Holidays

An Unexpected Christmas Gift

December 25, 2018

I had a few ideas for Christmas posts. I had settled on writing my Christmas list. The one that I have in my head that no one else knows about. The one that has all the things I want that I won’t ask for. Over the past couple of days, I’ve gotten something on my Christmas list, but it’s something I never expected. It’s the kindness of complete strangers.

Last week, there was a pot luck at work. I struggled to figure out what to bring. I always used to bring macaroni and cheese, but with my new schedule, trying to cook it and keep it fresh no longer works. I could’ve baked cookies or brownies, but I didn’t feel like it. The week was exhausting. I needed something quick and inexpensive, so I decided to stop at Dunkin Donuts for some munchkins, also known as donut holes. Someone paid it forward and I ended up with a free box of donut holes. In return, I paid it forward and bought someone’s coffee.

The day before Christmas Eve, my mom, Rosebud and I went to Walmart to buy my groceries for the week. I had to buy enough food to feed two kids this week as I have the week off from work, but will be watching a little boy. My mom was buying last minute items to make treats to fill our stockings. Our cart was pretty full. Once we had everything up on the counter and were about to pay, an older man comes up to my mom and offers her a gift card. My mom thanked the guy as the cashier finished ringing up the items.

Her bill came to around $40, but when the cashier checked the balance, she realized it was a $200 gift card. We were all in shock. Partly because we assumed it’d be $20 or less. I figured it was someone trying to get rid of the balance on his gift card. I’ve heard of people giving that much, but only on the news or viral Facebook posts. I’ve never seen it in my real life let alone it happening to me. The cashier even said that she’d never seen anything like that happen in person. It paid for my mom’s bill, my week’s worth of groceries and still had a small balance left over.

I don’t know why the man chose us. I can speculate, but it appeared that it was out of kindness and generosity. He wanted nothing in return. Maybe it is his way of getting into the holiday spirit. Who ever he is, I hope he is not alone this holiday season. I want to thank him for his kindness and for being so generous. He doesn’t know it, but I was looking at the balance in my bank account this morning and starting to worry about bills that haven’t been charged yet. Because of this man’s kindness, I don’t have to worry and will have enough to cover everything. It was a huge help to me.

They say that when you show kindness, it will be returned to you. It might not be reciprocated by the person you showed kindness to, but it will come back to you in another form. I might not be able to give a random stranger a $200 gift card, but in my own way, I will pay it forward to someone else. Thank you not only for the groceries, but for restoring some of my hope that kindness still exists in this world. Out of all the things on my Christmas list, this is the most important. I wish all my readers a happy holiday.

4 Comments

Childcare, Gift Giving, Toddlers, Work

Holiday Goody Bags for Toddlers

December 18, 2018

At work, we usually do a secret Santa gift exchange the week before Christmas. Sometimes we give to a family in need and fill a box with gifts. Some of our teachers make up bags for the children and some of them don’t. This year, I wanted to do something a little different. Right now, I don’t have a class of my own. I float, so I spend time in all the rooms, but I spend a lot of time with my toddler classes now and that’s who I decided to shop for.

I knew I wanted to put goody bags together, but most of the bulk items I found were for preschoolers or older. It took a little extra time and effort to find the right things, but here’s what’s inside the bags.

These sweet treat rubber duckies for the girls and these doggy rubber duckies for the boys.

I figured most kids love their baths and the novelty duckies would be a unique spin on a classic toy.

I found these bubbles at the dollar store in packs of three. There’s chocolate, strawberry and vanilla. 
Bubbles are always a hit with toddlers.

I included 1oz containers of play-dough. You can’t do much with only one or two ounces, but I was on a budget. These small sizes are great for travel.

I found packs of cars at the dollar store and included a car in each bag.

Here is a similar set of Matchbox cars.

What kid doesn’t love stickers? I found this sticker pack on Amazon that has a variety of stickers. There are letters, numbers, smily faces, hearts, animals and more. It’s a good buy if you are in the market for small puffy stickers.
 
Finally, I wanted to include a ball, but wasn’t sure what to do since most of the bouncy balls are too small for toddlers. I didn’t want to include anything that was a choking hazard. On the other hand, I didn’t want to find something too big for the bag. I was lucky to find these awesome jumbo bouncy balls that are the perfect size.

I found these paper snowman gift bags. They were the perfect size. For the final touch, I used gift tags with 3d stickers.
 
Is there anything I missed? What fun items have you included in goody bags? Tell me in the comments.

