I’m clueless as to where to celebrate and what gift to give her.
I’m on a tight budget and would like something really special (like something handmade, maybe from Etsy.com, but there’s so much to chose from!)
What did you get you child for his second birthday, how did you celebrate?
Thank you lol
Well her daddy was gone for work, so we didn’t do too much.I got her a rocking horse(because she loves them)She was really excited, she is now 29 months old and still plays with her rocking horse.I got it from craiglist very very cheaply in a excellent shape, really cute one. ( you know I don’t usually buy her toys)They grow so fast and after five minutes they get bored with a toy and start playing with the box!! Well this is my personal opinion.When her daddy came back from work we took her for a fun day to do whatever she wanted to do…zoo,library,museum…etc.
I made her a big party on her first year…it is nice looking the pictures…but I have to say she didn’t enjoy it! Too many people…too many kids…too much stuff. So I learned that it wasn’t really fun for her.
So I thought about it and said this year will be funner…just us!!no stress involved…no food to cook and no money to spent! We all had fun doing this family activity and she had a blast.I will do the same next year.
Maybe when she turns four we will make something bigger with her little friends over.
mmm… I forget to tell you that I made some felt food for my daughter as a gift for last Christmas. She totally love them!!! she plays with it every day. If you are thinking on buying something handmade from etsy that could be a good option.(or you can do it yourself…cheaper and funner).
I don’t believe in big birthday parties for young children. We never have more than 6 children at the kids birthday parties. The kids don’t remember them and the expense is ridiculous.
I wasn’t thinking of throwing a big party… I was wondering what other parents did (pick-nick at the park, beach, family reunion at home?) and what you did give your child. Did you have a theme?
PY, i’m interested in felt food, although i must say i have only found out recently what it was. I’m still browing on Etsy… I need to hurry or the present won’t make it in time 
That’s right!! Being honest with you, I like Etsy …but felt food is over prized!! Hopefully you can find some tutorial on line you can make it yourself…just an idea!
For my eldest I bought a cheap plywood dollhouse kit and painted it. That was in 2003 and it is still used on a daily basis by all the girls so was $25 well spent 
My second DD I bought a wooden farmhouse with wooden animals, a farmer and some wooden fences. It cost about $90 from memory but was worth it since it is really sturdy and is constantly played with.
My third DD I bought some crates of wooden play food which was $40 for 4 little crates plus I spent another $20 on various single items like wooden chocolate and milk and biscuits to make it more complete. We had bought a cheap wooden play oven for my second daughter that year from a department store for $40 so they share the home corner.
I think for 2 year olds you can’t go past sturdy wooden toys and I am noticing they’re becoming more available in department stores when a few years ago you could rarely get anything other than plastic toys which tend to break really easily.
For parties we keep it really simple and have family afternoon teas or dinners with grandparents and great grandparents until they are at school.
Hope that helps.
J
Well, I’ve finally ordered some beautiful wooden toys from a Waldorf shop (http://www.bellalunatoys.com/woodentoys/more.htm) I don’t know too much about Waldorf and I’d like to learn more.
I bought the lacing cheese, the stacking set, and the rainbow tunnel.
great choice! I love that web…I was just looking it yesterday.I love the rainbow tunnel.Waldorf has a great selection of toys for children’s imagination. My proyect for this weekend is make some wooden blocks.
I am glad are all set for your child’s birthday!! Have a great day.
Oh thanks so much PY!
I love your blog and read every new entry. Your daughter looks very grown up and older than 2 1/2
Thank you hypatia for reading my blog. I wish I could have more time to post more than one entry…having the blog on bilingual way takes a lot of my time. But I think is worth it! My parents check my blog everyday and they don’t speak english so it is nice for them to understand what I do with my girl.
Well my daughter is a busy bee…it is amazing the way children learn!! Sometimes I think that everything I made or prepare for her is not enough…she learns really fast and gets bored easy. I think toddlers in general are fast learners.
Thank you again. I appreciate your support.
Here’s a matching game your daughter can play with :laugh:
(taken from here: http://lovemylifex4.blogspot.com/)
Thank you hypatia!! have a great weekend!
Thank you Marmee, I’m a big wooden toy lover too! There are virtually no plastic and battery-powered toys at our place, only hand made and wooden ones.
If you are thinking of making felt food, I have seen some patterns for sale on Etsy. They are in the “patterns” section (I feel a little silly stating something so obvious, but I didn’t even notice it for a long time.) Also, here is a link to a toy making forum, lots of Waldorf toy ideas there. http://www.mothering.com/discussions/forumdisplay.php?f=320
I think it is more important to have fun then to have gifts. A playground is always a fun place to have a bday party- and its free.
I always try to get gifts that will last at least 5 years if not longer- I call them investments not “toys”.
I have so much for my littlies that when my youngest (number 5) turned 1 recently, I bought her Nothing. When my 4th is 3 in November I plan to give her…hardly anything. As long as I have a little party for her (at home, not many people just a few relatives and some close friends of mine and their older kids) which involves a few munchies and drinks, the invited people will no doubt bring something (usually unneeded, like teddy-bears). I am a stickler for getting useful items…is there a law that says gifts for your kids have to be new? Kids dont notice or care if you buy it brand new or secondhand at a garage sale or ebay. As long as you wrap it up so they can unwrap it, I think the fun is in the seeing a pile of colourful wrapped presents. At 1 year old my daughter didnt care about not getting anything, though at 2 they might notice or expect something. At 3, definitely! Seriously, I have so much (mostly 2nd-hand) stuff that I cant have it all accessible. So if I went to my storage areas, I could rustle up presents from my own collection without having to leave the house to go buy something. Maybe you have items in the house she hasnt seen that you could wrap up? And if you put things inside cardboard boxes with wrapping paper over the top they seem bigger and more exciting. Taking up more space (I always used this trick with my older kids, and they swear they got HEAPS of presents (“you always give us too much mum”). ) More fool them!!
hypatia,
I too am fond of giving toys that have a educational message or action on the back. That ‘lacing cheese’ looks excellent and it definetly will last long. There are also many wooden puzzles that they like at 2 yrs old. My grandon like at tah age a toy consisting of 10 hard boxes that fit one inside the other and had figures of animals, baby things, numbers, etc. It gives him an idea of sizing /like the funnels you got) and also sets of related figures.
About the party, I think, as said before, that the playground option is very good. At this age they do not have friends of their own so family and some parents friend are normally invited. later own at school age she can be with her friends.
Nowadays in lima, peru some celebrate on Kentucky or mc donald playgoruns but i do not like this too much because mostly all the kids are on their own. I preferred it when my sons (now grown ups) where kids and we celebrate in our house or park nearby with a lot of music and games for their age.
Have a good time and for your daughter a VERY HAPPY BIRTHDAY