What's in your toy box?

When we got to about 10 months, I think Jam-beans' toy box exploded it was so full of toys. Here's a photo of her with most of them stupidly taken on a patterned blankie so you can't actually make much if it out. (The PS2 at the top of the photo doesn't count of course. That's bf's favourite toy, and an object of much loathing and envy on behalf of the girlfried.)

I get oddly nostalgic about some of her toys, because they each mark a stage of learning and discovery for her. So the roll call goes something like this.



Clockwise from bottom:

• (shown in very top photo) Blue calculator. Oh Jasmine, how could I have lost your blue calculator? Never again will you turn it over and over in your hand and inspect both sides very carefully, before putting it in your mouth. Never again will you spend minutes punching the numbers. Sigh. You'll just have to learn to do mental arithmetic instead like the rest of us.
  
• Pedro the monkey, after our friend Pedro who bought it for Jasmine, and also because we decided it was a Capucin monkey and needed a South American name. At first Pedro and Jambeans were inseparable, but then she dumped him for another and he's been looking a bit miserable recently.
  
• Animal flash cards. Unplayed with as yet. Am sure they'll make for good chewing.
• To a great granddaughter Xmas card. Or any card. Card is one of J's fave playthings.
• Tiny Love 'my first book' - J's first real toy and an absolutely must-have as small babies don't really do much but look at black and white pictures in their cot. J really grew with this toy. Now she is older J is fascinated by the red felt ties, and likes to chew them.
• FisherPrice Jack-in-the-Box. A gift. Great toy, nicely put together, but J a bit neutral about this one.
  
• Home-made rainmaker, using kitchen roll tube, sellotape and rice. J loves the noise, and is particularly into chewing the ends. One day when I'm not looking I'm sure she'll make her way through to the rice inside.
• Cloth book

• Stacking cups. Simple. Brightly coloured. Great fun in the bath. J plays with hers every day and no sign of getting bored. A must-have. She also loves her matching plastic stacking rings (not in photo)
  
• Poulet the green rattle. A present from Tantie Seema and simply Jasmine's favourite toy in the whole wide world ever. She's had it from about 2 months old with no sign of tiring. I love it because it's light, unbreakable and fits in your handbag
• Sunshine faces. A lovely present. Simple, fun, also eminently handbaggable
  
• Crunchy cloth square rattley thing. A good buy from Mothercare
  
• Yellow car. J only just beginning to get this toy, and is learning to her great joy that when she pushes the car rolls along
• ELC wooden lift out puzzle. J likes to cheat by turning the whole thing upside down to get the pieces out
  
• (back left, just chopped out of pic) Green wooden drum, and Donut, the highchair Giraffe next to it
• Wooden spatula
• Home made shaker, made with pasta and screw-top plastic milk container
• (back right, partly chopped out of pic) ELC Activity Gym - much loved by J, what would we have done without it? She's grown out of the arch now, but the mat still gets much use.
  
• Variety of books. Since I think books are the acceptable face of spoiling J now has gazillions of them. The Alison Jay is my favourite, because the illustrations are so beautiful. Hungry Caterpillar is simply a classic, and Jam-beans fave is the Baby Touch one.
• Polo, the rattle with the hole. Well chewed. And it's machine washable. A hit with bub and mum.

• Froggy rattle - oddly enough being played with which is rare since I really don't like this toy and very rarely get it out.
• V-tech ball - a Nani purchase from the charity shop. Heavy. Noisy. Irritating American accents. J loves it, of course.
• Bear. Not suitable for under 3s. A gift. Say no more.
• More of My First Book, as described above.
• Baby Einstein Turtle, nicknamed Touchy. J really grew with this toy, so got lots of play out of it. At first it was the music, then the crinkles, then the teething rings, then everything.
• Wooden green drum from ELC. We showed this to her in the shop and she just reached out for it and started drumming there and then. Probably the first toy we have bought her that she has actually played with as it was intended. She loves drumming. She loves this drum. She also loves picking it up and hurling it all over the floor. And getting it to roll

• Donut the highchair giraffe again.
• Whoozit buggy toy. Lots of babies love Whoozit, but J never really took to this one with much gusto.
• Rings from ELC. Essential for clipping things to things, for loading up the activity gym with more toys than you can shake a stick at, for doing Magic Tricks for the bub (very bad ones) and for making impromptu rattles.