What does your 15 mos old play with?

[fishywishy]

I am looking to slowly transition most of my DS's plastic electronic toys out and replace them with fewer, nicer natural/wooden toys.  He is 14 mos (almost 15) and I feel like we are already being over-crowded with toys in our house.  Any ideas?

Thanks!

[Brandybutter]

I hear you!  I have a 16mo boy and we DO have many nice, wooden toys (puzzles, blocks, pull toys, stacking toys, a walker), but he doesn't want to play with any of them!  Perhaps your LO does.  Are you asking about toys for independent play?  My DS loves wearing hats, gloves, oven mitts and has us dress up too.  So lately, I've been helping him play dress up with one of his stuffed bears and he'll continue on by himself for a little bit.  He will read books by himself for awhile too.  He enjoys getting into the kitchen drawers/cabinets and puts colanders on his head like hats!  Sometimes I let him play in the pantry with canned cat food or with the vacuum cleaner attachments.  He's very into household stuff!  He loves scooting laundry baskets around and collecting things along the way.  He also loves balls, but is not into rolling yet, just throwing them at us or the cat :/  I'm almost about to give up on toys, but there's so much cute stuff out there!  I'm still hoping he becomes more interested in his toys and gives me just a bit more time to make meals (until he's interested & capable enough to help me.)  For now, he definitely needs us to engage him.  Good luck to you!  And I look forward to learning from other responses to your post as well!  So glad you asked!

[KellyandBean]

my 16 month old doesn't seem to care to much for her toys 90% of the time. She wants to play with lotion bottles, her tooth brush, bowls & pretty much anything that mommy or daddy use but is safe for her to put in her mouth. She does like her stuffed animals though and like someone else said she likes playing dress up with hats and headbands and laughs at herself in the mirror.

[hildare]

when dd was that age, the favorite things were:

a collander

a rubber spatula

a basting brush that was rubber or silicone

some thrifted enameled aluminum (?) lightweight pots & lids

a child sized broom. 

she still loves all of those things.  actual toys, not so much.  i think it was around that time that she got into drawing, too, so markers (washable!) and a big pad of scribble paper.  with supervision.

balls to throw

stuff she wasn't supposed to have, like the toilet brush. 

[Snapdragon]

my 15 month old likes to play with bottles and caps- anything that has a lid on it he likes to take on and off. I feel like he has outgrown most of his toys too and I am looking for a new crop of toys. Right now the bottles work well. He loves to climb0 we have a little wooden slide inside and he climbs the ladder often. HE also likes to open and close doors. Basically, he is into things he can actually manipulate- opening things, putting things inside of things,

[staceychev]

My daughter seems happiest when she's unpacking every drawer in the house! She also loves my iPhone and my Kindle. ;)

Anyway, I think that, in terms of actual toys, she likes the animals from the Noah's ark, a wooden flute, and balls the best. She also really likes cars and small trains, like the Thomas trains. It's funny, because my oldest was never into that sort of thing, but the Easter bunny brought this one some Matchbox cars.

[newmamalizzy]

Oh, the tupperware drawer.  Definitely DD's favorite.  Most kitchen things, actually.   She also loves her ride-on giraffe, pop-out tunnel, instruments (maracas, tambourine, formula-can drum, recorder), and playsilks.  A drawer full of maxi pads keeps her occupied for quite a while, too.  Of course, then I have maxi pads strewn about the house....:)

[McGucks]

About none of his actual toys.  Favorites include:  metal spatulas, the vacuum, shampoo bottle, my hairbrush, turning the a/c window unit on and off, BOOKS BOOKS BOOKS (not independently very often, but with me almost to the exclusion of anything else).  A cream cheese container, a wooden box to stand on, the stairs.

He is 15 months old.  His true favorite playtoy, however, is his daddy.  He is lucky.

[cloudbutterfly]

I think that's about the age when my DS became obsessed with wooden trains.  Or rather, the age when his prior obsession was allowed to develop at home because he got some of his own and wasn't only able to play with them at Barnes and Noble.  They've been really wonderful for him through recent developmental leaps.  When we got him his first set three months ago, I thought maybe he was way too young and wouldn't be able to manage even to move them around on the tracks for many more months.  Now he has magnetic polarity figured out and is also putting the tracks together himself.  And some days he's so engrossed in them that I can actually get some cleaning done while he's awake.

North Star Toys has WONDERFUL handmade wooden toys for very reasonable prices.  Their service is truly amazing, too...like, a personal email to apologize for a shipping delay I never would have noticed while they were visiting family and then a handwritten card in with the toys when they came.  The Rainbow People Mover is really cool.  DS also plays with the wooden camera I got him from there.  I would love to get him more of their toys.  http://www.northstartoys.com/collections/all-collections/

Plan Toys also has some good ones.  We have two of these zebras, and he loves chasing me while I pull both of them, and started pulling them himself at around 15-16 months old.  http://www.amazon.com/Plan-Toys-0514600-PlanToys-Pull-Along/dp/B0015D47WS/

Duplo blocks aren't natural/wooden, but they're another thing we all play with a lot that I really like the way he plays with them.  Otherwise, books and musical instruments.  You can pick up a good metal harmonica on Amazon pretty inexpensively.  DS loves playing his (DH got two of his own after I got a child's one for DS, so they play together...and I have no idea where that child's one is anymore), and it's amazing how much it sounds like music, especially on a real rather than toy harmonica.  We've also gotten into wooden puzzles in the last couple of months.  Oh, and a play kitchen and tea set have both been big hits for months.

15-19 months has been such a fun age for play...enjoy!  :)

[MyBabysMomma]

I second everything in the PPs. My DS (16 months) loves to play and explore with things that aren't toys!

As far as actual toys goes... He loves to play with simple things like blocks, balls, books, and puppets when I play with him. Solo play, he loves toys that mimic me (a toy mop, his own laundry basket with towels, pushing his stuffed animals in his stroller, etc).

The one thing that really helps him focus on more simple toys is to have an uncluttered space (toy-wise). I only put out about three toys at a time. If there are any more than that he tends to get frazzled and wont play with anything.

[tillymonster]

Wanted to chime in here with a suggestion. DD and DH will have "stacky blocks" sessions and DD seems to prefer them over all her other toys. Duplos are so great because no only do 13-18mo love to build, DH makes imaginative stories for her and incorporates her stuffed animals with the stories. Like making the dollies a large throne for the tea party, etc.

I also agree with the PPs recommending household objects. It's all a out that for DD right now! Also, we have a chest in her play area where we regularly rotate out toys every few weeks so they feel "new" when we take them out! HTH!