I’m sure the kids will be surprised. I hope they love them. I wish my classes a merry Christmas!

11 Comments

Activities, Education, Parenting, Preschool, Toddlers, Winter

Gift Giving Sensory Tub

December 7, 2018

This week, I decided to make up a festive sensory tub for Rosebud. I’m calling it the gift giving sensory tub.

What’s in the tub?

Wrapping paper,
Small boxes,
Ribbon,
Bows,
Tissue paper,
Bells,
Snowman rings,
Sparkly pompoms,
A bulb shaped ornament that opens,
A gift bag
A small stocking.

Today was the first time Rosebud got to play with this tub and she played for almost an hour. I had to tare her away for bath time. She loved filling the gift bag, putting the items in the different sized boxes and trying to wrap them. We pretended to give each other gifts. She’d open a box of snowman rings and say, “thank you Mommy. This was the best gift ever.” Then I’d open a gift bag full of pompoms and tell her what a nice gift she gave. If you are working on sharing and kindness, this would be a great sensory tub for the theme.

We worked on math skills by counting the number of pompoms in a box. We used our listening skills to guess what was inside the boxes. We discovered that we can always tell when one of the bells were in the boxes, but we could only hear the pompoms depending on the size and style of the box. Rosebud folded wrapping paper and tried to tie ribbon to practice those fine motor skills.

If your child is a little older, you could include tape so they could practice actually wrapping presents. I did not include tape because I knew it’d be everywhere. I’d love to add more ribbon of different sizes, other Christmas and winter themed trinkets for a wider variety of gifts and child scissors to cut wrapping paper. If you’ve tried something similar or have a festive sensory tub of your own, tell me in the comments.

10 Comments

Activities, Books, Education, Parenting, Toddlers, Winter

Five Interactive Winter Books for Toddlers

November 29, 2018

As I’ve written about before, Rosebud and I love to read. I often buy her new books based on the season and or if there’s a holiday coming up. For the spring, I get out her books about birds, plants and baby animals. In the fall, we read books about pumpkins, leaves and of course Halloween. The winter is no exception. The books we are reading right now are related to snow, Christmas and her birthday coming around the corner.

As I’ve mentioned in other posts, I’m visually impaired so I don’t see the pictures very well. In children’s books, one could argue that the pictures are the most important thing. Well, they are to the child at least. Since I can’t see all the little details, I love to find books that are more interactive. Not only does it help me, but these extra elements make reading more fun for the children. Here are some great interactive winter books I’ve found along the way.

That’s Not My Snowman by Fiona Watt.

This book shows a snowman on each page with a different tactile element. the mittens are too fuzzy or the buttons are too bumpy. The book is short, but it’s great for infants and toddlers. Rosebud still loves this book.

PeekaBoo Christmas!: Touch-and-Feel and Lift-the-Flap by DK Publishing.

This book is large, sturdy and has illustrations that are shiny and colorful. Some of the pages include touch and feel elements like the pompom on the hat or the ornaments on the tree. Kids love to lift the flap to see what’s inside. Rosebud has always loved the different peekaboo books and this one did not disappoint her.

Little Critter: Just a Snowy Day by Mercer Mayer.

I bought this book many years ago to read to the kids I was working with at the time. Now I get to share it with Rosebud. I love all the interactive elements in this book. You get to spin a wheel to make it snow, smell a cup of hot chocolate and pull Little Critter’s sled. My only complaint about this book is that the pull tabs can be easily broken. This book has always been a hit with any of the children I’ve read it to. The book is now out of print, but you can still find it on Amazon.

The Gingerbread Family: A Scratch-and-Sniff Book by Grace Maccarone.

This story is of a day in the life of a gingerbread family. There is a scratch and sniff sticker on each page. The scents aren’t very strong, but the story is cute. When I was a kid, I never had books like these. I always loved scratch and sniff stickers and am glad I’ve been finding these cool books for Rosebud. She loves the pictures in this book as everything is made up of candy. We like to see which candy we can pick out. When she asks for this book, she says, “Let’s read about cookies.”

The Sweet Smell of Christmas (Scented Story Book) by Patricia M. Scarry.

Many people seem to remember this book from their childhood. I do not and I have not read it to Rosebud yet. It will be a stocking stuffer for her this year. This book is filled with scratch and sniff stickers and I know Rosebud will be excited to read this one.

What are your favorite winter and holiday books? Let me know in the comments.

