A gift a day ideas for toddler

[mitsugirly]

We decided since this is our little ones first cruise, to do a gift a day for her. Nothing expensive, just cheap little $2-$10 items. We find that when she gets a new toy, she is so extremely good and occupied with it and thought it would be a nice "touch" while on the cruise.

 

We are trying to do "themes" with whatever we happen to be doing that day. I'm just looking for some interesting ideas from you great family people. Hoping to find something I haven't thought of. :)

 

We are flying Southwest there, so for the flight I found a cute little die cast airplane:

 

 

For the day we are in Cozumel, we will be doing the Dolphin encounter, so I bought "Echo the Dolphin" beanie babie:

 

 

For Roatan, we will be zip lining with Victor Bodden, then visiting with his monkeys after that (then on to the beach), so I bought a Mooch the monkey beanie:

 

 

I've bought a few small things with star fish, sea shells and such for a beach day.

 

I would love to find some type of "ship" toy, maybe another die cast for the day we get on the ship.

 

Any other ideas would be appreciated. :)

[jlrn366419]

Lauri Toys Toddler Tote http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00006JBKT/?tag=googhydr-20&hvadid=10650645339&ref=pd_sl_2h5jsr5akz_b

 

It contains a little foam ship and plane in addition to the other little puzzles. This is a classic toy that she would probably play with beyond the trip.

 

P.S. good post, I'm interested in all the suggestions others may have.

[mitsugirly]

Oh, I also got a squinkles??? Not sure what they are but a friend said her girls love them and it had a shell with little things that go in it like a mermaid, starfish, whale

 

 

[TheGirlNextDoor]

Cute idea!! I noticed many ship toys in the gift shop onboard the cruise we took last year. You might luck out there... but it sounds like you want to give it to her before you get there.

[ShakyBeef]

The Fun Shop on the ship has a neat little pull-back ship toy with a ship's horn that sounds 3 times when the funnel is pressed down. My 3-yr old loved it! She lost hers last year, so we bought her a new one last month on Glory (she's 5 now) and she is so thrilled to have it again.:) I think it was about $7, but can't remember for sure.

 

https://www.cruise-gifts.com/mwa/image/zoom/pull_back_cruise_ship_1_carnival.jpg

 

You've got a great plan, BTW!;)

 

I take my kids to the dollar store and let them pick out a bunch of new toys to fill a mesenger bag each, a few weeks before the cruise. I don't let them open their bags until we are in the terminal waiting to board. If the toys get lost, no big deal - they were cheap. Their excitement and interest in the new toys lasts the whole cruise.:)

 

PS - My girls love Squinkies (I don't get it)!

[mitsugirly]

Cute idea!! I noticed many ship toys in the gift shop onboard the cruise we took last year. You might luck out there... but it sounds like you want to give it to her before you get there.

 

One of my cruise buddies mentioned that to me as well. I couldn't imagine what it was or looked like.

 

I had wanted to have them in a goody bag or wrapped and hand 1 to her per day. But, if it's something I can't get ahead of time, I guess I'll have to wait. Not that big of a deal.

 

The Fun Shop on the ship has a neat little pull-back ship toy with a ship's horn that sounds 3 times when the funnel is pressed down. My 3-yr old loved it! She lost hers last year, so we bought her a new one last month on Glory (she's 5 now) and she is so thrilled to have it again.:) I think it was about $7, but can't remember for sure.

 

https://www.cruise-gifts.com/mwa/image/zoom/pull_back_cruise_ship_1_carnival.jpg

 

You've got a great plan, BTW!;)

 

I take my kids to the dollar store and let them pick out a bunch of new toys to fill a mesenger bag each, a few weeks before the cruise. I don't let them open their bags until we are in the terminal waiting to board. If the toys get lost, no big deal - they were cheap. Their excitement and interest in the new toys lasts the whole cruise.:)

 

PS - My girls love Squinkies (I don't get it)!

 

That ship is adorable!! Definitely what I'm looking for. I'm cruising NCL. I wonder if they have anything like that. Anyone know?

[ShakyBeef]

One of my cruise buddies mentioned that to me as well. I couldn't imagine what it was or looked like.

 

I had wanted to have them in a goody bag or wrapped and hand 1 to her per day. But, if it's something I can't get ahead of time, I guess I'll have to wait. Not that big of a deal.

 

 

 

That ship is adorable!! Definitely what I'm looking for. I'm cruising NCL. I wonder if they have anything like that. Anyone know?

 

 

Oops, sorry. I don't know why I assumed it was Carnival.:o I don't know if NCL has anything similar.

