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Too young for a play kitchen for Christmas?

post #1 of 23
10/20/10 at 11:48am
Thread Starter 
My DD will be 18 mo at Christmas and I was wondering if you thought she was too young for a homemade play kitchen for Christmas. In the last month she has really started to imitate me more and more and I thought that since I spend a lot of time cooking and canning she might enjoy having her own little space too (and perhaps it might buy me some more time when she isn't pushing me away from the stove or counter if I am perfectly honest) What do you think?
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post #2 of 23
10/20/10 at 11:56am
Tough call. I gave my DD her play kitchen at age 2. It was too young in retrospect. I think it can't hurt, but I also wish I had waited until maybe age 3 so that the big reveal on Christmas morning was more exciting. It gets tons of play now, but you know how it is when a toy is out for a while and its lost its "newness."

My son is currently 18 months. He likes playing with the play food, but not in any sort of real life way. If anything, he likes to line them up and make a train to push around

We got DD one of those awesome wooden treehouse doll house things when she was too young also. We ended up putting it in the attic and will pull it down again fairly soon as I can see her really getting into it now.

I have a tendency to get "older" toys than appropriate and am learning its best to wait until it can really be appreciated.

But play kitchens ROCK.
I just saw this one on Etsy and am drooling over it.
http://www.etsy.com/listing/59156060...s%5B1%5D=title

XOXO
B
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post #3 of 23
10/20/10 at 11:58am
My 21 month old has been playing with her toy kitchen for a couple months and loves it! It doesn't have the complexity that toy kitchen play has with a 2 or 3 year old, but she still has a lot of fun stirring the food and feeding it to me. I highly recommend it at this age!
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post #4 of 23
10/20/10 at 1:16pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by BethSLP View Post

But play kitchens ROCK.
I just saw this one on Etsy and am drooling over it.
http://www.etsy.com/listing/59156060...s%5B1%5D=title

XOXO
B
Wow. I'd conisder getting that for ME!
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post #5 of 23
10/20/10 at 1:22pm
I got my son his play kitchen for his first birthday and its his favorite toy...
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post #6 of 23
10/20/10 at 2:17pm
My DD got one for Christmas at 18 months and didn't really know what to do with it. My DS is 19 months now, and definitely plays with it all the time. So I think it totally depends on the kid.

But she'll definitely grow into it, so I say to go for it
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post #7 of 23
10/20/10 at 2:40pm
i bought dd1 the play kitchen when she was 2.5. She wouldve liked one younger, but I couldnt afford a quality one until then.

dd2 played with the kitchen as soon as she could pull to a stand and ds (10mo.) currently plays with it with his sisters. Granted, he is mostly just putting play food in and pulling it out again and again....

our play kitchen is the one thing that gets played with almost every single day without fail... by all three kids. I dont think 18mo is too young.
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post #8 of 23
10/20/10 at 6:01pm
Ds got a play kitchen from my mom when he was around 18months, I think. It came out of the box and he immediately started cooking! he's 3yo and still uses it a lot (although he's going through an art only phase) and it is one of the more popular items at playdates.
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post #9 of 23
10/20/10 at 11:25pm
i think that is the perfect age!
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post #10 of 23
10/20/10 at 11:37pm
Go for it!
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post #11 of 23
10/20/10 at 11:41pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by BethSLP View Post
Tough call. I gave my DD her play kitchen at age 2. It was too young in retrospect. I think it can't hurt, but I also wish I had waited until maybe age 3 so that the big reveal on Christmas morning was more exciting. It gets tons of play now, but you know how it is when a toy is out for a while and its lost its "newness."

My son is currently 18 months. He likes playing with the play food, but not in any sort of real life way. If anything, he likes to line them up and make a train to push around

We got DD one of those awesome wooden treehouse doll house things when she was too young also. We ended up putting it in the attic and will pull it down again fairly soon as I can see her really getting into it now.

I have a tendency to get "older" toys than appropriate and am learning its best to wait until it can really be appreciated.