7 Comments

About me, Parenting, Personal Development

15Things I’m Thankful For

November 16, 2018

I wanted to do a gratitude series of posts in November, but this month seems to be running away from me. It’s already half over. To get into the spirit of Thanksgiving, here’s a list of some of the things I am grateful for. Not just for this season, but all year.

1. This blog

I’ve found another creative outlet and I’ve had fun expanding my knowledge of blogging. I’m thankful that you are reading my blog. You could be reading any of the millions of articles online, but you’ve come here and I appreciate that.

2. My ability to write

Speaking of the blog, it wouldn’t be in existence without my ability to write. I’m grateful for the people who have encouraged me to write over the years. Mrs. Galle and Mr. Fisher in particular. Writing not only lets me reach out to so many people through this blog, but it helps me through difficult times.

3. Books

I never thought I’d like reading. When I was a kid, I hated it and if you told me I’d love books as an adult, I’d have laughed in your face. It was mostly because reading was slow for me and I didn’t have the same books as the other kids. When I found Audible and the Kindle app, a whole new world opened up to me. Now I always am reading a book or two.

4. Today’s technology

Although many people see today’s technology as a curse, I see it as a blessing. I don’t know where I’d be without all this technology. I was able to complete an entire masters degree online and now my goal is to have a business working from home. None of that would’ve even been possible when I was a kid. When cell phones first became popular, there was so much of it that was inaccessible to me because of my visual impairment. If you told me when I was younger that I’d be using the exact same technology as my peers and would be able to access the same information in real time, I wouldn’t have believed it. Don’t get me wrong, there is still a long way to go when it comes to accessibility. New accessibility bugs pop up with every software or app update, but we have come a long way.

5. Clay

I love being creative and making something functional and or beautiful. You can pick up a ball of clay and there are endless possibilities. With imagination and some skill, you can make something amazing. I’m hoping to take another pottery class this winter.

6. Cooking

I’ve tried lots of new recipes this year. I love experimenting in the kitchen and finding a new favorite recipe.

7. My home

I’m so thankful that I have a wonderful home where my daughter can grow up. At least for the next few years. It’s cozy as Rosebud says. I’ve been able to make lots of improvements to it as well, getting it closer to my dream home. I am so fortunate to have a nice warm place to live and try to remember that every day.

8. Nature

I love finding the sunny spot on a cold day, looking at the clouds and taking walks to get fresh air and to just listen to the birds. The beach is my happy place and I even love rainy days.

9. Family

Although we have our issues, they’ve always been there for me when times have gotten really tough.

10. My cats

They’ve been with me for a long time. Even though I haven’t been able to spend as much time with them and don’t get to spoil them as much since I’ve had Rosebud, they’ve been such a comfort. They have a wonderful presence and our home would feel empty without them. They are friendly, affectionate, fluffy and protective of Rosebud. I couldn’t ask for anything else from a pet.

11. Friends

I don’t have very many and the ones I have, I don’t get to see them often, but I appreciate them so much. Thank you for letting me vent, being there for me and sharing stories and plenty of laughs.

12. The kids I work with every day

There are a few who are so special to me and are my whole reason for showing up to work. I love the hugs, when they tell me they love me and when they include me in their play. When they come up and demand you play with them, you know you’ve done something right.

13. My health.

I’ve always been generally healthy. When I see the people around me with lots of medical issues, I realize how fortunate I am.

14. My past experiences

Although there have been a lot of negative experiences in my life, they’ve shaped who I am today. I’ve learned a lot of valuable lessons. Although I’m not yet grateful for everything in my past, there are still lessons left for me to learn. I am grateful for the opportunities for growth ahead and for all the wonderful memories, the people who I’ve met and the places I’ve seen.

15. My daughter

Most of all, I’m thankful for my daughter. She has given my life a whole new purpose. I don’t know where I’d be without her. Yesterday, I watched her cook in her pretend kitchen and when she served the cupcakes, she offered more to me than she saved for herself. She doesn’t always clean up her toys or listen to me, but when I ask her if she can do me a favor, her response is always, of course. She’s always wanting to help and she has an endless supply of hugs and kisses. She’s smart, sweet and funny and I’m so proud to be her mommy.

How about you? What are you thankful for? Tell me in the comments.

18 Comments

Activities, Art, Gift Giving, Parenting, Recipes, Toddlers

Salt Dough Keepsakes

November 11, 2018

I wanted to come up with an inexpensive and creative gift for my mother’s birthday. I also wanted Rosebud to be involved in making it so I decided to see what we could create with salt dough.

