Baby’s first birthday is such a milestone… for the baby and for the parents! It’s a celebration of making it through what can be a very tough 12 months. Whether you are looking for a first birthday gift or a gift for a child around that age, newborn baby toys are a good go to for a number of reasons.

Development needs

In that first year of baby’s life, they go through so many developmental milestones. They transform from a tiny person who relies on you for absolutely everything, to a walking, talking (maybe), independent person.

But just because they have passed through so many milestones, doesn’t mean their development stops. They still have so much to learn, discover and explore! 

Many newborn baby toys support development beyond the newborn stage. They offer babies and toddlers the opportunity to grow their skills and refine them as they grow. And often you will find that a one-year-old’s favourite toys will still be toys they reach for when they are four or five because they are familiar and fun!

The Inspiral Rainstick Ball Toy is a great example of a developmental toy perfect for a first birthday gift. It is colourful, stimulating and engaging… and it can even double as a (not too noisy) musical instrument.

Similarly, the Inspiral Swirling Ball Toy offers the opportunity to enhance fine motor skills in an engaging and stimulating way. 

Love of reading

Certainly by the age of one many children have developed a love of reading… but they have also likely developed a curious interest in tearing pages from books if left unsupervised! It’s tricky to balance the need to feed their love of books and reading - it is so good for them after all - with a desire to keep your books in tact.

A good solution that makes a lovely first birthday gift is their own soft book. Something they can engage with that is bright and colourful… but also something that isn’t so easily damaged by mischievous little fingers.

The Double Sided First Baby Book will do the trick on both counts. It is a fold out book that is soft, bright and engaging. One side features high contrast black, red and white images that stimulate baby’s sight while the other has brighter images of an activity scene. It’s the perfect book to throw in your bag while you head out and about with baby that they will love to “read” time and time again.

Teething nightmares

By the age of one, baby should have a number of teeth, but over the next 12 months there are more to come… and with them the pain of teething.

It’s likely that some of the newborn baby toys with in-built teethers have been well and truly loved… so replacing them with a new option - especially if it has a built in teether - is going to be a hit!

Izzy Jitter and Christopher Jitter are both newborn baby toys with teether attachments. They both have a clip so you can attach them to a bag or stroller when out and about so they don’t get lost and your child can hug the toys while chomping down on the teether to relieve those sore gums!

Out and about

The thing is, one-year-olds still spend a lot of time in the pram while out and about. Even though they may now be walking and wanting to practice those skills as much as possible… they only have limited energy so need to sit in the pram. 

The challenge as they get older is to keep them occupied for longer in the pram so you can keep moving and get things done!

A stroller arch or toys that attach to the pram are perfect for this. An option like the Tiny Princess Tales Sunny Stroll Stroller Arch has six built-in activities designed to engage and stimulate your baby, keeping them occupied and in the pram for longer! While a younger baby may just look at the toys and watch them spinning, a one-year-old can really engage with the toys and enjoy watching them dance and spin.

Sleep aid

As any parent would know, sleep is not something you can take for granted and it can start to go haywire with regressions and the like. And, sadly, reaching the first birthday milestone is not some magic age where sleep suddenly clicks into place. 

Just like younger babies respond to soothing nights and lights, older babies in the 1+ age group can also find comfort in this. The Meadow Days Sound N Sleep Baby Projector Soother is a lovely gift idea for this age. It has a night light for helping with fear of the dark, 5 built-in white noise sounds and 17 lullabies but also an MP3 player so you can load in baby’s favourite music… or even an audio book!

Play time

Even for a one-year-old, don’t discount the benefit of a play mat. While they are no longer doing tummy time, or you don’t need the play mat to lay them on to give your arms and back a break, a play mat at this age can have a different purpose.

If you have a small home, a play mat can help define the play area. When you are packing up at night, all of the toys can sit on the play mat. And during the day, the play mat is a soft surface for baby to sit on, particularly if you have hard floors in your home. 

The Meadow Days Super Mat is a brilliant option for older babies due to its size. The mat is 100 cm x 74cm with a cushion of 2cm. Plus it’s super cute to boot!

At Mother’s Choice we are all about having the best range of fun newborn baby toys that kids - and parents - love! Our range is focused on engaging baby and stimulating their senses to aid in their development. Really, it’s about celebrating the magic of the early years and the important role baby toys play!