Degenerex Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 I was wondering if anybody with some experience can help me out. My sister is due on November 13th (she is having a girl) and I'm extremely excited since she will be the first baby in the family. I also just got a promotion at my job, and am going baby toy/clothes shopping crazy lately. I was just wondering if anybody who has children themselves could recommend any newborn toys or items that would help my sister out. Most of all, I'd love it if said toys were music related since my niece is going to become the rock star I never was. (just kidding of coarse). Thanks in advance! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Lammycat Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 Rattles and shit are always good, but a Johnny Jump-Up will be a hit as it frees the parents from having to hold the baby while making dinner, etc. for a few minutes. And, despite the stoic looking kid in the picture I downloaded, kids love 'em! She'll thank you when the kid is around 5-6 mo. old. ed. To incorporate the musical aspect of it, burn her some Wilco to crank while the baby bounces in the door frame. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
EL the Famous Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 the boppy pillow. when they were smaller, my kids would sit, take a bottle and nap in the things...they rule. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
poppydawn Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 It's kind of hard to find musical toys for infants, other than plastic shit that plays electronic music. You might go with some CDs. My daughter's 3.5 and she still loves a lot of the CDs she's listened to since birth. For when she's a little older, you'll win the Best Uncle Ever award if you get her a Little Tykes jungle band kit. It has a turtle-shaped drum, a giraffe bell, two monkey maracas, and a panda-shaped tambourine (or, as we call it, the pandourine). My daughter got her set a few months before she turned two, and it's amazing how much she figured out about music with it. Still loves it. As a parent, I don't mind toys that let my daughter make music, whether it's the stuff listed above, or the bongos she made on our front porch with little citronella candle buckets. No matter how noisy she gets, at least she's learning about music. The stuff I can't stand? The electronic stuff that makes tons of "musical" noise for no reason. I want some cause-and-effect, at least. Leapfrog has some decent toys along those lines. They have a musical table that's good for kids who are old enough to stand on their own. It has several instruments represented, so they get an idea of what different sounds instruments can make, scale, rhythm, etc. If you're looking for clothes, there are lots of great band shirts and onesies out there. My daughter's had several Wilco shirts already. Last year she was obsessed with "Come Together" by the Beatles. Target had a Beatles shirt in her size, and she wore it to death. Congratulations on becoming an uncle! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Lammycat Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 And these things are fairly new and great, too. Especially as the baby gets to be a few months old and can support it's own head/sit up or even not sit up and gets crabby having to stare at the ceiling while all around bi-peds are enjoying looking at each other. The Bumbo: Quote Link to post Share on other sites
yermom Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 Taggies. They are genius. Babies love to mess with the tags on their blankets and things so these folks make baby stuffs with tags all over them. Also, don't forget that one of these is a must have for all cool babies. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Mrs. Peel Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 And these things are fairly new and great, too. Especially as the baby gets to be a few months old and can support it's own head/sit up or even not sit up and gets crabby having to stare at the ceiling while all around bi-peds are enjoying looking at each other. The Bumbo: That's what I was gonna say! I call it "The Baby Docking Station". Quote Link to post Share on other sites
gogo Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 The Bumbo:There was a thing on the news here last week about babies arching their backs and falling out of these things. Only put it on the floor, never on a table or other raised surface! Johnny Jump-Up When my sister's babies were in their Johnny Jump-Up, we used to sing this song to them. There's your musical tie-in. (For extra fun: cider in the baby's bottle!) Also, the kids are bigger now, but they still sleep with their knotty dolls. Not the least bit musical, but babies love them. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
W(TF) Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 We had something like this that kept my son mesmerized for the first year or so of his life.http://www.amazon.com/Fisher-Price-Ocean-W...m/dp/B00005YVRN Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Mystik Spiral Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 I consider myself a professional auntie... Though I can't really recommend baby toys (baby toys are baby toys...), when the tyke gets older, please introduce him/her to Laurie Berkner and Justin Roberts, two of the best "kids" artists that are good enough they won't make you crazy like Raffi or Veggie Tales. On a related note, I just bought my 15-month-old nephew these shirts: And, just in case you were wondering... Yes, I do rule. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bjorn_skurj Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 Being an uncle rules. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Mystik Spiral Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 So WAY better than being a parent. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bjorn_skurj Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 Heh. As true as true can be. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
PigSooie Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 So WAY better than being a parent. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
