<p>I’m going to a party next week for a boy and a girl, great kids, and am stymied. They have many relatives so will be getting lots of “things”. Their parents are pretty strict with them…there’s no question of who the bosses are in that family. My budget would be about $15 a piece. I was thinking perhaps books but need suggestions. TIA!</p>
<p>If you want to do something different from books, Lego Duplos were loved by all of mine. It is creative, colorful and just fun. Plus there is really no such thing as a problem with a duplicate gift. The more the better. </p>
<p>[Toys"R"Us/Babies"R"Us[/url</a>]</p>
<p>[url=<a href=“http://www.amazon.com/s/?ie=UTF8&keywords=lego+duplo&tag=googhydr-20&index=toys-and-games&hvadid=3172986029&ref=pd_sl_43yftxustm_b]Amazon.com:”>http://www.amazon.com/s/?ie=UTF8&keywords=lego+duplo&tag=googhydr-20&index=toys-and-games&hvadid=3172986029&ref=pd_sl_43yftxustm_b]Amazon.com:</a> lego duplo: Toys & Games](<a href=“Toysrus.com, The Official Toys”R”Us Site - Toys, Games, & More”>Toysrus.com, The Official Toys”R”Us Site - Toys, Games, & More)</p>
<p>If you are looking for books,</p>
<p>My daughter really loved her disk-type swing that hung from a tree. After we put one up, three other neighbors also purchased one. I think it was Little Tikes, but it was years ago.</p>
<p>Along the same lines as “you can’t have too many of” I would suggest craft sets. They have some great crayola or play dough sets at Costco and Sam’s that you don’t find in regular stores.</p>
<p>Agree with suggestions so far of Duplo blocks, putting together some art supplies like play dough and cookie cutters / markers / watercolors / sidewalk chalk, or books. </p>
<p>Books might be classics like Goodnight Moon, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, The Napping House, Where the Wild Things Are, If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, Caps for Sale, Dr. Seuss books, etc. </p>
<p>Other ideas…</p>
<p>Play food.
Play doctor kit.
Play tool kit.
Dress up stuff.
Toy truck.
Wooden or easier puzzles
Hot Wheels mini cars
Barbie Doll
tea party set
plastic animal figurines (or dinosaur set)
Candyland board game
teddy bears</p>
<p>My guess is that they’re both 3. Why don’t you aim for two gifts that they both would enjoy? Avoids fights and looks better than getting two of the same thing. Legos is a fantastic idea, as they’re gender neutral (girls can and SHOULD play with Legos!) and they’re great toys to build creativity and funtime. I second the above suggestion of either a play food set, doctor/occupation set, or some type of game.<br>
I don’t suggest books simply because you have no idea what their reading skills are and if you buy something too mature, it’ll probably sit on a shelf and never get touched. The kids are 3, they deserve to get a toy :)</p>
<p>In terms of books for three year olds, their reading skills are irrelevant. They should have picture books that adults read TO them.</p>
<p>True, but all I read as a kid was Bernstein Bears and Dr Suess until I was about 4-5. Some people get their kids reading religious stuff, others want to read with them more advanced stuff, etc etc. Books are just too tricky, I think getting a toy that’s stimulating is just as good as a book, if not better.</p>
<p>I’m all for toys. </p>
<p>In terms of books, it is not all that tricky. The picture books I mentioned should be in every child’s library and their parents should be reading such books to them every night. </p>
<p>~signed a parent who did this every night for years with our kids even after they could read themselves and also am a former preschool and elem school teacher and have a degree in child development</p>
<p>A subscription to “Ladybug Magazine”</p>
<p>I gave this as a gift to my nephew when he was three - and he and his parents enjoyed it over the course of the year. “Sesame Street Magazine” is another one that children 3-4 years like - though that one has cut and color activities that might be difficult to share - more for an “only” gift, I guess.</p>
<p>I highly, highly recommend Ladybug.</p>
<p>[Children’s</a> magazines-buy LADYBUG for stories, preschool activities-discount young children’s magazine subscriptions](<a href=“Cricket Media”>Cricket Media)</p>
<p>You can pick one up at a bookstore, if you feel the need. I just printed the gift card and took it with me to the party. I heard several times throughout the course of the year how much the magazine - and the anticipation of the magazine’s arrival - was enjoyed.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Me too! :)</p>
<p>I am a preschool teacher of three years olds.
They love…</p>
<p>Crafts of just about any kind but it has to be simple enough that they can do it themselves. It’s no fun if it’s so complicated that they end up watching while Mom does the craft.</p>
<p>Play Dough…take it from a pro…go online and find a recipe for homemade play dough.