[ShakyBeef]

It's been a few years since we cruised NCL. All I remember from their gift shop is the inflatable cruise ship bath toy that we brought home for our girls. Sorry.:o

[Woodmnky]

You could get her a camera, either a disposable or a really cheap digital. I've even seen little camcorders for $20. You will have to help her, but it should keep her occupied even if the pics don't turn out. If you decided to do that you could get her a photo album fot the last day.

 

http://www.amazon.com/Fisher-Price-Kid-Tough-Digital-Camera-Pink/dp/B003FZAR1Y

[Warm Breezes]

Bubbles for sail away. Carnival shops sell little towel creatures (smaller/stitched together versions of what you get on your bed)...I can't remember if NCL does that too or not.

[mitsugirly]

Oops, sorry. I don't know why I assumed it was Carnival.:o I don't know if NCL has anything similar.

 

I'm thinking this is a question I could post on the NCL board and maybe get an answer. Thanks A BUNCH for the suggestion. I keep thinking that there was something like this (that made the noise) when we were on NCL last year, but my husband doesn't recall it. I really hope they have something like this. :)

 

You could get her a camera, either a disposable or a really cheap digital. I've even seen little camcorders for $20. You will have to help her, but it should keep her occupied even if the pics don't turn out. If you decided to do that you could get her a photo album fot the last day.

 

http://www.amazon.com/Fisher-Price-Kid-Tough-Digital-Camera-Pink/dp/B003FZAR1Y

 

I do photography (as a hobby) and have a Canon D10 (that I take most of my pictures with while on vacation) and she goes around using it all the time. She has gotten pretty good with it. I know it's an expensive camera, but we'll just have to share. :D

Bubbles for sail away. Carnival shops sell little towel creatures (smaller/stitched together versions of what you get on your bed)...I can't remember if NCL does that too or not.

 

I do know that the NCL ship we were on last year did not have these. That would be a cute idea if they do though.

[Julienatul]

My 2 year-old loves the mini magnetic drawing board with the pen attached. She could "draw" a picture of what she saw that day. Also blow-up beach balls are always a hit.

[mitsugirly]

My 2 year-old loves the mini magnetic drawing board with the pen attached. She could "draw" a picture of what she saw that day. Also blow-up beach balls are always a hit.

 

She already has the magnetic drawing board, so I guess that's out of the question. :(

 

I thought about the beach ball (which we bought one about a month ago and have yet to take it out of the package), but I didn't think it would be the best idea just because I know how windy it can get on the ship and afraid of it going over board. Plus I know from last year, I spent a lot of time "fetching" it. LOL :D

 

Thanks for your thoughts. I appreciate it.

[sparky-elpaso]

One of the captains of Holland America has written a series of books about Peter the cruise ship. I think you can get them on-line from Barnes and Noble or other bookstores. Cute stories and nice illustrations.

[mitsugirly]

One of the captains of Holland America has written a series of books about Peter the cruise ship. I think you can get them on-line from Barnes and Noble or other bookstores. Cute stories and nice illustrations.

 

Excellent idea. I had been looking in the stores to see if I could find anything that might have a ship on it and haven't found anything.

 

I looked it up and actually found the book on half.com for only $4.04. I'm excited. She loves books and usually takes one to bed with her nightly to look at when she wakes up in the mornings. I guess this will be the book she wakes up to on our cruise. :)

 

THANK YOU!

 

(I also noticed they had one for Peter the cruise ship to Alaska. If we ever cruise to Alaska, this will be a must as well. hehe)

[sparky-elpaso]

Excellent idea. I had been looking in the stores to see if I could find anything that might have a ship on it and haven't found anything.

 

I looked it up and actually found the book on half.com for only $4.04. I'm excited. She loves books and usually takes one to bed with her nightly to look at when she wakes up in the mornings. I guess this will be the book she wakes up to on our cruise. :)

 

THANK YOU!

 

(I also noticed they had one for Peter the cruise ship to Alaska. If we ever cruise to Alaska, this will be a must as well. hehe)

 

You're welcome. If I had small kids I would have gotten one on our HAL cruise.

[ehough]

Just wanted to say this is a great idea! We do something similar called "the magic bag". I fill it with cheap toys from the Dollar Store or the Target dollar bins and on our cruise last year, DD (who was 2.5) would blindly pull something from it each evening as a reward for good behavior. It was a great motivator and also eliminated the need to bring a bunch of toys to keep them occupied- this way she got something new every day! Staggering them worked well because by the time she was tired of one toy, it was time for the next.

 

Will you have a DVD player with you or in your room? Maybe find a cheap cruising or tropical island related DVD as a special treat? Not that you want to sit in your room watching TV all day but maybe once on a sea day or to wind down for sleep. My parents brought back a huge inflatable cruise ship for the bath when they were on Royal Caribbean- it was a huge hit with the kids and would be fun to have onboard.

