Buying Your Child's First Stuffed Animal

Safety issues and ideas for buying a newborn toy.

So the most precious gift life has to offer has been bestowed upon you. You have many decisions to make. Is it a girl or a boy? What theme do you want to use? However, one of the most important things to take into consideration is safety. Statistics show that hundreds of thousands of babies are examined in the emergency room each year for choking. Be careful and check the toy closely if it has moving parts that might come off. Baby's strongest sense is oral. Every thing goes into their mouths. Furs and fuzzy fabrics can fluff off. Large stuffed toys can tip over in their cribs and they can suffocate. You also need to consider where you are going to put the toy. If you choose an animated animal which plays a tune or makes noises and lights up with moving parts, put it on a dresser where the child cannot reach it. Last Christmas, my granddaughter was 4 months old and her favorite thing was a Christmas lighted and animated snowman. The lights blinked. It played several Christmas songs, and it moved. If she was fussy, all we had to do was turn it on. The crying stopped. She watched this on and off for quite a while. However, it was not within reach, therefore it was no danger to her.

I have searched the discount stores, the department stores, the catalog and the internet for great first stuffed animals I have found many cute soft toys. These range for $2.99 to 59.99. The safest ones were WASHABLE, a must for babies. These were made of cotton velvet like material so there was no fear of the baby pulling the fur off and it was washable. Many were in bright colors, which babies really like. There were no moving parts and nothing the baby could pull off, like button eyes. These were embroidered eyes. They came in cats and dogs, teddy bears, Winnie the Pooh and Disney characters. A company called Gundy made one of my favorite animals. A kitty, which was pastel, colors, 8 inches tall with no moving parts and had embroidered eyes. It was also washable. The cost was about $12.95.

The most favorite stuffed animal that I came across is a bear called Mommy and Baby Bear. Dex Baby Products make it. The age range advertised for this is 6 months to 2 years but all the reviews were about how great this toy was at one week old. The toy is a mommy and a baby bear so you get two toys for the price of one. It plays music and makes the sounds a baby would hear in the womb. The reviews rave about how fussy babies settle down when the noise is on. It uses two AA batteries and has Velcro straps sp it can be attached to the crib or where ever you need it. It plays the sounds or music for 45 minutes. There fore it would be a great first toy and could be used for later as the child could hang on to the baby bear. Then the mommy bear could be set out of reach and play the music.

The cost of this bear is around $24.99.

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