Toddler/Preschool Birthday gifts

[socalwkr]

So I know MMM hates the plastic, contribute to the landfill type gifts for kids and I tend to agree.  We have a 2 and a 4 year old and are always going to birthday parties where a gift is expected.  We like going as it's pretty great entertainment for the kids and social time for the parents and some of our friends are ridiculous and have face painting, ballon people, jumpies, food carts-making it even more fun. 

Any Mustachians out there know of good, frugal useful things for kids birthdays?  Currently I just stock up on something if I find a really good deal, but that is not all too personal. 

Was thinking of a personalized car pack with arts and crafts?  Welcome your thoughts.

[ABC123]

My boys are 3 and 5. They love art stuff like markers, stickers,  glue sticks, fun paper, etc. Books, puzzles, that sort of thing. I stock up on gifty stuff when I find deals so I don't have to pay full price when they get invited to a party.

[Dee]

Maybe making your own plasticine at home in batches big enough to give some of it as a gift?

[Rebecca Stapler]

I am like you, and snag good, generic gifts when I see them on a really good sale / clearance -- things like popular princess figurines or Disney characters, DVDs, etc.

As much as some of the things look like junky plastic to us, my preschooler can spend an hour, day after day, playing with the silliest or simplest plastic things.

[MayDay]

This spring I gave kids a little garden set.  Just a regular small Jiffy greenhouse, came with dirt pods.  Then the kids picked out a packet of seeds, so they had everything they needed, even if they were non-gardeners!  Total cost was around 15$.

We also give books if I know the family well enough to ask.  My son is six, and I have been giving his friends the first 3 Magic Treehouse books.  6-7 year olds are just in the young side for them, so almost no one has them yet. 

I do art supplies if I know the kid is into art.  I figure something use-up-able is always better than plastic junk lying around, and every kid I know loves a 6 pack of scotch tape and a box of envelopes! 

[bogart]

I'm a big fan of dominoes -- they can serve many purposes and teach numbers as well as motor skills.

There are a number of inexpensive card games targeting kids -- a bit silly, but no real harm in getting a "go fish" game, or whatever.

I always like giving a book that we loved.  I'm inordinately fond of Sandra Boynton's board books (for little kids) and of course there are lots of other good ones.  My son was insanely devoted to several books that just listed and showed pictures of different kinds of trucks, when he was 3 and 4.  I think one was a lift-the-flap book and another just a board book.

[abhe8]

consumable is awesome. arts and crafts, paper, pens, markers, paints, etc. or books. or music (kid music) on a cd. games are also nice, they foster lots of free (for them) family entertainment and bonding time.

[La Bibliotecaria Feroz]

The most popular gift I've ever given was a travel-sized dry erase board with markers. Reusable art! Got it at Target for like ten bucks.

[Lady from Joppa]

My younger 3 children are 6 and under and I don't ask for (or want) gifts when we have a small (think 2-4 children) party for their birthdays. My children's favorite gifts seem to be creative type things like craft supplies, outdoor sand box toys, books, etc.

What I like to do when we go to a party for a small child is ask their parent what is the child's favorite toy or activity and get something to supplement that. For example, my 6yo daughter has a close friend that loves anything princess so we got her a few more accessories and a dress we found on sale. She loved it. For another child we purchased a Lego book because he loves anything Lego and it's his favorite book now. When my oldest son turned 4 earlier this year, his favorite gift was Tinker Toys because he loves building things.

