The holiday season brings many of our beloved family festivities, sparkling lights, comforting treats, and the best genre of music. However, there’s something a little less magical that often crops up this time of year too. It’s the stress that can come along with finding the “perfect gifts.” Especially for our littlest loves, finding gifts for babies can be tough. Compound that with the pressure of giving a baby the most magnificent first Christmas experience ever, and you might be inclined to hide in the chimney until after Christmas. Though, I do not recommend this approach, due to its risks to your safety and general wellbeing.
This is where I come in. I’m here to wrap you in a warm blanket of “everything’s going to be OK,” and share some simple, budget-friendly gifts for babies that are sure to make any baby’s first Christmas nothing short of Holly Jolly. Even better, most of these gifts are easy to find at local businesses like Mother & Earth Baby Boutique and Toy Shoppe. As a twin mom who’s prepping for her eleven-month-old babies’ first Christmases, I have collaborated with various child-development experts, as well as consulted with my two live-in product testers, to develop a timeless list of perfect gifts for babies on their First Christmas!
Lansing Mom is here to share our tried and true favorites. This post does contain affiliate links that help support our small business but every product is something we love!
Top 6 Gifts for Babies
#6 Baby Einstein Musical Toy
I stumbled upon this toy while pumping and browsing Amazon, and it was the combination of rave reviews and low price point that made me say, “Why not?” Since a house with two babies and three dogs is plenty loud as-is, we limit the amount of “noisy,” toys in our possession. However, this one has just brief clips of classical music that have yet to get stuck on a loop inside our brains. Most importantly, the reviews were top notch. There’s something about these tunes that our babies find intriguing, and it’s a convenient size to bring along for car rides or strolls.
#5 Indestructibles Books
I’m not sure what kind of wizardry went into creating these, but these nifty little books are true to their names. We have a few different Indestructibles books that have seen their fair share of baby (and canine) mouths and claws, and they’ve really stood the test of time. We’re still at the stage of eating books more than reading books, and the kids love them! The stories are simple, and the illustrations are beautifully vivid. They’re perfect for “storytime” with our short-attention-spanned littles!
#4 Balls
The unsung hero of children’s toys is the simple sphere. There’s a reason that these have captivated kiddos through the ages: their versatility. Even with the abundance of toys we have rotating in our babies’ various play spaces, it’s always the first toy they grab in the morning and the toy they return to when they get bored of the others. It’s amazing seeing babies engage with balls and how this evolves as they age. From rolling and chasing to dropping them in boxes and banging them together, the possibilities are endless. Bonus points if you can find sensory balls that amplify the mental stimulation for baby.
#3 Winkle
One of our friends with a background in pediatric speech and language pathology gifted our twins this colorful, funky looking toy. This was especially perfect when they were about three months old and just starting to use their fingers. When they were somewhat confined to sitting in a bouncer most of the day, the colorful loops on the Winkle would keep them occupied for a decent period of time. Months later, they still return to this toy and find it captivating!
#2 Stacking Cups
I remember unwrapping a set of stacking cups at our baby shower. As I did, there was a collective chorus of, “You’re babies are going to looooove those.” Boy were they right. They’re simple, yet so captivating as little ones love to knock them down, carry them around, yell into them, and knock them against each other (or furniture). You can find all sorts of varieties and can’t go wrong with whatever you choose.
#1 Quality Time
I saved the most precious gift for last. You can’t find it in any store, and the fact that there isn’t a monetary price tag on it makes it seem easy. But it isn’t always easy to spend quality time with littles. Face it, life pulls us in thirty different directions at once. Those times when the baby is occupied with a toy or brightly colored screen can be a rare opportunity for us to get things done or take a little bit of “me time.”
I’ll be the first to admit that sometimes I’ll be sitting on the floor with the kids, only to be staring at my phone a majority of the time. I rationalize it’s okay because I’m putting together our grocery order or responding to messages from family. But the fact is, even if the babies seem okay with my detachment and lack of engagement, at the very least, I’m the one missing out on these finite, ordinary, and really special moments. Babies love toys, but in years to come, they won’t care all that much about the blocks they stacked or the musical pizza toy they danced with. However, those bonds built by interacting with them and playing a role in their earliest human interactions…those are forever.
So, while the toys highlighted here make for phenomenal tools in entertainment and development for Baby’s first Christmas, remember the most magical gift you can give them this Christmas is simply, YOU!