 

Other ideas- Target has pirate themed stuff in their dollar bins now. I got pirate sandwich baggies to pack snacks in for the cruise, but they also have water bottles, bowls, etc. Maybe binoculars or a telescope for standing on deck, looking at animals and other boats? Maybe some kind of foam craft that is sea-related- I've seen these everywhere. For our magic bag I bought foam door signs and foam stickers for the kids to decorate them on board.

[mitsugirly]

I ended up buying the cruise book (back on July 21st) and it still hasn't arrived. :( I'm really hoping I don't get ripped off. I loved this idea and would really like to see her get it.

 

[sparky-elpaso]

I ended up buying the cruise book (back on July 21st) and it still hasn't arrived. :( I'm really hoping I don't get ripped off. I loved this idea and would really like to see her get it.

 

 

Since the website is part of e-bay I wouldn't worry - it's only been a week. You should be able to log in to e-bay to find out the status of your order. Has your credit card been charged yet?

[mitsugirly]

Since the website is part of e-bay I wouldn't worry - it's only been a week. You should be able to log in to e-bay to find out the status of your order. Has your credit card been charged yet?

 

Yes, it was charged right away. I checked the email that the seller sent to me, which stated that they sent it out the very next day. I found it odd that the seller said that it should take about 2-4 weeks to arrive and because it is sent media mail, they have no tracking number. I've purchased plenty of things using half.com (books for school and such) and they arrive before a week is ever up (they were implying that because it was media mail, it takes 2-4 weeks, which I know it usually doesn't). The weird thing is they stated in their email that I need to wait until 8/20/11 for it to arrive before contacting them. 1 month? No, I will not be waiting that long. If it hasn't showed up in a months time, it's not showing up. I can guarantee that. :confused:

 

Keeping my fingers crossed.

[bus man]

We decided since this is our little ones first cruise, to do a gift a day for her. Nothing expensive, just cheap little $2-$10 items. We find that when she gets a new toy, she is so extremely good and occupied with it and thought it would be a nice "touch" while on the cruise.

 

Our upcoming Disney cruise next spring will be the first for our kids. I hadn't planned on doing a gift bag, as I imagine they'll be so excited about being on a cruise ship that they won't even think about toys. (Fingers crossed!)

 

Nevertheless, we're planning on doing something similar, and that is, letting them get an inexpensive souvenir from each of our ports, plus one from the ship. My hope is that these items will serve as fun reminders of what I expect will be a great trip. Plus, the fact that they will get to pick them out themselves will hopefully make them more meaningful to them. (Probably not, but I can hope!)

 

When Peter the Cruise Ship shows up, please give us a review! :)

[mitsugirly]

Our upcoming Disney cruise next spring will be the first for our kids. I hadn't planned on doing a gift bag, as I imagine they'll be so excited about being on a cruise ship that they won't even think about toys. (Fingers crossed!)

 

Nevertheless, we're planning on doing something similar, and that is, letting them get an inexpensive souvenir from each of our ports, plus one from the ship. My hope is that these items will serve as fun reminders of what I expect will be a great trip. Plus, the fact that they will get to pick them out themselves will hopefully make them more meaningful to them. (Probably not, but I can hope!)

 

When Peter the Cruise Ship shows up, please give us a review! :)

 

Sounds like you have a wonderful idea as well. How old are you kids? Since mine is only 3 1/2, I figured I'd do the picking :D . She's not picky, but with my luck she would set her goal on something expensive. LOL

 

I will definitely keep you posted on Peter.

[bus man]

Sounds like you have a wonderful idea as well. How old are you kids? Since mine is only 3 1/2, I figured I'd do the picking :D . She's not picky, but with my luck she would set her goal on something expensive. LOL

 

I will definitely keep you posted on Peter.

 

Thanks! Kids will be 5-1/2 and 3-1/2 at the time of the cruise. When we've gone on (land) vacations, we the parents set a price range (usually $10 max) and then let them pick what they want within that range. It's worked out well so far.

[mitsugirly]

Peter and the cruise ship arrive today. YIPPEE! I bought a "used" book according to half.com. However, this book looks like it's never been opened. It is in perfect shape and way bigger than what I expected. She's going to love this.

 

I have a picture of the Spirit on my desk top and she's constantly pointing and it and saying "boat". She has no clue what's in store for her. :D

 

Thanks so much for this suggestion. I really appreciate it.

[bus man]

Peter and the cruise ship arrive today. YIPPEE! I bought a "used" book according to half.com. However, this book looks like it's never been opened. It is in perfect shape and way bigger than what I expected. She's going to love this.

 

I have a picture of the Spirit on my desk top and she's constantly pointing and it and saying "boat". She has no clue what's in store for her. :D

 

Thanks so much for this suggestion. I really appreciate it.

 

Glad it came! When you're done, I'm eager to hear what you and your kids thought of it.