Honestly, we don't go to every party my children are invited to because it just plain costs too much money especially when they are hosted at a play place like Chucky Cheese or Kids 'N Play. We may go to two or three at the most per year. At my children's ages they don't really care because they see their friends on play dates regularly anyway. :)

[kallinan]

Know your audience.  I've given all of the below as gifts even for my children, nephews/nieces, or children of friends... but you have to know the child & family you're giving to:

• Books.  Find a used book store or outlet, and grab a couple.  Mo Willems' Elephant & Piggie series is our favorite to give away.  Helps round out a gift if your main item feels "too small."
• Balls.  Seriously, people have toddlers and no balls.  WTF.  Big.  Small.  Plastic.  Foam.  Soccer.  Whatever.  Girls should get 'em too.
• Bag o' art supplies.  Finger paints, construction paper, popsicle sticks, pipe cleaners, glitter glue.  Any Wal-Mart can hook you up.
• Gardening Tools.  You can get real wood & metal kids' sets.  Lots of fun if the parents don't mind some dirt.
• Legos.  Of course.
• Wooden Trains or Tracks.  Anytime we see these cheap at a garage sale, we pick 'em up.  They're great pre-Lego building toys.
• Food.  Our friends gave our 3 year old a pretty big box of homemade granola bars, which he thought was the bomb.
• Tricycle, big-wheel, bicycle.  You can often find these for $10 or less at garage sales.  Endless fun.
• Used sports gear.  A used children's baseball mitt?  $1.  Whiffle ball?  $1.  Cheap plastic batters helmet?  $1.  It seems to be the 9th inning with two outs every day now.
• Puzzles.  If you have the right kid with the right attention span

There's many more ideas out there, I'm sure.  Just try & get something that will have lasting value and will get quality play time.  Oh, and don't be too embarrassed to give used items as gifts.  They're small children, they outgrow everything so fast.  And used quality stuff is often better than new cheap stuff.

[Emilyngh]

If you have an Ikea nearby, I really liked their toys.    They tend to be simple, not pure plastic crap, and still inexpensive.   I go black Friday weekend (they usually have plushes 1/2 off and other sales) and get things to keep in the closet for DD's bday/xmas as well as her friends.   Here are some links to some cute things:

http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/30064359/
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/80028929/
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/80163229/
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/50145473/
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/90159340/
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/50260444/
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/40124937/

[EngineerMum]

I agree with consumables - you can't have too much playdoh, or stickers. My 2 years old was thrilled with stuff she was given like colouring in books, fancy markers (did you know there is such a thing as glass crayons? You can draw on windows and not get in trouble!), fancy papers (things like black paper you scratch off to show the colours underneath) finger paints, etc.
We are also getting great mileage from felt - making up stories or pictures with pre-cut shapes and animals that you place on a felt board, whiteboard (dry erase) and markers, wooden train set, wooden puzzles, duplo (better than lego at this age).
For kids who get ridiculous amounts of toys, practical items / clothes aren't bad - the kids don't remember / arent aware of who gave them what, so as long as the parents appreciate the gift you get your brownie points. My little one absolutely loves boring items like her gumboots and water bottle, because they are pretty colours and patterns.

[Jenga]

I agree on the suggestion of a whiteboard.   I had one for messages on the door, and the kids loved it so much that I got them one of their own and a pack of coloured whiteboard markers from Staples.  I think it may be the most played-with toy we have, even now that they are older! A small one is nicely portable, too, if you were putting together the personalized car pack.

The other suggestion is one that does fall into the plastic-type toys, but they are indestructible and don't take up a lot of space.  They have themed tubes of little figures, like knights, or sea life, etc.   (That's not the best description, here's a set of them as an example:  http://www.amazon.com/Safari-Ltd-695004-Wild-TOOB/dp/B000BNEOS00 )  They are great, and get played with endlessly - and they go really well with a book on the same theme, for a birthday present.   They've also often sparked questions, which leads to looking things up....they were the impetus to Second Oldest getting really into researching different animals and writing little "books" about them.

[NV Teacher]

Small white boards are great.  But instead of markers I give the dry erase crayons.  They wipe off easily, are washable, and don't have the strong odor that some markers have.

http://www.amazon.com/Crayola-Large-Erase-Crayons-98-5200/dp/B002TU4OHY

[SomedayStache]

Was just talking to my mom about this conundrum as we've been invited to 3 parties in the last month.  Most of the gifts listed in this thread are still too expensive for us.  Our monthly gift budget is $30 and that includes internal gifts for our own kids, spouse, and extended family.

