Hi friends! I can’t believe the words are coming out of my mouth but Willow is turning three this month. Three!
This girl impresses me every single day with her spirit, humor, and kindness. I can’t believe I have a three-year-old who converses with me all day long – and she can be real sassy, too. It’s endless entertainment for me over here.
This girl loves all things outdoors – she’s in her element when she is digging holes, playing in the dirt, watering flowers… and she loves role-playing, whether that is in her kitchen or pretending to take pictures around the house or being a pirate for the afternoon. Oh, and she is mothering as hell – haha! She’s going to be that big sister who mothers their little sis for sure. She is always trying to show Fiona how to do things or carrying around her own baby doll with a blanket and bottle in hand.
Anyways, I could drone on and on about my kid because you know, it’s my kid. LOL But I just wanted to share a little piece of her personality here. She’s just the coolest little human and I am honored to be her mama.
I thought I would share some of the birthday gifts we got for her this year in case any of you are looking for ideas for your toddlers in the same age-range. This isn’t to say you need to buy this many gifts or anything like that, but this is just how we roll. We don’t buy a whole lot outside of holidays so I can go a bit overboard when the time comes (oops). I focused on a lot of open-ended toys (you know how much we love those) and catered to some of her interests. As she gets older, it is much easier to tell what she really is into.
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Play Food
Her kitchen is her favorite thing in the world right now and she is always whipping something up. I’ll continue to add to her play food collection until she isn’t into it anymore. For her birthday, she is getting cinnamon buns from IKEA and this basket of bread/pastries. Carbs for the win.
Dino Egg & Figures
She got a dino egg in her Easter basket earlier this year and thought it was the greatest thing since sliced bread. She still carries around the dino and calls it her “baby” so we grabbed another one plus a few new figures from the Dollar Tree. Simple joys.
Books
New books for her library! A must always. She’ll be getting: Just So Willow, Fletcher and the Falling Leaves, Sweep, and Tidy
Notebooks
She loves to use my notebook and pen to “write grocery lists for dada” so I figured it was time for her own – grabbed two from Target Dollar Spot (rainbow & The Child!)
Tool Kit
She plays “fix it” a lot around the house with blocks or whatever she can find that resembles a hammer and nail, lol. She also goes on and on about having a screwdriver. I am pretty sure this fascination came from Daniel Tiger’s mom. Anyways, this tool kit seems like a good starting place.
Backpack
This seems random but Willow has been so into the idea of a backpack for a while now. She talks about going to school and packing her backpack like crazy… she will try to turn my bags into backpacks. So it was time to get her own and I am so excited to see her face because this is such a small thing that is going to bring her a lot of joy. This one was on sale for $13 so we grabbed it.
Art Supplies
I wanted to stock up on some fresh art supplies because it will be winter before we know it and I’ll need indoor activities for her and sis. I grabbed her some fresh Play-Doh, paint, and watercolors. I actually put all the art supplies in her backpack along with the notebooks, which I know she is going to get a kick out of.
Puzzles
She is so into puzzles lately and has been working on a floor puzzle that we have so I found these cute animal puzzles for a new challenge once she masters that one.
Daniel Tiger Trolley & Friends
This is something she has been wanting. She has a wooden bus that she calls “trolley” so I found this actual trolley on eBay and grabbed some figures to go with it. She loves this show so much. I am excited to see her face for this one.
Clothes
Seems boring but I have to say that she is at an age where she is still very jazzed by new clothes. She needed this stuff for fall anyway, so I lumped it in (more to unwrap!) She has been so into Star Wars lately (takes after her parents) so I bought her a shirt and some baby Yoda pajamas. There’s also a fall outfit from Old Navy, warm knee socks, and some panda shoes from Target because panda bears seem to be her favorite animal! Which brings me to…
Grow a Panda
This is the most random thing I found while out but I had to get it. It’s one of those stick it in the water and watch it grow animals. But it is a panda and I already know this is going to be the biggest hit.
Nylon Knives
Okay don’t judge. I know knives sounds bad but they are just the nylon ones. Every single time I ask her what she wants for her birthday? KNIVES. “Knives to cut vegetables.” She loves to watch me cook and is always trying to get involved (which can be messy but I let her a lot of the time). The one thing she is fascinated by is when I chop vegetables. So I decided it is time for her own set of kids’ knives. I can’t wait to see the look on her face.
Seems like a lot but honestly… with no big birthday celebration this year and a lot of downtime indoors coming up, I really wanted to focus on things that I know will keep her busy and her creativity and imagination soaring.
If you have a little one in the same age-range, I hope that this helped with some ideas. x
