We know there can be a lot of pressure to ‘buy buy buy’ this time of year and we certainly don’t want to add to that pressure…but, we do want to give you ideas for gifts that we think your littles will love and will support their growth and development!
So maybe it’s a win-win?
Remember, if you don’t value it, leave it.
We’ve filled our gift guides with toys, feeding gear, books, and kitchen gadgets we swear by as dietitian mamas. Please take from them what will serve your family best, and simply leave the rest.
Happy shopping!
For your baby that’s 3 - 6+ months
1. Bebecan Teething Sticks
2. Como Tomo Ring Teether
3. Banana Brush
4. Friday Baby Triple Angle Toothhugger Brush
5. Abiie Beyond High Chair
6. Trip Trapp High Chair
- Eight years later, Nita’s kids are still using this. We’re into the clean, aesthetic design of this high chair – doesn’t hurt to have something pretty in the kitchen! And we appreciate the easy to clean surfaces and dishwasher safe tray. The Trip Trapp is an award winning highchair and for good reason!
- Shop CANADA
7. Splat Mat
8. Catchy Mat
9. Formula Dispenser
10. Formula Pitcher
11. Skip Hop Farmstand Play Gym
- This montessori-inspired play gym is designed to grow with your baby from those newborns days through toddlerhood. We love that it will keep your baby entertained during tummy time which can help them build the strength they need for starting solids! We think it’s a great gift for new or ‘soon-to-be’ parents. Plus come on…the farm theme?
- Shop USA
- Shop CANADA
For your baby that’s 4 - 12 months
1. EZPZ Development Cup Set
2. Dr. Brown’s Weighted Straw Cup
3. EZPZ Tiny Spoons
- One of our favorite baby utensils – hands down. It has many ergonomic features that support your baby while they are learning to eat and works for both the puree and baby-led weaning feeding styles. The cute colors don’t hurt either.
- Shop USA *use code HHE10 for 10% off
- Shop CANADA *use code HHE10 for 10% off
4. EZPZ Mini Mat
5. Num Num Gootensil
6. Melii Snack Containers
7. Bapron Baby Bib
- This bib is it! Say goodbye to traditional bibs that tie around the neck—our bibs tie around the back like an apron for ultimate comfort, making them perfect for babies who dislike neck bibs. These bibs are also wonderful for sensory play, crafts, and general mess-making.
- Shop USA
- Shop CANADA *use code HHE10 for 10% off
8. Stasher Silicone Bags
For your toddler
1. Guidecraft Kitchen Helper *Dietitian top pick!
- Nita had this kitchen helper for years and it’s a purchase you won’t regret. At one point both of her kids would fit into it as toddlers. You can use this to create a safe, fun environment for toddlers and young children who want to help in the kitchen! It’s also lightweight and easy to move, fold, and store.
- Shop USA
- Shop CANADA
- This seek stool features rounded corners, non-toxic materials, and is designed for active kids in mind with sturdy construction. We love that it is adjustable in height and grows with your kiddo. Sapiens Child is also a small biz and so we have big love for their mission!
- Shop USA and CANADA
3. Apron
4. Toddler Knife Set
5. Insulated Straw Cup
6. Beaba Stainless Steel snack/lunch box
7. Training Chopsticks
- Lightweight, easy to use and designed to grow with your little one as their skills develop,these chopsticks can turn a regular meal into a fun activity! There’s also the added bonus of 1) developing all the tiny muscles in their hand and 2) an opportunity to talk about food and culture around the world, especially if chopsticks aren’t an everyday utensil in your household!
- Shop USA
- Shop CANADA
8. Melli Caterpillar Utensils
9. Stainless steel plates
- This is a great option for toddlers and an upgrade from the silicon suction plates you’ve probably been using. We’re really appreciating the excitement for stainless steel which is actually how Nita grew up eating her traditional foods – everything was served in stainless dinnerware!
- Shop USA
- Shop CANADA
Time to play
These items are so much fun and will last you far beyond just one season which is exactly what we appreciate about toys that stand the test of time! We love that a lot of these of course have to do with food but also, they allow for endless hours of open ended play and imagination.
