My daughter will be turning 3 in the beginning of May and I am at a loss at what to get her for her birthday. She has many interests. She doesnt have favorites really at all. Unlike her younger brother who will be turning 2 in the beginning of June. He is only about trucks and tractors, playing in the dirt and the moon and stars. Those are the only types of toys, books and movies that he wants to play with. My daughter already has a kitchen set, a trike (although it is a pretty small trike and I think it may be too small for her now), a outdoor playset, and a ride on car that you move around on with your feet. She loves books, dinosaurs, playing outside, art projects, dressing up, learning games, and so on. Like I said, she has many interests. I ha e though of getting her a powerwheels, but I am just not sure about that idea. What do you think? Any ideas?
Thank you all so much for all of your opinions and suggestions. They have all helped me greatly! I have decided after much thought and talking with my daughter some about what she wanted for her birthday, (which I had yet to do, because once she knows a birthday is coming up, even if it is not her own, it is all she talks about. Anyway, she, herself actually said she wanted a big girl bike.) So, I have decided to pick out a 12 inch bike for her, a helmet of course, some kind of playdoh kit, some boks and a few other things that I can think of. Righ now, I think she will enjoy a bike more than a powerwheels. She loves riding the large trikes,(larger than her own trike) at preschool, so I think selling her trike and getting a her a big girl bike would be best. Now, what bike to go with!?
What about a bubble machine? Walmart has them for $10.00. You just set it on the ground and screw a bottle of bubbles into it and then it blows the bubbles out. I bought one today, a gallon of bubble solution was $3. 3 year olds love bubbles but aren't that adept at blowing them themselves.
No powerwheels, they just drive it into everything, and they are so heavy to move about without it being driven. How about a dolly with a stroller or baby swing? Wish I had a girl, I would have all that stuff. :(
My daughter when she truned 4 was the same way (did;t need anything), so I got a friends (or you could buy used) an anitque trunk they no longer used, and filled it with tissue paper on the bottom , then a bunch of dollar arts and crafts projects and fun things, dollar store stuff, fun things like silly string, and tons of dollar dress up stuff and jewelry...topped it with helium balloons, and then you can make a tresure map to it and hide it? and when she opened it the balloons flew up... we now use the trunk for storing dressup clothes, she loves it
Maybe chucky cheese to play with other 3 yr olds. Or wonderland nickle arcade. We have a power wheels that my 3 yr old doesnt ride much cause it has to be dug out and the battery charged and is just plain a pain. I think she enjoys her trike just as much. So we got her age appropriate barbie dolls .> She loves those with the different outfits. Just make sure to use a ziplock for the TINY shoes. Happy Birthday to her!
ZINGO is a fun game for kids that age...similar to BINGO, but they can play it on their own or with you. Simply a matching game. Your two yer old can play with her or you can to. My 3 year old received as a gift last year and LOVES it. Rather inexpensive too.
The best advice I can give you is to take her to the store and ask her to pick out things that she likes or would like to get as a present. Let her know you will not be buying anything on this trip. As she chooses you write them down or take pictures of them with your phone. That way you have a selection of things you can get or things you can tell others to get when they ask you. I have been doing this for years with my kids and it helps every time. I often draw a blank when trying to figure out what they might like now, so give it a try, you might be surprised what she chooses.
Call me old fashioned, but at this point, the kiddos don't know anything about toys and stuff and they generally get lots of things from everyone else so I generally purchase a savings bond. It's an investment in their future above and beyond a temporary toy.
~C.
My girl was 3 when she got the Barbie powerwheel for Christmas and it was by far her favorite present. That was a yr and a half ago and still rides it daily.
Also - dress up is super fun at that age. How about a trunk full of dress up stuff.
If you just wanted to get toys, try turning on Nickelodeon and pay attention to when she sees the commercials. I bet there will be something she will ask for.
Powerwheels are always big hits with kids! Play doh is popular with that age. Other suggestions are: a dollhouse, pretend guitar or other instrument, beginning board game (memory, Elefun etc), sand toys. My daughter is about the same age and she loves playing with Fisher Price little people, cars, Barbies (she has an older sister), My Little Pony, and instruments.
Maybe you should get her one of those Barbie convertibles. She would LOVE that. Since spring is here, she will have a good 6 months to ride in it. When she gets to big for it, you can always sell it for at least half of what you paid for it.
Powerwheels is a good idea. Our friends have two and my 3 y/o likes them a lot. She also loves play doh and will play with it forever! She got some dress up clothes for her birthday and that was a big hit. I would also consider getting a bicycle. They have small ones for little kids, put some training wheels on it and she'll feel really big. My daughter LOVES to ride her bike and has played with it way more than her trike.
Littlest Pet Shoppe, Barbies, motorized outdoor car, art easel, When my daughter turned 3 (12 days before Christmas), she wanted a baby doll crib, Little Gourmet Cup Cake maker.... I can't remember what else, but those were her "big" items she wanted! Have fun shopping :-)
Check your area to see if they have a place like Sweet and Sassy http://www.sweetandsassy.com/ some places can go as young as 3 for tea parties, nails, or dress up. Or take her to a local build a bear shop, buy her dressup clothing sets from princess to doctor with clothing and accessories.
I have a son (5.5) and daughter (2.9). Based on what they love:
Puzzles - there are some great 3' x 5' melissa and doug puzzles that my kids play over and over.
Building toys are great - lego duplo, or building straws (the connectors are small and you may not feel comfortable at her age - my daughter plays with them next to her older brother and does not mouth them: http://www.amazon.com/Roylco-Straws-Connectors-230-pc/dp/.... On the more expensive side - a leapster explorer.
Size of the marbles may cause you to wait on this one - all time favorite toy - marble run: http://www.amazon.com/Galt-America-A0560E-Super-Marble/dp...
Does she like dolls? My daughter as a small mcclaren stroller and uses it all the time, as well as a shopping cart (the shopping cart comes in handy in countless ways, for she and her older brother).
How about an easel?
Finally, there are a lot of indoor games for rainy spring days like today - one we have lots of fun with is knee hockey (the "puck" is a hollow plastic disc with foam around the edges) http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000OACWPM/ref=ox_sc_act...
How about a small two wheeler with training wheels... Trike sized and stable but more like a big girl girl bike. Power wheels sounds good too! When my daughter was two or three she got a PlaySchool Plastic treehouse and slide..... Do you have a place for a sandbox? Shovels and buckets shaped like sand castles can occupy toddlers for hours!
My kids (3 and 2) love playing crazy 8's (I got a set at the dollar store) and Zingo. My 3 year old also loves to do the preschool workbooks - you can get ones with stickers, tracing, etc. and some are even dry erase type books that they can do again and again.
My 2 year old LOVES playing with doll houses. You could also sign her up for a class that she doesn't already take. My son has a powerwheels and my daughter (who is 2) drives it a little bit with no trouble. Alternatively, you could not get her a present - we call our parties their presents - neither child (5 and 2) has ever asked what we got them for a present - they get enough from friends and family.
I'd recommend getting her a few books wrapped individually, if you must give her something and put the rest of the money you would have otherwise spent in a college savings plan. This is what we have been doing every year for my daughter. She's not going to remember what she got for her 3rd birthday and it sounds like she already has many toys.
