Pursuing Sunshine

Wooden toys definitely have their place in the toy market.  They are beautifully crafted and  environmentally friendly.  Some even would argue that they are more durable to warrent the often hefty price tag of these types of toys.. But, here are some things to consider when buying wooden toys.

1)  If you have teething toddler bite marks and chippedlworn off paint will leave these toys lacking luster and not looking nice for long.

2)  Kids through things.  Weather they are testing their boundaries, having a meltdown, or they are not using the toy how it is intended, Chamces are at somepoint one or all of your kids will throw a toy at some point.  A plastic bannanna being launched at your face or a subling face will urt a lot less if it is a plastic one versus a solid wood one.

3)  You will pay a hefty buck for quality wooden products so make sure the bang it worth the buck in terms of how much use your child will actually be getting out of the product.

Below I have listed some wooden toys worth investing in and some I feel are better left behind:

Choosing the right toys for your little one can feel so overwhelming! I definitely went down the open ended, Montessori play, all-natural wooden toy “rabbit holes” a time or two myself.  What I’ve learned is there is not one right way to raise your child.  The key is to find out what not only works for you child, but for you too!

I decided to curate this list of tried-and-true toys based off of my real-life experiences as a nanny, teacher, and a mom of multiple kids to help you save time, money, and stress.  Selecting quality toys that last through the ages both in durability and function increase fun and learning while decreasing the stress on your wallet and from having to constantly cleaning up mounds of toys your littles quickly lose interest in and toss to the floor.

When I was little, I remember all I wanted for Christmas more than anything was a Ferbie. They were flying off the shelves! Mom were desperately scrambling from store to store trying to find one still in stock, fights would break out when product ran low, the craze was real! My poor mom ended up resorting to winning mine from a radio station. Getting that Ferbie made my Christmas…

Sadly, like so many other toys, after five days of it randomly waking up and creepily talking throughout the night, I was no longer a fan. I ended up taking the batteries out of it and burying it in the abyss that was my closet and lost complete interest. All the stress, time and money my parents sacrificed for me went down the drain in FIVE days.

Don’t let this happen to you!