Parker's 2015 Christmas List - Gifts for a 2 Year Old Boy

Below is Parker's 2015 wish list (with helpful links)! These are the items he would be most excited to find underneath the Christmas tree. The list has three major themes.

-Animals/bugs/nature
-Pretend play
-Building/construction

Other things he is interested in: octopus, crabs, spiders, books, sperm whales, going to the zoo, going to the park and boba.

1. Bug City. This is the one thing Parker is most excited about. He loves bugs! Hopefully this thing is escape-proof because Tuan does not like bugs. If you get this, you are required to help catch the bugs. Thanksssss.

2. Wild Kratts Power Suit. PURCHASED. Parker loves pretend play and he has been pretending to be the Kratt brothers from the Wild Kratts show. The idea of having creature powers is blowing his mind right now. If you haven't watched the show, you should check it out. I've learned so much about different animals. Yay PBS!

3. Dinotrux. Dinotrux is a Netflix cartoon about dinosaurs that are also construction trucks. It's all about working together to build things to improve their community. Parker is really into it right now. His favorite characters are Rivet (below) and Garby because he poops rocks. Duh.

4. Art supplies or the Artful Parent book. We love working on art projects!

5. Duplo Blocks. Thanks to grandma we have a ton of Legos in house but I have noticed that Parker still enjoys playing with the Duplo blocks more than regular Legos (they're easier to manage with his little hands). I think he would be most interested in the superhero sets.

6. Imaginext. Imaginext toys are awesome. They're high quality and have a lot of moving parts.. Parker flipped out when he saw this transforming batman robot thing at Target. Mama would be happy with any Imaginext toys.

7. Magformers. They're colorful, magnetic and allow you to build. Of course he likes this.

8. Gift cards to the San Diego Zoo for KinderTots classes.

9. Nickels for trips to Nickel City!

10. Planes, trains and automobiles. Parker's fascination with all vehicles continues! Construction trucks and airplanes are high on the list of favorites.

I hope the list was helpful! Of course the gift of your time would be the greatest gift of all. So maybe buy a toy and stay and play at our house. I promise I'll feed you. Happy shopping!

Lego Travel Box Tutorial

Forgive me for this super late post. In preparation for our Cabo trip, I made portable LEGO kits for Parker and Elijah so they would have something fun to play with on the plane. This is an easy project and you can find a full tutorial over on the Mama. Papa. Bubba. blog. Jen's instructions are easy to follow so I'll just share my buy list with you. 

Materials

Metal lunchbox (I found these in the dollar section at target)

LEGO building plate

LEGO Juniors Easy to Build Pirate Treasure Hunt

Mounting tape

Scissors

Instructions

Mama. Papa.Bubba.

These kits were a big hit with the boys on the plane and throughout the trip. I'm so glad I made them!

Melissa and Doug Pounding Bench

I've been eyeing this Melissa and Doug Pounding Bench for a while and finally snatched it up over the weekend at ROSS for $11. I'm a big fan of Melissa and Doug toys and I knew Parker would love this one because 1. It's very colorful 2. He gets to push/hit things. I have no doubt that this toy can taking a, literal, beating and will last us a while. Parker is still working on his hammering skills and finds it easier to just push the pegs with his hands. The Melissa and Doug Pounding Bench is also available on Amazon for $16. 

Kidsonroof - Toys that Stimulate Creativity and Imagination

Let me start and end with this simple statement: I want everything on this website. There is really not much else for me to say. Everything that Kidsonroof offers has been designed to stimulate creativity, imagination and hands-on play without the need for batteries. As much as I love technology, sometimes you need some "old fashion" toys that don't need to be charged or plugged in. Their offerings are too advanced for Parker but I could totally see my nephews and nieces having a wonderful time building, decorating and playing with any of the items from Kidsonroof. Like I said before: I want everything on this website.

About the company:
Back to the source of life! Kidsonroof wishes to re-connect modern life with nature, rediscovering basic values. Kidsonroof offers an ecological approach to the act of playing. Stimulating creativity and imagination lies at the heart of Kidsonroofs products.

Kidsonroof was established in 2005 by Romy Boesveldt (NL 68) and Ilya Yashkin (RUS 67). Together with their 3 kids and their little friends they manage a permanent testlab where new ideas keep coming up. A few weeks per year they go back to an oldfashioned simplicity when spending time in their little shed in the southern French mountains without electricity or running water.

Ilya has been trained as an architural designer (Marchi in Moscow and Rietveld Academy in Amsterdam. His designs are ingeniously three dimensional and very associative. Romy takes care of the conceptual development and styling.

Kidsonroof
http://www.kidsonroof.com/new/index.php

Kidsonroof by marychu on polyvore.com