister-in-law and I have recently decided instead of filling our houses with more "stuff" and raising our children with the expectation that they should receive lots of gifts we now give savings bonds. Everyone in our family does this and let me tell you my kids have racked up several thousand dollars so far for college. I also match it, since then their savings have grown significantly.

One year I put on the invitation "no gifts please" and there was an outcry. For the guests who feel they should have a wrapped gift to open I normally suggest clothing since the older one sometimes wear out his pants before the younger one gets them. Other basics includes jacket, new shoes, socks etc. Family members are always happy to oblige. Oh and I always wished someone would actually give batteries or re-chargeable ones. They needed this more than toys! It seems so many of their toys aren't getting used b/c the manufacturer's batteries ran out the minute we opened the box.

With friends I say just come and enjoy. It keeps the pressure off for many parents since kids are involved in lots of activities and this can really add up when you're going to more than a few parties a month. Besides, I still have half of my garage full of new, unopened presents that months later make it into the house, or eventually gets sold or re-gifted if appropriate. Hope all this helps

Best wishes for a great birthday!

M.,
My foolproof gift that everyone loves is the $10 bubble machine from target. It comes with batteries and bubbles so they are all set. Is says on the box that it spits out over 1000 bubbles per minute (or something like that) and it is totally true. Also, my son loves his big plastic truck that he can push everywhere. That was a big hit from my brother for his 1st b-day. Hope this helps.
T.

Well, I have a couple of thoughts about gifting. You could start a wish list on Amazon.com for books and movies that he might enjoy. They could go online and shop for the items you want and have them delivered right to your home.
The other thing we did was open a savings account for our kids and then guests could put money in the account for special days.

Take care,
N.

Hi M.,

I always tell friends books and clothes. Even though you have things from your older child, it is always nice to get a new outfit. Also, my family did savings bonds for the one-year-old. The best present was his own box of tissues. He got to spend quite a while pulling out the tissues and making a mess.

D.

My son's favorite gift for his 1st b-day was a bouncy ball with the grippy bumps on it. My parents live out of state and only see my son every couple of years so it is hard for them to buy him gifts so they have been getting him savings bonds. I'm sure someday we will think they were a great idea. I get my niece and nephew gift certificates for the same reason.

I am expecting my first child later this year but I already know that for his first birthday I want to have a book theme party and have guests bring their favorite childhood books as gifts to add to my child's library. Also, you can ask for savings bonds as gifts. For such young children who do not need toys, building their savings truly is one of the best gifts. That is what I got my niece for Christmas (she was 6 months old and already spoiled so I did not think she needed another toy or DVD or whatever). But if you feel weird about asking for money like that then you could also tell people that you picked out a charity and people can give donations to that charity in your son's name (another thing I will do when my child is growing up). Good luck!

Dear M.: Bath toys are good! Undies, sleepers, a new stuffed animal, gift cards,(buy what is needed, that way - or a gift card for his/her picture to be taken; You can give the gift giver a pic too) New baby blankets, sheets for crib, Mom's scrapbook (be sure you take a picture of house where you brought baby home! Good luck - A.

You might consider asking them to get you a gift certificate to Gymboree Play & Music. You could use these classes either with your 1 year old along (for some one on one time) or take both kids to the sibling classes. You can see more info on the program at www.gymboreeclasses.com.

Let me know if you have any questions.

J.

We used to ask for savings bonds.

I just read in a Parents magazine that a membership to a zoo was given and the child LOVED it. You can suggest activity gifts instead. Movies,theme parks, books are always great.

I a;lways buy educatioonal toys for children of that age.

Have everone bring their favorite early childhood book

My son's favorites were books, balls, and push/ride on toys.

this is going to sound silly but both my boys loved boxes when they were 1. loved to climb into them and make castles out of them. I suggest anything that he can climb on and maybe things for his fine motor skills like big puzzles and lacing cards.

if you go to the Report Card a store for parents and Teachers they might suggest good gifts for a one year old.

Happy birthday to your little guy

Hi M.,

It was funny for me to read your request, because I am in the EXACT same situation. My first son (also almost 3) has a 3-car garage toy (it's made by Parents and found at Target). He got this for his 2nd birthday, but has played with it everyday since he opened it! It's really colorful and has 3 cars. He loves to put the cars in and out of the garages. My second son (who also turns 1 next month) absolutely LOVES to play with it too. It's getting harder and harder to have them share, so we're probably going to end up getting him one too for his birthday!

Also, books are always a great gift. My boys especially love any that have flip-ups or different textures for them to feel.

Hope this helps some.

N.

I too was in the same boat as my son inherited all of my 2 god sons items and has been loaded up but he just had his first bday and he absolutely loves this tonka truck he can sit on, the seat also goes up to push it and then it also rolls over blocks and sweeps it up but he of course hasnt figured out that part yet. he also loves musical toys.