{"id":14707,"date":"2024-01-16T13:29:23","date_gmt":"2024-01-16T13:29:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/healthyaging.net\/magazine\/?p=14707"},"modified":"2024-01-16T16:04:53","modified_gmt":"2024-01-16T16:04:53","slug":"imaginative-gifts-to-give-the-grandkids-december-2023","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/healthyaging.net\/magazine\/winter-2024\/imaginative-gifts-to-give-the-grandkids-december-2023\/","title":{"rendered":"Imaginative Gifts To Give The Grandkids \u2014 2024"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Carolyn Worthington <\/p><\/p>\n

W<\/span>e recently published this article around the holidays on gifts to give young children. The article was so popular, we decided to keep it going and add more suggestions for gifts to give all year round.<\/p>\n

If you are a new grandparent like me or even a seasoned grandma or grandpa, as you are shopping for gifts for birthdays or baby showers, you are probably amazed at how stuff for kids has changed since your children were youngsters.<\/p>\n

It wasn\u2019t that long ago, back in the \u201880s, when kids didn\u2019t have their noses on cell phones. Little did they know what was to come for them as teenagers. However, many were hooked on playing Super Mario Bros. on their Nintendo Entertainment System, putting life into their Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle figures, hugging a Cabbage Patch Kids Doll, craning their necks over their Game Boy, or driving Power Wheels around.<\/p>\n

The 90s brought in Beanie Babies, Nintendo 64, Transformers, the games Mouse Trap and Hungry Hungry Hippos, and who could forget the Super Soaker.<\/p>\n

Some of the toys from back then are still going strong. Why, Barbie has a new life! She even has her own\u00a0TIME<\/em>\u00a0Magazine special edition.<\/p>\n

Today, as a doting grandparent, you might wonder what to give to the newest generation that will keep them away (for a little while) from screen time.<\/p>\n

If you resisted Nintendo for your own kids (and later likely caved as we did) and don\u2019t want to promote hand-held devices just yet, here are some ideas for you to give:<\/p>\n

Gift Ideas 2024 and Beyond<\/h3>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

1. \u201cThe Boy Who Said Baa\u201d Book<\/h4>\n

I love this book! And not just because I have admired the author\u2019s special talent as a writer for many years. It\u2019s really good!<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Boy Who Said Baa<\/em>\u201d is the story of a little boy with a one-word vocabulary. His parents are concerned, and mean people make fun of him, but he\u2019s not quite ready to speak more words. Then Christmas arrives, and when his Nativity play dissolves into chaos, he saves the day with his one word and makes a joyful noise heard around the world.<\/p>\n

Written in humorous verse by Judy Dryden, \u201cThe Boy Who Said Baa\u201d<\/em>\u00a0is a sweet story of personal triumph, inspiring not only to children with delayed speech issues but any child struggling with feeling \u201cdifferent.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s fun to read out loud, and the little ones will enjoy hearing you rhyme as you tell the story and will be engulfed with the charming illustrations by acclaimed British artist\u00a0Rosie Brooks\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n

Available in hardcover ($15.99) and paperback ($8.99) through\u00a0amazon.com<\/a>\u00a0and bookstores nationwide.<\/p>\n

\"tummy<\/p>\n

2. Baby Einstein Glow & Discover Light Bar Activity Station<\/h4>\n

OK, so this one falls slightly under the technology category \u2026 uses 3 AA batteries.<\/p>\n

However, the\u00a0Baby Einstein<\/a>\u00a0(aren\u2019t they all?) activity station is perfect for what is now called \u201ctummy time,\u201d or seated play.<\/p>\n

The baby can press buttons or spin the rattle drum with the reward of lights, colors, animal names, and sounds. A language switch allows content in English, French, or Spanish. Perfect for three months to three years old. $13.19 at Target.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

3. Custom Illustrated and Framed Poem for a Grandchild<\/h4>\n

When my grandchild was born, I wanted to give something meaningful rather than choosing something from a baby registry that is so common today.<\/p>\n

Back in the day, to commemorate the arrival of our son, an artist friend gave us a special gift of a framed drawing of her illustrations. The watercolor piece was a poem surrounded by illustrations of a little boy in activities that he might try like his parents did \u2026 cycling, horses, hiking.<\/p>\n

I love the piece and wanted similar work done for my grandchild. The original artist had sadly passed away.<\/p>\n

\"illustrated<\/p>\n

Through the website\u00a0Fivrr<\/a>, however, I found the talented Sommer Buyante, who specializes in children\u2019s illustrations. I chose the poem, and she created a custom border filled with whimsical drawings I suggested including their black dog. I had it printed on German etching paper and framed locally with mat colors to match the nursery.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Although it\u2019s unlikely Sommer can do a custom illustration before this holiday, I highly recommend Sommer Buyante for future custom illustration projects such as this and more. See her contact info here:\u00a0Sommer B<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Profile<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Fiverr<\/a><\/p>\n

\"building<\/p>\n

4. Melissa and Doug Toys<\/h4>\n

Melissa and Doug Toys are renowned for their timeless toy line, which is primarily made of wood. The 35-year-old company, based in Wilton, CT, has a mission \u201cto provide a launch pad to ignite imagination and a sense of wonder in all children so they can discover themselves, their passions, and their purpose.\u201d<\/p>\n

Choose an old favorite like\u00a0100 Piece Wood Block Set<\/a>\u00a0perfect for building, knocking down and building again.<\/p>\n

\"sound<\/p>\n

A fun one for animal lovers is\u00a0Melissa and Doug Farm Animals Sound Puzzle<\/a>, available at Amazon for 10.99<\/p>\n

\"rattle<\/p>\n

5. Rattle Socks<\/h4>\n

Not sure if this one will drive your son or daughter as new parents crazy, but babies appear to love these\u00a0Wrist Rattles Foot Finder Rattle Sock Toy.<\/a>\u00a0What a clever idea?<\/p>\n

Babies apparently\u00a0find their feet<\/a>\u00a0from 4 to 8 months. Yup, humans start putting their foot in their mouths early on.<\/p>\n

The bright, colorful rattle socks will engage the baby in searching for its feet through all of the senses \u2026 sight, touch, and sound.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Bright Starts Hug-a-Bye Baby Elephant Stuffed Animal Dual-Mode Soft Toy Soother<\/p>\n

What’s great about so many of these gifts is they are affordable. Here’s another one that will bring smiles, the Hug-A-Bye Baby Elephant, soon to be the baby’s best friend.<\/p>\n

The stuffed animal lights up (batteries required) and it makes sounds. The price is right at $11.99 on Amazon<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

KUANGO Black and White High Contrast Baby Toys 0-3 Months for Newborn, Montessori Toys Sensory Infant Tummy Time Toys Baby Essentials 0-6 Gifts<\/h4>\n

Black and white toys fascinate babies. KUANGO<\/a> offers a variety to choose from at affordable prices.<\/p>\n

Whatever the age you are shopping for, there are lots of ideas to encourage learning and developing imagination.\u00a0 These are a few suggestions that we love!<\/p>\n

Happy shopping!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Affordable gift ideas for the next generations<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":14711,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[181,182],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14707","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-winter-2024","category-winter-2024-features"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/healthyaging.net\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14707","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/healthyaging.net\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/healthyaging.net\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/healthyaging.net\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/healthyaging.net\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14707"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/healthyaging.net\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14707\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14712,"href":"https:\/\/healthyaging.net\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14707\/revisions\/14712"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/healthyaging.net\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/14711"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/healthyaging.net\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14707"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/healthyaging.net\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14707"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/healthyaging.net\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14707"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}