Latest / Whys & Finds / Christmas Gift for a Toddler Who Has Everything
Transcript
- Ben: The toy shelf is full. The toy box is full. And someone just asked you what this toddler wants for Christmas. The honest answer is nothing, because they already have everything. So what do you give? Ellie: Welcome to Whys & Finds. I'm Ellie. Ben: And I'm Ben. Ellie: Today: what do you get a toddler who already has everything for Christmas? Ellie: Let's keep it simple: look at the child, not at the toy box. Pick something tied to what they love, something they can use on their own, and something with a job in their everyday life. A toddler with a full shelf can still have very little that's only theirs and goes everywhere with them. Ben: "Look at the child." That sounds nice. What does it mean on a shopping list? Ellie: Three questions. What do they love? What can they do by themselves right now? And what do they do every day? Ben: Where do those come from? You, or somebody official? Ellie: The first two come from a public source. The CPSC, the U.S. product safety agency, puts out holiday tips on buying gifts. One line there says to "choose toys that match each child's interests and abilities." Ben: Interests and abilities. Each child. Ellie: Each child. Not any child. This child. The third question, what they do every day, is mine. It's how I'd tell a gift that gets used from one that sits on the shelf. Ben: Okay, start with interests. With a toddler that's easy, right? Dinosaurs. Done. Ellie: Often, yes. A favorite animal is the easiest way in. Dinosaurs, unicorns, dogs. Ben: But a toddler who has everything already has a dinosaur. Probably ten of them. Ellie: Probably. That's the catch with a full shelf. One more of the same thing is just one more. Ben: So the favorite animal on its own isn't enough. Ellie: Not on its own. And there's a gift I'd steer around here: the generic gift. The cute thing that would suit any child. It looks lovely in the box. But it doesn't match anything this child loves or does, so it can end up at the back of the closet. Ben: How many of us have given that gift? I'd guess a lot. Ellie: It's an easy one to give. That's why it's worth naming. Ben: Now abilities. What does a toddler's "ability" have to do with a present? Ellie: It's the part that's easy to miss. A gift a child can't use without a grown-up waits for a grown-up. A gift they can open, carry and put back on their own doesn't have to wait. Ben: Give me an example. Ellie: A zipper small hands can open. A strap they can get over their own shoulder. A toy they can take out and put back without help. Ben: Is that from the CPSC too? Ellie: No. The CPSC says "abilities" and stops there. The examples are mine. Ben: Good. I'd rather know which part is theirs and which part is yours. Ben: Can I push back on one thing, though? You started with the favorite animal. For a toddler who has everything, I'd start somewhere else. Ellie: Where? Ben: With the day. The favorite animal is the one thing they already have plenty of. What's often missing is a use. So first ask what this child does every day, and what they still can't do with their own things. Then put their animal on it. Ellie: That's fair. For this child, the order matters. The everyday job first, the animal second. I had it the other way round. Ben: So I win this one? Ellie: You win this one. Ben: Okay, so the day. Where do I even look? Ellie: At an ordinary day. Where do they go? Daycare, the park, grandma's house, the car. What comes along? A snack, a cup, a treasure picked up on a walk. Ben: And who carries all that now? Ellie: Often a grown-up. In a grown-up's bag. Ben: So the toddler with everything at home can have nothing of their own when they walk out the door. Ellie: That can be the gap. Not one more toy. A thing of their own that goes out the door with them. Ben: And if I don't see that day? Say I'm a grandparent three states away. Ellie: Then ask the parents one question: "What does she carry, and who carries it?" The answer tells you a lot. Ben: Okay, put it together for me. Goes to daycare and the park every day. Wants to carry her own snack. Loves dinosaurs. Ellie: Then I'd look at a small backpack with her animal on it. One practical option: Naturally KIDS makes small backpacks with a removable plush animal on the front. She can take it out for a hug and put it back. Padded, adjustable straps and an easy zipper small hands open on their own. Room for a snack and a treasure. Ben: Which animals? Ellie: A T-Rex and a triceratops, a unicorn, and a few more. Ben: So it's a toy and a bag. Ellie: Two gifts in one box: a backpack and a plush friend. It arrives gift-ready in a kraft box. Ben: Good, if you're mailing it. So the Naturally KIDS backpack is one animal she loves and one job she does every day. That's not just one more thing for the shelf. Ellie: That's the idea. It has a place to go every morning. Ben: One more worry. I can't see it in person before I send it. How do I know other people were happy with it? Ellie: On Amazon, the brand has more than 27,000 ratings, with a 4.8 average. Ben: Okay. That's a lot of people. Ellie: Now, a few different situations. If the family has asked for no more things at all, give a day out. A trip to see the animal they love, at a farm or a zoo. Ben: An outing. Nothing to store. Ellie: Right. If the child already has a backpack they love, look at what goes in it. Something for the job they do with it, like a cup they can carry or a picture book about their favorite animal. Ben: And if they've moved on from dinosaurs to something else? Ellie: Then follow the new favorite. The same small backpack comes with a dog, a giraffe or a teddy bear. Ben: And a kid who already carries a lot? Lunch, a change of clothes, a water bottle? Ellie: Then there's a bigger size, with side and inner pockets and a bottle holder. Ben: So the gift follows the child, whatever they're into this month. Ellie: That's it. Ben: Okay, let me see if I've got it. One: look at the child, not at the toy box. Two: the CPSC says to choose toys that match each child's interests and abilities. Three: for abilities, look for something they can open, carry and put back on their own. Four: start with what they do every day, then put their favorite animal on it. That one's mine. And five: the cute gift that would suit any child is the one that can end up in the closet. Ellie: You've got it. Ellie: That's it for today. A reminder: the voices in this episode are AI-generated. Whys & Finds is made by Naturally KIDS. Ellie: That's today's why. See you at the next find.