quarter23cd Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 Ditto to all the comments about the annoying electronic toys. Any gifts my kids receive that plays that grating, fingers-on-a-chalkboard "music" incessantly for no apparent reason--yeah, those toys are known to get "lost" quickly in my house or else the batteries keep "dying" very quickly. Honestly, the best musical toys my kids have are one of those drums (similar to what was mentioned) that comes with a tambourine, maracas, harmonica, etc inside. And a little First Act guitar. I play it more than my kids do and its impossible to keep in tune, but hey, what do you want for $20. We also have a piano--a real one--that my kids love the hell out of. That's a considerably more expensive option--we inherited ours. But I dunno how much a small keyboard costs these days. I'd say you're better off going for "real" instruments (even if they're simple and inexpensive ones) rather than the toy versions of instruments. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
poppydawn Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 I consider myself a professional auntie... Though I can't really recommend baby toys (baby toys are baby toys...), when the tyke gets older, please introduce him/her to Laurie Berkner and Justin Roberts, two of the best "kids" artists that are good enough they won't make you crazy like Raffi or Veggie Tales. We definitely dig Laurie Berkner around here. Also, Dan Zanes. He was lead singer of the Del Fuegos way back when, and now he does "family" music. Some of his songs are definitely kids songs, but he also does lots of classic folk - Pete Seeger, Woody Guthrie, etc. His band contains a huge variety of instruments; it's because of them that we had The Great Accordan Obsession of 2005 at our house. Still, the music's excellent, and it won't drive parents nuts. He's done duets with people like Lou Reed, Debbie Harry, Aimee Mann, Blind Boys of Alabama, Loudon Wainwright III, and Roseanne Cash. Really good stuff. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Jules Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 Rattles and shit are always good, but a Johnny Jump-Up will be a hit as it frees the parents from having to hold the baby while making dinner, etc. for a few minutes. And, despite the stoic looking kid in the picture I downloaded, kids love 'em! She'll thank you when the kid is around 5-6 mo. old. ed. To incorporate the musical aspect of it, burn her some Wilco to crank while the baby bounces in the door frame.Being married to a pediatric physical therapist, I feel compelled to speak against these things (and the exersaucer things). They tend to develop the leg muscles before the trunk muscles (opposite of normal), which can delay normal development. OK, I'm done. Just don't use them too much I guess. Now, for the musical gift...my daughter loved this thing. Not usable until 6-8 months or so, though... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
rileykill Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 I'm fine with giving my 1-year-old cheap but "real" musical instruments. She has been banging on guitars tuned to an open chord since she was able to sit up unassisted. You can find beginner stuff that stays in tune and is still inexpensive. I found a Rogue brand uke for about $35 in a Musician's Friend catalog. If she tears it up no big deal. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Dreamin' Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 This was one of the first CDs that I bought for my baby daughter. It's a lot of fun. Wee Hairy Beasties A musical mobile would be a great gift for a newborn. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Lammycat Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 Being married to a pediatric physical therapist, I feel compelled to speak against these things (and the exersaucer things). They tend to develop the leg muscles before the trunk muscles (opposite of normal), which can delay normal development. OK, I'm done. Just don't use them too much I guess.Bah! Anything to keep the kid pinned in safe and happy is o.k. in my book. All my kids used 'em both and developed fine. Besides, maybe they'll end up being NFL kickers/punters now with the extra-developed leg muscles. ed. Thanks for the warning though. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
gogo Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 A musical mobile would be a great gift for a newborn.I've never seen a baby that wasn't mesmerized by ceiling fans. Just fill your whole house with them! Bah! Anything to keep the kid pinned in safe and happy is o.k. in my book. All my kids used 'em both and developed fine. Besides, maybe they'll end up being NFL kickers/punters now with the extra-developed leg muscles.ed. Thanks for the warning though.Yeah, I suppose "everything in moderation" applies to baby toys/restraint devices, too. I think you're right about the extra-developed leg muscles though, my sister's kids are all little soccer stars. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Dreamin' Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 My daughter loved her Rainforest Jumperoo, but we made sure that she also had lots of "tummy time" on the floor. She was born with torticollis, so I played Abbey Road for her while we did exercises on a blanket to stretch and strengthen her neck muscles. Now, she is obsessed with that album and will stop crying immediately if we play Octopus's Garden. (Her neck is fine now, too!) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Jules Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 Bah! Anything to keep the kid pinned in safe and happy is o.k. in my book. All my kids used 'em both and developed fine. Besides, maybe they'll end up being NFL kickers/punters now with the extra-developed leg muscles.ed. Thanks for the warning though.Yeah, I'm skeptical of all the warning stuff too, but as gogo says She's just seen some bad cases, so she can't help it. She's brainwashed me. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Dreamin' Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 I do think the warnings are valid, but as long as babies get lots of time to wiggle around on the floor (and the jumper is used in moderation), they should be just fine. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Reni Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 A musical mobile would be a great gift for a newborn. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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