Gift Ideas for a Baby Girl Turning 3 Years Old

As tiny as three year olds appear, that little bundle of yours is probably surprising you each day by her growing independence. She likes to chatter endlessly with her limited vocabulary and is always insisting on doing things herself, from clumsy attempts to dressing herself to eating food. Sure she creates a mess but nothing that a little patience on your part cannot balance; these are all good signs and show she is on the right track, let her do as much as she wants to, help out when she needs assistance and soon she will learn to do a lot more.

She is also prone to the occasional temper tantrums when she doesn't get her way or wants to show displeasure, but they are definitely better than the ones she had as a two-year old. She wants to make new friends, help you with chores and do small things for herself - such as carry her plate back to the kitchen. Let her do all this, in fact give her small tasks she can easily complete to boost her confidence. Keeping all this in mind will also help you select appropriate gifts for her. Children grow and develop so quickly, and the right tools and toys can make all the difference. Don't buy her things for much older kids but do not even underestimate her capabilities.

At 3 years your little angel can squiggle and even make drawings that start resembling people, faces and objects; she is so fidgety she can barely sit still and playing with something like a ball will harness some of this energy and improve her balance and coordination. She most likely has loved to play with play dough for a while but now she can make simple discernible objects. Keep track of her growth and development and buy toys that help improve these further, take note of areas where she is lagging behind and look for fun games that will simultaneously help her. Play constitutes a valuable form of learning for children and educational toys can be the best options to buy as gifts.

We all know better than to hand her toys with small parts that she can accidently swallow and choke on, or let her wander near things with sharp edges but there are several other things to consider when trying to keep her safe from harm's way. Three year olds are notoriously fond of putting things in their mouth, they throw and bang things for fun as well as to express displeasure, and anything that can fit in her mouth must be chewed and tasted. Look for sturdy toys that can withstand the assault without breaking apart, paint that doesn't peel off, and is made from non-toxic material. There is only so much monitoring that parents and caregivers can manage, for the rest, the best you can do is ensure that if she does chew her toys, they won't harm her.

Children have very active imaginations which is why you will see her pretending to be someone else, or draping herself in your clothes and acting like you or someone she has seen. She is also starting to sympathise with characters in books and her cartoon shows. Games and toys that encourage role play and games of make believe are a crucial form of developing her thinking skills. Dress up clothes, kitchen sets, cleaning play sets, anything that lets her imitate the people and situations around her are great toy options for her. The more details in her make believe world, the better her analytical and thinking skills will be.

Art material like crayons, colour pencils and paints are great ways to encourage self expression and creativity in 3 year olds. They are still learning to grasp and hold objects so look for easy-grip crayons and colours. Pair these with simple colouring books with large pictures or blank sheets of paper. Since kids tend to have blurred concepts of colouring between the lines, or sticking to the paper in front of them, you may want to invest in washable art material. They may also end up in her mouth and should be non-toxic and suitable for kids.

Faber-Castell First Grip Crayon Set is a pack of 6 colours in a thick, triangular shape that makes them easy to grip. The wrappers are in the same colour as the crayons and have the names of colours on each of them, making it easy to identify and learn colours. The thick shape comes in handy to make big pictures and cover larger surface areas. They can be used from both ends, are resistant to breaking, non-flaky, smooth and long lasting. Safe for children to use, they can also be washed off most clothes and surfaces. Buy the pack for Rs.125 on Amazon.

Playing with a dollhouse develops interpersonal skills, boosts her creativity through role play and also teaches her responsibility and empathy as she has to look after her dolls and care for them in the dollhouse, much the same way a parent cares for her. They do tend to have small parts so pick a dollhouse suitable for her age and ensure it is made of good quality, non-toxic material and paint.

Ecojoy Wooden Doll House is wooden dollhouse that is safe and also eco-friendly. It comes with 50 playing pieces, some of which are small in size but it has been deemed fit for ages 3 years and above by the manufacturer. It is easy to assemble and dismantle with little help from an adult as it doesn’t have to be assembled using nuts and bolts. Buy it for Rs.2,999 on First Cry.

As her balance and hand-eye coordination improves, she will enjoy using a scooter. It is difficult to keep her still anyway and she will love the thrill of the advanced mobility on a baby scooter.

Disney Frozen Sister Forever Design 2 Wheel Scooter in blue and pink is just the thing for her. Designed for ages 3 years to 10 years, it is lightweight and adjustable to accommodate her growth over the coming years. It is a manual push scooter so she has to propel it forward with one foot. It’s easy grip handles, wide stance for improved balance and stability, a skid resistant foot plate and easy to use brake make it ideal for a small child. Plus she will appreciate the Frozen theme. Buy it for Rs.1,064 on firstcry.com.

Play dough is an all time favourite with kids and generations of children have grown up with the pleasures if its squishy, soft texture. If tubs of plain play dough seem like no fun to give as a gift, take things up a notch with Funskool Playdoh Breakfast Buffet; it has a 4.4 out of 5 stars rating on Amazon.