But play kitchens ROCK.
I just saw this one on Etsy and am drooling over it.
http://www.etsy.com/listing/59156060...s%5B1%5D=title

XOXO
B
That's not a kitchen, it's a work of art!

But yes, I agree, it's a bit young for a kitchen.
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post #12 of 23
10/21/10 at 12:04am
I set dd up with a play kitchen because I gave her some pots and pans to bang on and came back to find her stirring "soup!" Can't remember or figure out when that was, but it was definitely after 1 and well before 2.

At that time, her one month younger friend had a play kitchen and they had a great time with it.

I say, get it now, when/if she starts to lose interest in it, tuck it away somewhere--until the next gift giving day. Then you'll either get the joy of your child having something they love for a longer time, or you'll get the joy of a kid who really "gets" it getting a "suddenly new and awesome again" present.

Besides, you can always start with a super simple kitchen and get the "OH WOW!" factor by improving it over time. Bring it out to your tree, drape a sheet over it, whisk the sheet away to reveal a new set of curtains or what have you.
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post #13 of 23
10/21/10 at 12:15am
DD got her play kitchen at 11.5 months. It was great. DS was playing with it by the time he could crawl over. They might not use it exactly the same way as an older child (though DD basically did as soon as she got it) but they always enjoyed it!
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post #14 of 23
10/21/10 at 1:20pm
ITA, it depends upon the child. It certainly couldn't hurt.

Ds got his when he was 2 and played with it immediately. Dd played with it as soon as she could pull herself up by it.

I would say if your Dd has a birthday within the next 6 months if you're concerned, you could wait until then.
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post #15 of 23
10/21/10 at 1:28pm
depends on the kid. DD got hers at 26 months and i regret not getting it much earlier. She would have loved playing with at 18 months. It is one of those great investment toys imo.
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post #16 of 23
10/21/10 at 1:31pm
We gave DS1 and DD1 a play kitchen when they were 2.5yo and 1yo, respectively. They both LOVED playing w/ it, and DD1 would stir the pots and serve the knit playfood all the time.

DS2 started showing real interest in the play kitchen at around 1.5yo and DD2 well before that age. I think she was roughly 1yo when she started playing at the kitchen for longer periods of time.

I say go for it. Over the years, we've added more on to our kitchen setup as far as accessories and whatnot that are more age appropriate for my now 6.5yo, 5yo, 3yo, and not quite 2yo. I foresee MANY more years of LOTS of play at it, too.
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post #17 of 23
10/21/10 at 1:40pm
My little one is getting her play kitchen for Christmas and she will be 21 months. I do think she would have started using one a bit last month too. She probably wouldn't have done TOO much... maybe more banging on things and tossing toy food around, but she would have liked it and I could tell her to get out from under me while I cook because she'd have a place to cook too... even if she didn't do anything remotely cooking like haha.
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post #18 of 23
10/21/10 at 9:10pm
I got DD1 a cheap, pink, plastic toy kitchen from a consignment store for $10 right before her 2nd birthday. I was hesitant to invest a lot if money into a play kitchen without knowing if she would play with it.

She loved it & played with it quite a bit. Now we're into the Waldorf Thing, she's going to a Waldorf kindergarten, and I now have DD2... So, the pink plastic kitchen has found a new home & I'm ready to invest in something more substantial & beautiful.
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post #19 of 23
10/22/10 at 12:22am
Thread Starter 
Okay so it sounds like play kitchen is most likely a good idea or will be in the near future. Budgetwise I need to build one (DH will not be happy) or find something inexpensive but preferably wood and decent. Can't tell you how over plastic I am. (As a side note pulled all of the junk plastic toys out of the toy bins today and can't wait to throw them in a box for Goodwill.) Magic Cabin has one for littles that is about $100. Any other thoughts?
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post #20 of 23
10/22/10 at 12:46am
The MDC toy forum has several threads on toy kitchens, for building your own with lots of links. Some have wonderful inspiration, making a simple kitchen for thrift furniture and more ideas
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