My mom's advice (mother of 3 with some VERY lean years when her kids were young) was simply to stop trying to impress people.

Very good advice.  I thought about it and those people that throw big elaborate parties usually invite tons of kids.  The gift opening is hectic and fast-paced.  Often the kid doesn't even fully finish opening a gift before moving on to the next.  In these instances who cares what you get them?  It won't be noticed anyway.  When we are invited to smaller gatherings its usually people that we are closer too and they know that we don't have tons of money.

We do throw parties for our kids because its just a thing I do.  As the mother, I don't care what gifts people get us, the parties are to celebrate our child and to have fun.  Not to gather more useless plastic toys.  I would far rather have all my kid's friends show up for a good time and would hate for someone to not come just because they can't afford a gift.  I guarantee my kids would also rather have a friend there than a gift. 

We had a child's 3 year old birthday party last week and I told people we didn't need gifts.  Of course, everyone brought something, but one of the gifts was simply a package of cupcake flavored Goldfish.  I didn't judge the parents.  The 3 year old certainly didn't either!  That was an awesome gift in my book!

I may whip up a batch of these crayon/notebooks to start giving as gifts: 
http://ashleyannphotography.com/blog/2010/02/15/diy-notebooks-crayons-to-haiti-with-love/

I'm also thinking one or two books is feasible, with a max spend of $5. 

[socaso]

For a toddler party last month I got a small game and some bubbles and I was wowed by the variety of bubbles available. There are so many different shapes of wands and gadgets to make bubbles and most everything was under $5. The total for the gift I got was under $10 but if you are on a strict budget you could just get the bubbles. My kid will stay entertained for a whole afternoon with a jar of bubbles.

[brand new stash]

I've had a lot of luck with stocking up on gifts during black Friday.  I know that my kids get invited to a lot of parties, and I know how old they are, so I can reasonably predict that I'll need a large number of gifts for their age kids in the coming year. So in the time leading up to black Friday, I look at the black Friday ads for super cheap deals on toys and games that are designed to get you into the store.  Then I buy a lot of them. 

For example, my son is 4, I knew he would be going to a lot of 4 and 5 year old parties this year.  I found this game http://www.amazon.com/Hasbro-5296-Gator-Golf/dp/B001RNC002 on a black Friday ad for $3 and bought 15 of them.  Amazon is selling them now for $16.   I don't feel cheap sending my kids to a party with that sort of gift and I save pretty significant money doing it this way.

[socalwkr]

Thanks everyone for the great ideas. I think books with something to go with it and stocking up on black Friday is a good idea. Hate getting stuck at the last minute and paying more than I should.

[chouchouu]

I have toddlers. I like the BIC pencils, they make triangle shaped pencils that are easy for toddlers to grip, they don't break and don't require much pressure to appear. I also like experience gifts such as tickets to the zoo or museum, a day ice skating or something like that. We wrap gifts in butchers paper decorated by my kids. Most gifts I buy are books I get from the book fair. Other things are for little mustachians, like a aluminium water bottle or a babypote that you put yogurt into instead of disposable pouches. You could also make something if you have the time, such as a push along walker or a box with different knobs and screws for a toddler. My girls just love working out how to open things. Just make sure the pieces are large enough not to be a choking hazard or else can't be taken completely apart.

[Dyk]

Was just talking to my mom about this conundrum as we've been invited to 3 parties in the last month.  Most of the gifts listed in this thread are still too expensive for us.  Our monthly gift budget is $30 and that includes internal gifts for our own kids, spouse, and extended family.

My mom's advice (mother of 3 with some VERY lean years when her kids were young) was simply to stop trying to impress people.

That is very good advice.