1. Melissa and Doug Grocery Store
2. Happy Healthy Eaters Hands on Food play guide
- Becoming comfortable with a variety of foods can start at playtime! One of our kids’ top “learning languages” is play! By adding food play ideas, your toddler will be exposed to new and familiar foods without any pressure to eat them. In this book you’ll get:
- 18 food play activity tutorials
- 9 printable templates to supplement some of the activities
- Shop CANADA and USA
- Becoming comfortable with a variety of foods can start at playtime! One of our kids’ top “learning languages” is play! By adding food play ideas, your toddler will be exposed to new and familiar foods without any pressure to eat them. In this book you’ll get:
3. Leehoo Castle Wooden Play Food
4. B Toys Kitchen Faucet
5. Melissa and Doug Grocery Cart – one of our most played with toys
6. Melissa and Doug Pizza Set
7. Robud Play Kitchen
8. Tea Set
9. Pots and Pans
10. Play Dishes
Kid Games with a Food Twist
Here are a few fun games that you can engage your child in. Games are a great way to teach your child strategy, patience and maybe a bit of healthy competition but mostly…they’re just fun.
1. Feed the Woozle
- The Woozle loves to eat hairy pickles and fuzzy donuts. Can you help feed him 12 crazy treats before all the snacks are gone? Feed the Woozle is a cooperative game where players cultivate emotional development, shared decision making, positive self esteem, creative problem solving and develop a sense of community in a non-stressful play environment.
- Shop USA
- Shop Canada
2. The Sneaky Snacky Squirrel
3. Foodie Favorites Memory Game
4. Acorn Soup
Books, reading to spark the joy in feeding
Food exposure doesn’t just have to happen at mealtimes! Here are some of the most charming food-themed books to share with your baby or toddler. Did you know that books can also inspire a love for trying new foods? We even wrote all about it here.
It’s true! Cultivating a taste for new foods often begins with sparking curiosity about them, and books are a fantastic way to ignite that interest.
1. Rotating Book Rack
2. Fry Bread
3. Baby Goes to Market
4. Baby Let’s Eat
5. Eating the Alphabet
- From apple to zucchini, each page features a letter of the alphabet and beautiful water colour paintings of produce that start with that letter. My kids have fun naming the fruits and vegetables that they recognize and exclaiming about which ones are their favourites. A great way to expose kids to nearly any fruit or vegetable you can imagine!
- Shop USA
- Shop Canada
6. Chicken Soup with Rice
7. Stir Crack Whisk Bake
- This is an interactive book where toddlers can join in and help to “bake” a batch of cupcakes! They will be invited to help crack the eggs, stir the ingredients together, and help cool the cupcakes down by blowing on them. This book was on repeat for a week in our house! My four year old kept asking to read it over and over again.
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8. Little Sweet Potato
9. The Very Hungry Caterpillar
10. Goodnight Veggies
11. Jamberry
12. Dragons Love Tacos
13. Everybody Cooks Rice
- The protagonist in this story is off on a search throughout her neighbourhood to find her younger brother. As she peeks into her neighbour’s homes around dinner time, she learns that even though they all come from different places around the world and their dishes taste different, there’s one thing that unifies them: they all cook rice!
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- Shop Canada
14. My Love for You is Always
15. Every Night is Pizza Night
- Join Pipo as she cooks new foods with her friends on her quest to prove that pizza is the best. Delighted and stunned with each new taste experience, she wonders Is a family recipe for bibimbap better than pizza? What about a Moroccan tagine that reminds you of home? Or perhaps the best food is the food you share with the people you love?
- Shop USA
- Shop Canada
16. Tacos
For the cook
1. Cast Iron Pan
A good quality cast iron pan is going to last you…pretty much forever. We encourage parents to cook their family and baby meals in this vessel because it actually does fortify the meal with iron. Isn’t that neat?
2. Food Processor
Chop, grind, blend, and more—this kitchen workhorse will save you time and effort, whether you’re making a quick batch of baby food or prepping ingredients for dinner.
3. Immersion Blender
An immersion blender is also super helpful . It’s great for when you just want to blend up a small volume of food for your baby. Now, we use it for our sauces, homemade yogurt drinks and even whipped cream!
4. Fullstar Veggie Chopper
Choppers are great because it typically means less time in the kitchen and more time cuddling with your baby! This kitchen gadget has several different blade types and are durable enough to cut most kinds of vegetables and fruits.
5. Vitamix
A blender is a highly versatile tool! You can use it to prepare purée texture foods, a minced texture, or even liquid smoothies as well. Truly, of all the items we adore and use the most frequently, our blenders take the Olympic gold medal!
6. Instant Pot
The Instant Pot (aka the one that started the electric pressure cooker revolution) has become a must-have item in both of our kitchens! We love it so much we dedicated an entire blog post highlighting the many ways you can use it when prepping baby food.
7. Airfryer
This gadget will officially go down as the Millennial Parents go-to. Seriously…what can’t it do? Between the two of us we’ve tested 3 different variations and have come out loving the Ninja options but find something that works for you. It’s something we use almost daily now!
