You see your grandchild a few times a year. Sometimes on a screen, sometimes at a visit. You want to send something for Christmas that the child will love and use, not a guess. Below are six picks from our own line, and the checks to make before you order.
What can grandparents give a toddler for Christmas?
Give something tied to what the child loves right now. Size it for the child as they are today, not as they will be in two years. Make sure it arrives ready to give. Then add a gift a store can't sell: time. A picture book you read together at the next visit counts as a real gift. So does a game on the floor. And before you shop, call the parents. Ask what is already coming, so the child doesn't open four of the same thing.
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), the U.S. product safety agency, has holiday advice for people buying toys. It says to choose toys that match each child's interests and abilities. Interests are what the child loves. Abilities are what the child can do today. ZERO TO THREE, a U.S. nonprofit that works on early childhood, names the gift that misses: "We all know the feeling of buying a toy a child plays with for two days and never touches again." So the big moment under the tree is not the test. The test is whether the child still plays with it a week later.
The part that is yours is knowing the child as they are today. You may see the child on a screen or at a visit, and two-year-olds don't stay the same size for long. The parents know which animal the child loves this month and what is already coming. If you are the parent, tell the family both before they shop. That is why our picks are small backpacks with a removable plush animal on the front: you pick the animal the child already loves.
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The picks
1. Best for the grandchild who loves unicorns
Naturally KIDS Toddler Backpack with Plush Purple Unicorn Toy
A small backpack, 10 × 8 × 3 inches, with a removable plush unicorn on the front. The child can take the unicorn out for a hug and put it back. It has side and inner pockets, a bottle holder and a label for personalization inside, so you can write the child's name before you wrap it. It arrives gift-ready in a kraft box.
2. For the little dinosaur fan
Naturally KIDS Toddler Backpack with Plush Green Dinosaur Toy
The same small backpack with a removable plush T-Rex. The T-Rex is soft corduroy, with soft felt teeth. There is room for a snack and a treasure, and a label inside for the child's name.
3. For the child who loves another animal
Naturally KIDS Toddler Backpack with Plush Teddy Bear Toy
Not every toddler is into dinosaurs or unicorns, so ask the parents which animal the child does love. This small backpack has a removable plush teddy bear on the front. It also comes with a dog, a giraffe, a frog and other animals. See them all in our catalog of backpacks with plush animals.
4. If the child needs a bigger size
Naturally KIDS Medium Backpack with Plush Brown T-Rex Toy
The medium backpack is a bigger size: 11.5 × 10 × 3.5 inches. Ask the parents to hold a tape measure up to the child's back, and choose between the small and the medium. The medium comes with a removable T-Rex, triceratops or unicorn. It has side and inner pockets, a bottle holder and a label for the child's name.
5. If you want more to unwrap
Naturally KIDS Toddler Dinosaur Backpack with Plush Dinosaur Toys
A set: a small backpack, a 9-inch plush and 4 mini plush dinosaurs. The mini animals are sized for kids' hands. There are unicorn sets too. The set arrives gift-ready in a kraft box.
6. If the child already has a backpack
Naturally KIDS Plush Dinosaur Toys, Set of 6 with Magic Bag
Send a set of six small plush dinosaurs instead: a T-Rex, a mosasaurus, a spinosaurus, a triceratops, a brachiosaurus and a stegosaurus. Each one is 3 to 6 inches high, with a drawstring bag for easy carrying. There are unicorn sets of six too.
How to choose a gift the child will use
These steps go from the first phone call to the reading time after. Two of them come from public advice: the CDC's tips for parents of toddlers and Raising Children Network's page for grandparents.
- Call the parents before you shop. Don't ask "what should I get?" Ask "what's already coming?", and claim your gift, so nobody else buys the same one.
- Don't buy blind. The age on the box is only half the check; the other half is inches. Look up the real size and picture the child next to it, because a backpack that hangs past the knees doesn't get worn.
- Check how it ships. Some gifts arrive in a box you can wrap as is. Others come in a mailer, and the parents have to find wrapping paper at night.
- Read reviews from the right buyers. Look for people who bought for a child the same age, and see what they say about the size.
- Count a book as a real gift. The CDC's tips for parents of toddlers include this one: "Set up a special time to read books with your toddler." Bring a picture book to the next visit and read it together; if the family asked for no more toys, send the book instead.
- Read on a video call if you live far away. Raising Children Network, an Australian parenting site supported by the Australian Government, says: "Try doing activities as well as talking. For example, you could play games together while you chat or read to your grandchild on a video chat."
Our small and medium backpacks and the backpack sets arrive gift-ready in a kraft box, so the parents do not have to find one.
What this means for your family
Start with a phone call, not a store. Ask the parents what is already coming, and claim your gift. Pick something tied to what the child loves now and to what the child can do today. Check the size in inches and the age on the box, not just the picture. Check how it ships, so it arrives ready to give. Then add time: a book you read together, at the next visit or on a video call. If you are the parent, share the child's favorite animal and size with the family before they shop. Our pick for a grandparent's gift is a small backpack with the plush animal the child already loves. We make these for children who know exactly which animal is theirs, and for the grandparents who want to get the gift right.
Sources
- U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) — Don't Be Left Out in the Cold This Holiday Season with Unsafe Presents: Buy from Trusted Sources
- ZERO TO THREE — Tips for Choosing Toys for Toddlers
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) — Positive Parenting Tips: Toddlers (2–3 years old)
- Raising Children Network — Grandparents and grandchildren
Frequently asked questions
Yes. The small and medium Naturally KIDS backpacks with a removable plush, and the sets of a backpack with mini plush animals, arrive gift-ready in a kraft box. That makes two gifts in one box: a backpack and a plush friend. You can give the box as it comes, or wrap it.
It holds snacks, a water bottle, wipes, a small toy, or a thin book, and a small lunchbox. It is deliberately toddler-sized — enough for a daycare day, not for school.
Yes. The plush animal sits on the front of the backpack, and your child can take it out for a hug and put it back. The backpack and the plush are both 100% polyester. The plush stays soft and holds its shape hug after hug.
The small backpack comes with a removable plush unicorn, T-Rex, triceratops, dog, mouse, frog, husky wolf, teddy bear or giraffe. The medium comes with a T-Rex, a triceratops or a unicorn. The T-Rex and triceratops plush toys are made of corduroy, and the T-Rex has soft felt teeth.
Yes. There are sets of six small plush animals. The dinosaur set has a T-Rex, a mosasaurus, a spinosaurus, a triceratops, a brachiosaurus and a stegosaurus, each 3 to 6 inches high. One version comes with a drawstring bag for easy carrying. There are unicorn sets of six too.