We also do not like our own kid's to load up with more plastic crap, so we don't want to spend the money to burden someone else with this.  A second thing we want to teach our kids is about how life should not be about them only, and how fortunate we really are if we look around.  Teaching kids this is the only way to expect them to act this way when they are older.

So, what we have done is buy some playdoh, or other consumable, and then include a card indicating that we gave a chicken or duck, etc. in their name to a family in need.  (You can do this through many organizations).  In your case, we would spend $25 (or whatever) for the donation, and give the card at all 3 parties.  Warning:  your's won't be the most popular gift with the receiving party . . . but is that really how we want to guide our decisions?

So it's not only about the money, even if you find really, really cheap stuff, what message are you sending your kids?  They probably don't even know the item is 80% off.

[galliver]

When my little sister's bff was turning...probably 5 or so, we had a really hard time picking out a gift (all the crafty ones--beads, clay, etc had been given by then). We ended up at *Hallmark* at the mall of all places, and they had these plush dinosaurs in plastic eggs for like $10. So we got her one, and then wrote up a *letter* about how to take care of the dinosaur egg, and how it was going to hatch, and then how to take care of the dinosaur, etc. And printed it on "official" stationary off the home computer. She LOVED the thing. For years. Followed the instructions to the letter. Her parents had to sneak into her room to "hatch" the dinosaur a few months after her bday. She had so much fun with it.

You can't always predict what will elicit this response, but sometimes presentation can be everything, and turn a random/cheap collection of stuff into an actual gift.

[starbuck]

For Christmas, we made our almost-4 yr old niece a fort building kit out of an old twin sheet. Sewed on twill tape to the corners and sides, and packaged it up in a drawstring bag with an extra coil of rope and some clothespins. My spouse made her a sign for the fort with her name on it. She went bonkers over it (the sign especially, once we told her what it said.) Wanted to play with it immediately, and insists on bringing it out everytime we visit. It's great to see her creativity come out when using it. She was battling monsters a few weeks ago. I think next we're going to put together some explorer-type kit, like a magnifying glass!

When I was growing up, my dad always purchased Roald Dahl books (the ones written for children!) for the birthday parties I attended. The birthday kid often didn't care, but the parents were always appreciative. Also, easy to store! So, I'd say an age appropriate book, or something that encourages free play. Oooh, or a DIY child-sized chalkboard!

[Rebecca Stapler]

 

For example, my son is 4, I knew he would be going to a lot of 4 and 5 year old parties this year.  I found this game http://www.amazon.com/Hasbro-5296-Gator-Golf/dp/B001RNC002 on a black Friday ad for $3 and bought 15 of them.  Amazon is selling them now for $16.   I don't feel cheap sending my kids to a party with that sort of gift and I save pretty significant money doing it this way.

I love this! This is my MO too. :) I have a box of play doh sets in the basement from a clearance sale back in December (or November?) I just have to make sure the play doh is still soft.

[chouchouu]

Thought I might post this here for the Aussie parents of toddlers looking for cheap gifts. Mumgo regularly has a book sale where I purchased a ten pack of Julia Donaldson books for $15. I bought five packs and shipping was about $11. Since each book retails for about $14-18 each I'm just going to give two books to each kid and a nice homemade card. I now have enough birthday presents for at least three years at a cost of $3.44 a present, which is cheaper than buying from the second hand store. Julia Donaldson is one of their favourite authors too and is appropriate well into primary school.

[Sunnysof]

There is a charity in town that makes soft puppets as a fundraiser for a school in Uganda. The puppets are really cute, and dressed in traditional print clothes as people might wear in Uganda. I've thought about buying a bunch to keep on hand as birthday gifts, but don't know if puppets would go over well with kids older than 8.

