Gift/Stocking Stuffers for Kids

Tis the season to think, plan, shop, get ready for Christmas!

Some of you may wait till after Thanksgiving. If that works for you, great! It never seemed like enough time for me: I’d feel stressed and rushed. My annual goal is to have shopping completed by Thanksgiving. Of course, there always seems to be some hang over shopping to do. I’ve found many pre-thanksgiving sales just as good as Black Friday. I shop a lot at Marshall’s, TJ Maxx, Home Goods and similar stores. Lots of inventory gets slim after Thanksgiving. “The early bird gets the worm”. Early is relative; some people start in January. I’ve purchased a few things on clearance then; storage can be an issue. Plus, my kids’ wishes changed by the time fall shopping came around.

For my Dad’s funeral, my sister and I fixed “Quiet Bags” for the six great-grandchildren in attendance.

I thought the items would make perfect stocking stuffer ideas for you! Our ages ranged from six months to 7 years old. Use them as inspiration starters or copy the ones that would fit the young ones in your life. Different personalities were instantly drawn to different things, but all seemed to be a hit. Just like with stockings, we packed a few food treats in the bag bottom.

Click on the items and it should take you to Amazon to see the item further.

For Our Six-Month-Old:

My six month old likes pulling things out of spaces. This taco was perfect. Eventually she’ll learn to put them back in and build a taco. The pieces are different textures; she had her favorite, the onion. Funny, her Mom and I love onions! The tag and lime are great for teething too!

These are the softest books! Made specially for the baby years. Everything is attached and nothing falls out, but gives growing babies lots of play value! This one has the cutest fruits and veggies!

This book series is so cute! I love touchy-feely books. I start really young reading books to babies. These are great for little fingers to experience textures. The stories are cute and simple. A hit!

For our 3+ Kiddo’s:

These 8.5 x 11” whiteboards were quiet and creative. I used velcro dots to attach extra pens to the back in assorted colors and a small whiteboard eraser.

These are self contained and erasable to give hours of drawing play. They are highly rated.

We put these in the older 5-7 yrs. bags. Transformable Fidget Spinners 4 Pcs for Kids and Adults Stress Relief Sensory Toys for Boys and Girls Fingertip Gyros for ADHD. Most kids like fidget toys and they are silent to play with!

Some good old paper and pencils (colored ones). I especially like the pencil case and sharpener. Containing pieces aides in playing with them. Otherwise, pieces get scattered. I liked the quality of these too.

This fabric maze is sewn with a marble inside. Busy hands manipulate the marble through the maze and then backwards, over and over. It’s another fidget type of toy, but also contains some brain skills. All the mazes are different. Two larger ones have the ABC’s and numbers. The player manipulates the marble through the alphabet/numbers which is a bit higher skill. Aunt Missy said our 7 year old grabbed this one first and stayed quite involved with it for quite a while. He had the alphabet one.

These little sticker books are just the size for young hands. Everyone loves stickers. One sitting will complete them. The outer space one is a little harder, counting and mazes are involved; this one went to our 3 older guys. The other two are sticker fun. This company makes many types of little books.

NO-MESS COLORING BOOK 3-PACK: The Melissa & Doug On the Go ColorBlast activity books feature 24 pages of color-reveal pictures and seek-and-find activities. You can find these in every theme!

Do you remember these? I had one in childhood. The magic wand moves the black shavings and you become the creator of Willy’s face! Fun fun!!

Another old school winner; made for small hands and travel! Pocket Etch A Sketch is a great screen alternative for all ages – no charging, batteries or Wi-Fi needed! Turn the knobs to draw and lines will magically appear on the screen!

Some children just love stuffed animals. My grands certainly do!! These beanie babies are small but lovable! I got dogs cause Dad loved dogs, especially his hunting bird dogs. Ty has so many types of stuffies even Christmas ones. They would fit perfectly in any stocking, slipper, shoe or pocket!

If you don’t fill stockings, these ideas would also be great in a travel bag for the car/plane or as a small gift.

Is there one purchase you struggle with every Christmas?

Maybe we can all help with an idea or two.
Tell us below in the comments.

Merry Shopping,