What makes it stand out from the other options available is it comes with moulds to make a waffles and fried eggs breakfast! They are designed to be used by small children and she can even make vegetables and fruits, and a full buffet spread with this kit. Bring out the chef in her even as she hones her fine motor skills. The play dough is made from non-toxic materials and is safe for children. The kit comes with moulds, tubs of coloured dough, an extruder to extract dough from the moulds and even a set of cutlery. Buy it for Rs.349 on Amazon. For an extra Rs.169 you can also throw in an additional pack of multicolour Funskool-Fundough Fun Pack.

With increased mobility, children this age enjoy toys they can pull along with them as they run around the house. Toys they can hold, pull or push on their adventures around the garden, playground or at home are thoroughly appreciated. These toys serve as companions for your child, much like a pet would. Soft dolls, pull along toys, push carts and toy prams are all good options.

Funskool Twirlly Whirlly Turtle will serve as a great companion. The adorable turtle with a white sailor hat is a simple toy that she can pull along wherever she goes. The inner shells of the turtle spin right around and move with her as she suddenly changes course of direction, and the turtle changes colours as it moves, providing her with visual stimulation. But it for Rs.158 on Amazon.

The best way to encourage imaginative play is to give her open ended toys that don’t come with specific instructions or purpose; That way she can assign these toys any role she can come up with. The Teeter Popper is a good example of such a toy. It is a curved, concave plastic board fitted with tiny silicone suction cups attached to the curved bottom that pop when the board is sat or stood in and rocked, thus giving it its name. She can use it to spin, wobble, stand, sit, rock or tilt, or even wear it like a hat if she wishes. How she uses it is completely up to her which makes it a lot of fun for kids of various ages.

Apart from providing her immense fun, it also works on her core and leg strength, and improves coordination, balance and gross-motor skills. Available in blue, green and pink, buy it for Rs.2,647 on Fat Brain Toys.

So she likes to doodle, a lot. And you may be running out of paper and surfaces for her to create her artful masterpieces. We suggest you buy her an easel or a magnetic doodle board that can be wiped clean with one magical sweep and she can start scribbling all over again. Nothing replaces the experience of crayon sticks on paper but sometimes cleaning up can become a challenge.

The Fisher-Price Doodle Pro Slim has a big magnetic drawing screen to give plenty of room to her creativity and comes with four shape stampers - square, triangle, circle and star. The pen and stampers can be secured to the board which simplifies clean up and storage. To clean the board simply slide the eraser across and give her a fresh page to start all over on. Buy it for Rs.1,725 on Amazon.

Send her imagination spinning in the right direction with this set of magnetic dolls that come with a full wardrobe for her to try on them. Melissa and Doug’s Abby & Emma Magnetic Dress-Up is a play set with two magnetic dolls and a range of clothing and accessories to dress them up in. There are 56 pieces of clothing that are fitted with magnets so they easily snap onto the dolls and can quickly be removed and changed. The dolls come with stands to keep them upright, each doll standing about 8 inches tall. Your 3 year old will have plenty of fun assigning different clothes and roles to her dolls. Buy the set on Fat Brain Toys for Rs.1,286.

Three year olds like to imitate what they see people doing and you would find her trying to copy you doing household chores. Keep her out of your hair and engaged with her own chores with a set of fruit and vegetables she can slice. Zaid Collection’s 15 piece Realistic Sliceable Fruits and Vegetable Cutting Set comes with a basket, a chopping board, plastic knife and even a plate and spoon to complete her kitchen experience. She can pair it with other toys or pretend she is helping you out in the kitchen. The fruits and vegetables are made of two pieces each, attached together with velcro and ‘slice’ in half with the plastic knife. It’s a good way to teach her about healthy eating. Buy the set for Rs.450 on Amazon.

Stickers, especially educational and informative ones, are a wonderful way to teach her new things, make games more interesting and interactive. Reusable stickers can also be used as a form of play by creating different landscapes for her to use her own imagination on. Such as these Melissa and Doug Reusable Sticker Pad-Habitats. There are over 150 reusable stickers depicting 5 different habitats - desert oasis, a jungle, the deep blue sea, a farm, and even a prehistoric landscape. The stickers comes with a glossy book that provides the backdrop to use these stickers on. The easy-to-peel vinyl stickers are very interactive and can easily be removed and replaced over and over again to teach her about each of these different habitats or just to make a funny scene by mixing them up for a laugh. Buy the set for Rs.395 on Amazon where it has a rating of 4.3 out of 5 stars.

People tend to spend a lot more freely on kids than they do on themselves and it is quite natural to want the best for your child, or to want to lavish gifts on a sweet niece or granddaughter. However, at 3 years old the little one is not demanding and will be pleased with just about any toy. There are ways to nurture her growth and development through activities and games with simple and inexpensive material too. Children also outgrow their personal items and games rather rapidly, so opt for toys that can be used for at least a couple of years over cute but easily phased out games.

Budget wisely before you go gift shopping as the options available, as well your your own feelings can overwhelm you at the store and you may end up buying something unsuitable or over priced. It is important to pay attention to quality of the toys but consider your options and view other similar products to compares prices and quality before paying for an expensive toy.