Wooden toys and more

German toy company Haba creates sustainable wooden toys using primarily indigenous maple and beech wood combined with ecological adhesives and non-toxic, water-based lacquers.

Not that Lucas isn't an environmentally conscious young man, committed to playing with non-toxic and stimulating toys, but mostly he likes the bright colors and funny shapes - and that we will let him suck on them to his little heart's content.

These toys are great, reminiscent of old school wooden toy making. When they move the wood clicks so nicely, solid, nostalgically.

Haba also makes fabric toys, books, room decorations, crazy cool building blocks, etc. Really they make everything!

Crazy toys for little our peeps

Belgian toy company Lilliputiens makes toys of fabric. They use bright bold colors for toys that feature animals, dolls, imaginary creatures and games.

We got the Cauliflower activity module on the left for Lucas. He went nuts for it! The fabrics are soft or ridged, some of them are crinkly. There are hoops, things that stick out and funny bugs that slide or vibrate.

The Lilliputiens present varied tactile and visual stimulation for the little ones. They are crazy fun and appropriately not cheap.

Home made toys: color in a bottle

Lucas has a fascination with water bottles. He is drawn to them because he sees us drinking and wants to put his mouth on them too. He also likes making the water swish back and forth inside.

We saved one of the thicker plastic ones, filled it up about half way and threw a few sequins of different colors inside.

Bottle and water and colors galore!

Homemade Toys: Crinkly Socks

My six month old critter is interested in everything. He wants to touch and suck on everything around him. Once he becomes familiar with an object, once he has learned about it and it no longer presents the most stimulation for his little developing mind, he is ready to move on.

It's very exciting to watch him as he goes around learning, but it makes the toy situation bizarre for us. Lucas will really be into something, then two days later, not have time in his schedule for it. Many overpriced toys later we are starting to invent everything and anything for him to play with. Our latest invention? A colorful sock with one of those really noise crinkly plastic bags inside. Another option would be putting cellophane inside the sock. Sow up the top, and voilà! A colorful, noisy, soft toy that will keep him happy for another few minutes while I finish this post.