[duellingbanjos]

Just two additions to the ideas above:

1. Dr. Seuss book - $5 on Amazon
2. Tugboat/bath toy/beach toy - http://www.amazon.com/Green-Toys-First-Tugboat-Yellow/dp/B0036WSVPK/ref=sr_1_15?ie=UTF8&qid=1409813434&sr=8-15&keywords=green+toys
Made from recycled milk jugs. Not sure if this fits the budget but my kids have used this over and over for the 2+ years we've had ours. I consider it good clean fun!

[Hannah]

My good friend gave us an "Activity Bag" for my son's first birthday, and I loved the concept. Since he loves locks and keys, the bag had about a dozen well cleaned keys on strings, and five locks. I am pretty sure everything was "used" or found on the ground, except the small burlap sack which says Kenny's Activity Bag.

She told me that she always gives kids under age 5 an "Activity Bag" which is essentially a small bag of stuff that can keep kids somewhat quietly occupied and is easy to clean up.

Other Activity Bag themes she told me about are
Paper Dolls
Coloring
Button Threading
Gift Cards/Credit Cards (I guess the kid liked to walk around with a stack of cards)
Cars (Plastic Car Mat and a few matchbox cars)
Trains (Same as cars only with trains)
Heroes (use super hero action figures and a pop up cardboard box rescue house)
Letters (Had flash cards and magnet letters)

Like any gift, if you can be thoughtful, you can be cheap, but if you can't be thoughtful its difficult to be cheap.

I just bought a bunch of clearanced pool noodles and goggles that I plan to give for kids birthdays next spring and summer, but I'm not sure what I will do for winter birthdays.

[Noodle]

I agree on the books. If you guess wrong, they are easy for the parents to donate, and then some other kid will enjoy them (as opposed to plastic toys etc). If you don't know the kid well, classics are a good way to go (like the Roald Dahl mentioned, or some of the earlier Newbery or Caldecott winners) because unless they have a librarian or teacher in the family, they are less likely to have already read them.

[lakemom]

Clearance sales and a place for storage are your best friend.  Right now most stores have all their Summer items on clearance for up to 80% off.  Stock up on items you feel might be of interest to kids in your children's age groups.  Do it again right after the first of the year when the Christmas items go on clearance.  This is also an excellent time to stock up on wrapping paper and bows (plain blue, red, green, white or stripped are not Christmassy and work year round).  Always cruise through the toy aisles (when it department stores without children) to check what is currently on sale.  This is how I survived the birthday party whirlwind when my 4 oldest were in elementary school.  Now just my 2 youngest are still at home and we usually shop purposefully for the child whose party they are invited to.  I have found that with parents/families so much busier now there are fewer birthday parties and/or smaller parties.  My 2 youngest go to maybe 4 parties per year...the older ones went to probably 2X that many and we were a lot poorer then!

[NonprofitER]

We have a 5 year old, and we don't bring gifts to other kid's birthday parties.  We always put "NO GIFTS - Your child's attendance on her special day is a present"  on her birthday party invites each year, and then politely tell other parents at parties we attend that we don't give or get presents for friends birthdays, to keep us all from getting too many toys to keep track of.  I've never had a parent react badly - its all in how you casually and diplomatically present it.  I think most parents are relieved to not have to run out to Target and buy something at 10am on a Saturday just before a 2 1/2 hour birthday party...  We also don't do goody bags.  I can't stand the cheap junk that comes home in those.  We've either sent kids home with something they made at the party, or we've splurged and done $5 gift cards to the half price book store, or an entry into the children's museum, etc. for her friends to use later. 

My daughter will often make the birthday child a card or art project, if she feels inclined.   

Our family members give gifts to our daughter for her birthday, but we always open those after her birthday party/ after friends have left -- that way the birthday is NOT about tearing open a bunch of gifts.  It's about doing something special with friends.

Our daughter has had the same preschool group of friends for a few years now, and the other parents have gradually caught on and started putting NO GIFTS on their child's party invites (realizing it gets them out of buying 18 other kids with unknown interests plastic junk).  It's a win-win. 

We did do one party where we asked kids to bring a book to swap with one another - that was pretty successful.