The homemade kind is infinitely better than the store bought stuff. It’s much more pliable for little hands and stays soft way longer. Use food coloring to make several different colors and store in zip lock bags or those little gladware containers…buy some fun shape cutters and plastic knives for cutting.</p>
<p>We have a magnet set in our classroom that the kids are crazy about. </p>
<p>sidewalk chalk, wands with bubble soap, dry erase boards and markers.</p>
<p>kids music cd’s…they love to sing and dance…look for “the Wiggles” or “Go Fish” or "the Imagination Movers. There are lots of great kid’s CD’s on Itunes. </p>
<p>Girls love dress up clothes. Boys love cars/trucks especially if they make a noise.</p>
<p>I also prefer homemade play doh and that’s what we used. </p>
<p>I was going to suggest music too (great idea) except I am out of the loop of what’s popular TODAY and just know the music my kids had back in the day (they were very into their tapes!!)</p>
<p>The bubble soap with various large wands for outdoor play this summer is a great one too.</p>
<p>I also prefer homemade playdough for my own kids. But to give as a gift, those sets with cutters and utensils are the best. </p>
<p>Books are always my favorite, but how do you know what books they already have. Unlike more playgough or crayons, you cannot use two of the same book. Unless you’re giving a gift to a family that doesn’t have many books.</p>
<p>I like to give books or puzzles. Have also given Duplo. All 3 are gifts that have a long life. I like to buy books that my kids loved. For $15 you could buy each of them a hardcovered picture book with nice illustrations. At 3 the book can be read to them, they can page through the book and make up their own version of the words, as they get older they can read it to themselves.
If you sew you can make up a capes for both the boy and girl. Or a cape for the boy and a fairy tale type of skirt for the girl.
One gift my son loved was a tool belt with fake tools. I am not sure it if was Little Tykes or another brand. We went to Sears and bought a red real plastic tool box and put the kids tools inside. He loved that gift.</p>
<p>an iPhone!!</p>
<p>If the parents CC junkies, then you can’t go wrong with Kalpan’s SAT prep for toddlers.</p>
<p>It kind of reminds me of the gifts DW & I would buy our kids when they were young. One Christmas, two of ours didn’t give a second glance to the “real” toys we bought them - rather, one took a great liking to an AOL junk mail CD, and the other thought that an old AAA map was the coolest thing. They also spent a lot of time playing with different colored empty prescription bottles and pouring water from one to another. So what I’m saying is that if you’re looking at toys, buy several cheap ones than one expensive one.</p>
<p>Look for a set (or two) of good old fashioned wooden blocks. They can build to their hearts content - even along side their legos!</p>
<p>Another great idea if you think they have the room for them. Remember these???</p>
<p>[Amazon.com:</a> Melissa & Doug Deluxe Jumbo Cardboard Blocks: Toys & Games](<a href=“http://www.amazon.com/Melissa-Doug-Deluxe-Cardboard-Blocks/dp/B000A12YBW]Amazon.com:”>http://www.amazon.com/Melissa-Doug-Deluxe-Cardboard-Blocks/dp/B000A12YBW)</p>
<p>They can build forts, building to knock down, houses -ENDLESS ideas!!!</p>
<p>Dress up clothes/accessories were always important for my girls. </p>
<p>Another book that has been hit with the children I’ve worked with is Cookie’s Week by Cindy Ward and illustrated by Tomie dePaola.</p>
<p>I hate to think about how much money I’ve spent on toys for my little one who is 6, and she’d be perfectly happy with a twenty-five cent ball from the Old Navy machine, a stick, a rock or a pinecone. Keep it simple! She is so creative with simple objects. Blocks are also another hit with her.</p>
<p>For summer, outdoor water toys are fun.</p>
<p>If you’re invited next year when they’re four, I highly recommend the game Hiss.</p>
<p>Snail’s Pace Race game by Ravensburger</p>
<p>My kids *loved *those cardboard blocks. I think they are a great idea. I like Suzi’s booklist and I also like Ladybug magazine. My older son was obsessed by wooden trains at that age, and my younger son was heavily into Playmobile. (However neither of those are particularly cheap.) I agree you can’t have too little Duplo. At three they can just start playing simple games - my kids loved [Snail’s</a> Pace Race - Ravensburger Global](<a href=“Ravensburger Shop - Puzzles, Games and Creative Toys”>Ravensburger Shop - Puzzles, Games and Creative Toys).</p>
<p>Wow crossposted that last with MominVa! GMTA</p>