Ingredients:

1 cup salt,
2 cups all purpose flour,
1 cup warm water,
A pinch of cinnamon, (Optional)

Food coloring or powder paint. (Optional)

Directions:

1. Mix salt and flour together in a bowl.
If you are using powder paint to add coloring, you’ll want to mix it with the dry ingredients.
I added the pinch of cinnamon at this stage for a hint of scent, but that is totally optional.
2. Gradually add the warm water and stir until dough forms.
If you are using food coloring, add it into the water before mixing with the dry ingredients.
3. Once you have your dough, shape it into a ball and kneed for five minutes. the more you kneed, the softer it gets.
4. Time to have fun and see what you can create.

It took several tries, but I shaped the dough into a flat heart and Rosebud pushed her hand in the center to make the handprint. Trying to get a tired child to do something like this can be pure torture, but after the sixth try, we got our final product. The other handprints were missing fingers, missing part of the hand itself or barely noticeable.

To add some sparkle, I put some glitter on the heart. Finally, I poked two holes in the top so the heart can be hung as a decoration. I used a pencil to get good sized holes.

Next, I worked on the small rose. I roled out a coil for the stem and then made the leaf and rose petals by hand. You role the dough into tiny balls, shape them like a fingerprint and then smooth and bend the pointy ends into the stem. I start out with the outside petals which are larger and then work my way into the smallest center petals.

I baked the decorations for one hour at 200F and covered them with foil to avoid browning. The heart could’ve been baked a bit longer, but it air dried the rest of the way.

When it was cool, I painted them. For the heart and flower, I mixed white paint with a tiny drop of red food coloring. For the stem and leaf, I mixed the white paint with some green food coloring. When the paint was dry, I covered it with a coat of modpoj.

Rosebud was proud to give the birthday gifts and I was happy that we created something together. Have you made anything with salt dough? If so, what are your best creations?

6 Comments

Memories, Parenting, Personal Development

Do the Right Thing: A Reminder for Halloween or Any Time

November 3, 2018

Hallloween is approaching and many of us will be interacting with our neighbors, so I’m updating this story from last year to remind us to be compassionate and kind. We can’t assume everyting about everyone, nor can we know what goes on in everyone’s lives. However, we can all do our best to make Halloween night a positive experience for our children and if you don’t celebrate Halloween, that’s okay too. I know this seems like common sense, but apparently last year, one of my neighbors still needed that reminder.

On Halloween night, my brother and I took Rosebud trick-or-treating. My mom and my other brother stayed behind and handed out the candy. We have a ton of trick-or-treaters in the neighborhood, so I usually run out of candy quickly. The first year I lived here, I ran out of candy within minutes of turning on the light. The kids kept coming, so I went to the store to get another bag. Then last year, Halloween celebrations were rescheduled due to a large storm and power outages, but we barely got any trick-or-treaters on that day. Rosebud wasn’t a fan of last year’s costume and basically it was a bust.

This year, Rosebud loved her costume and understood the whole idea of trick-or-treating. Although she was shy, she had a great time.

By the time we got home, there was barely any candy left and my mom wanted to save me a few pieces. She kept going to turn out the light, but the kids kept coming. Rosebud got plenty of candy and my mom was going to start handing that out, but my brother and I agreed that it was hers and that it wasn’t right to be handing it out. I turned out the lights, but I still had some ghost lights hanging in the window. Meanwhile, my brothers went out the back way into the garage to put some things in there. A group of people walked by including this extremely rude woman.

My brothers could hear her from the garage saying something to the effect of, if they’re gonna shut the lights off, they need to not have decorations. She went on about how we needed to hand out candy. Her husband was trying to offer up some explanation as to why our light might be off. He said that maybe we had small children and it was their bed time. He said that maybe we were still out trick-or-treating and not home yet. She continued to voice her opinion very loudly as she continued down the street. The last thing my brother heard her say was that we need to do the right thing.

The ironic thing was that I felt good about how our night went until this happened. I had good interactions with my neighborhoods. Everyone was polite. The kids in the street were well behaved. People were laughing and having a good time. Of course, there always has to be one one rotten apple ruining it for the rest of us. Maybe I should have shut off my decorations along with the porch light, but I was taking photos of Rosebud. Plus, I was still celebrating Halloween. It was getting late and I thought the amount of trick-or-treaters would be slowing down anyway. Maybe I should’ve gotten three bags of candy instead of two. I could’ve spent $40 on candy instead of $20. There’s always a million things I could’ve done differently.

The question is, why? Do we wish we could’ve done things differently because we honestly regret them or is it because of the opinions of others? Would we even care about these insignificant choices that mean nothing in the long run if it weren’t for the judgement from those around us? I wouldn’t have cared, but then I had visions of this woman going on the neighborhood message board and complaining about how there were Halloween decorations, but no candy at my address. It’s a scary thought, but people go on there and complain about specific individuals.

I didn’t feel guilty. I had done the right thing. I had taken my daughter out trick-or-treating in our neighborhood. In turn, I gave candy to the neighborhood kids who came to my door. By the time I shut off my light, Rosebud was tired and the woman’s husband was right, I have a small child who needed to be put to bed. A couple days later, I talked to another neighbor who said she ran out of candy at around the same time. She said that most of the neighbors around her were running out of candy as well. Obviously, I wasn’t alone. If candy wasn’t outrageously expensive, I think most of us would’ve bought more, but that’s a topic for another post.

The next time you are in a situation where you are wondering why on earth someone would do something, give it a second thought before jumping to conclusions. Of course we all are going to make judgements and see things through our own lenses, but there might be a completely reasonable explanation for someone’s actions. My response to that woman would be that instead of telling me to do the right thing, you should take your own advice. Let’s get back to the basics. A little kindness and compassion goes a long way because what you didn’t know is that I already had done the right thing for our neighborhood and at that very moment when you were being rude and judgmental, I was doing the right thing for my daughter.

9 Comments

Gift Giving, Parenting, Shopping

10 Stocking Stuffers for Preschoolers

September 24, 2018

This is the third post in my stocking stuffer series. Click here if you are looking for stocking stuffers for infants and here if you are looking for stocking stuffers for toddlers. There are so many options for this age group. It’s hard to narrow it down.

1. Art supplies

To encourage some creativity, why not go with something different than the standard crayons?

You could get these metallic crayons by Crayola that have a shimmer in the wax.

Make a drawing you can smell with these washable scented markers.

Add a little sparkle to your projects with this glitter glue.

Your child can get some practice cutting with child safe scissors.

2. Books

There are endless choices of books for preschoolers. I usually include a Christmas book or two in Rosebud’s stocking, but you could go with a book from any theme.

3. Felt story board kit

To go along with story time, a felt board story kit is a great idea. On Etsy, you can find homemade versions and support someone’s small crafting business or find a felt story on Amazon. The kids love moving the pieces to follow along with the story or creating a story of their own.

4. Items from our childhoods

How about this retro style mini Etch a Sketch?

This toy is similar to the Light Bright, but this one is travel sized without the paper.

Who else remembers these water games?

5. Puzzles

Puzzles are a great quiet winding down activity. Preschoolers can handle puzzles that are a bit more challenging.

6. Night light

Many preschoolers are scared of the dark and what may or may not be under the bed. Why not get them a cool night light to make night time a little less scary.

7. Games

Preschoolers can start learning games with simple rules.

8. DVD’s

These are good for a quiet rainy day afternoon inside or a long road trip. These are some of Rosebud’s favorite shows and movies.

9. Accessories

You could get hair bows, hats or jewelry.

10. Magnetic letters and numbers

Preschoolers can get some practice with letter recognition and learning sight words.

These aren’t magnets, but they are great for bath time.

I hope this post has helped you fill your preschooler’s stocking. Stay tuned for more gift giving ideas as the holidays get closer. Until then, happy shopping!

9 Comments

Books, Education, Parenting

Five Fun Halloween Books for Toddlers

September 19, 2018

In the beginning of September, I brought out all Rosebud’s fall and Halloween themed books. She has been wanting to read them every night, so I thought I’d share the ones she really enjoys.

1. Five Little Pumpkins.

I’ve had this book since her first Halloween and she loves it. It’s a simple rhyme about pumpkins. They have finger plays and songs for it as well. She loves to read along and his it memorized now.

2. Who’s There on Halloween.

This is another cute Halloween book. It has hints for different Halloween related characters like the witch, ghost and spider. She has this book memorized too, but she hasn’t figured out that the point is to guess by the clues before you turn the page.

3. Boo! A Halloween Peek-a-boo.

This is a short, but silly Halloween book. A dog chases different Halloween characters in costume who say different things. Rosebud likes when I do silly voices with this book. I just introduced this one to her this year because it has paper pages, but she always asks to read this first.

4. Scratch and Sniff Halloween.

Who doesn’t like scratch and sniff books? They are fun until they lose their scent, but Rosebud has been having fun reading this one regardless. You can smell the minty witches brew, the spooky pumpkin or the sweet lollypop.

5. Big Pumpkin

I just ordered the paper copy of this one, but we like to listen to the audio version I found on Youtube because it’s sung to a song. If you’ve never read this book, the witch wants to make pumpkin pie, but the pumpkin is too big to take off the vine. The witch, ghost, vampire and others try to remove it, but it doesn’t work until a bat comes along with the solution. This book is good because it’s an actual story, but it is not too long that an older toddler won’t sit through it. Rosebud is growing out of the simple board books. Although she still loves them, I think she’s ready for longer stories.

What are your favorite Halloween books? Tell me in the comments.

5 Comments

Gift Giving, Parenting, Shopping, Uncategorized

10 Stocking Stuffers for Toddlers

September 17, 2018

This is the second entry in my stocking stuffer series. If you missed it, here’s my list of Stocking Stuffers for Babies.
Click here for Stocking Stuffers for Preschoolers.

Today, I’ll focus on toddlers. Between one and three years of age, children become interested in a wider variety of activities and generally they put things in their mouths much less, so they can use toys with smaller parts. Of course, all this depends on the ages and developmental levels of your children. Rosebud still puts things in her mouth and chews on things that she shouldn’t, so there are still things I won’t let her play with especially on her own. The theme for her stocking last year was creativity. I included a lot of things that she could use for art projects, play-dough etc. Sometimes picking a theme for the stocking can help narrow down what you want to buy, but for this list, I will include a variety of items.

1. Large crayons

Toddlers don’t quite have the control and grip for standard sized crayons, but the larger sizes are perfect. Using crayons is a great introduction to drawing. Those scribbles will eventually become lines and the lines will eventually become drawings. Let them explore and imagine and before you know it, they’ll be drawing their own little world.

Don’t forget a mini notebook or drawing pad.

If you’re more adventurous like I was, you can try washable markers. Rosebud loves both crayons and markers and these particular markers by Crayola have washed off everything she’s drawn on.

Don’t forget to pick up a Magic Eraser to save your stuff and your sanity. Keep out of reach of children though because they are toxic, but they do an amazing job getting rid of scribbles on the furniture or walls.

2. Paints
To continue with the creativity theme, how about these water color paints? They aren’t as messy as finger paint, but you might choose to go that rout. Rosebud loves water colors. Now if I could only get her to remember to dip in the water first and then the paint. Not the other way around. You might want to include some extra brushes.

3. Play-dough

Play-dough is another great stocking stuffer. You can either make your own or get store bought. I’d suggest using homemade play-dough because it lasts longer, you know exactly what’s in it, you get a lot more than what’s in the little store bought containers and it feels smoother and easier to work with. Also, you can personalize it how you like. You can add scents, glitter, food coloring, textured items etc.

You can use tools specifically for play-dough, cookie cutters or items laying around the house.

4. Dramatic play

How about something for dramatic play? Maybe a small baby doll, stuffed animal or small set of toys.

This small tea set is for the bath, but it is small enough to include in a stocking. Rosebud loves this tea set.

This mini feeding set with bottles is another good choice.

5. Building

You could buy small cars, a mini block set or toy people to encourage building and pretend play. Another tip is to take things out of the boxes so they fit into the stocking.

6. Toothbrush

Does your child like a specific character they see on TV? They make lots of toothbrushes with characters on them. Some have lights, music and come in cool colors. Find a toothbrush that they will love and include it in their stocking. It’s practical, but it will get used.

7. Water bottle

It’s important to stay hydrated, so why not include a cool new water bottle. There are water bottles in every color, character and type imaginable.

8. Books
Books are amazing. They can introduce children to new concepts, reinforce things you’ve taught them or getting lost in a great story. I always include a book or two in the stocking.

9. Warm and cozy

Finally, why not include something warm for the winter? Rosebud loves slippers and there are so many options to choose from. Again, if your child has a favorite character you could buy something like this.

Maybe you want to buy something more cute and or fashionable like these.

Mittens or fuzzy socks come in handy during the winter as well.

10. Puzzles

Simple puzzles also make great stocking stuffers. They help toddlers use their fine motor and problem solving skills. I started by giving Rosebud puzzles with ten pieces or less.

If you are on a tight budget And are looking for thrifty and educational stocking stuffers for toddlers, check out this post from Organizing Chaos 101.
I hope you have gotten plenty of inspiration to fill your toddler’s stocking. Don’t forget to check out my other stocking stuffer suggestions. Happy shopping!

11 Comments