Playtime made easy

Discovering Lovevery Playkits

Hi Straw Baby Club,

Hope you are all well :)

A huge welcome to those who have recently joined us!

This week I wanted to share with you some toys that have really made a huge difference in our household.

You’ve probably seen lots about them on Instagram, like I had, as the Lovevery Play Kits seem to be everywhere. I had always thought they looked really interesting and loved that they were created for specific age groups and designed to be really engaging. Up until this point in time we had just been making do with the various toys we had been given or picked up from friends and it was only recently that Cosmo showed a real interest in emptying all of the kitchen cupboards and more importantly trying to put everything back in. Which spurred me into thinking that maybe be was ready to upgrade his toys and have a bit more of a challenge (as well as giving our utensils a break).

We then received the Lovevery ‘The Thinker’ Play Kit (for 11-12 months) and I can honestly say his playtime has completely changed. From the minute it arrived he was fascinated with the packaging, it was like he just knew something exciting for him was inside it. Once we’d finally got into the parcel he was very calm but interacted with every toy inside the box straight away, including the play guide booklet.

There are some bright colours in the box but not overwhelmingly so and it’s mostly made up of Montessori inspired wooden toys. Some of them I imagined would be a bit advanced for him and I was blown away when he just started playing with them perfectly.

His absolute favourite piece from this kit was his baby doll. I wasn’t sure how he would react to it but he holds it, smiles & brings it in for a huge hug whenever he sees it, it’s incredibly sweet.

Included in the box is also a play guide which suggests a timeline for introducing each toy as well as other activities you can do with a child in this age range and what I loved was how it suggested new ways you can use toys from previous play kits for evolving age ranges.

In all honesty, the price point was what held me back from buying the kits at first as it felt a bit expensive for toys. After all, it’s quite an adjustment even having to think about adding toys as an expense of your life whereas before I would probably have been spending my money on clothes for myself. But after seeing just how much Cosmo has been interested in them have really converted me. I also now don’t have to worry that he is being engaged enough or bored, he’s also a lot more focused whilst playing them which is a bonus for us!

You can either buy the Lovevery Play Kits as one off kits or sign up to their subscription service which deliveries your next kits to you automatically when your child is due to upgrade to the next level, making our lives just that one bit easier and giving us one less thing to remember.

For those interested in what was inside Cosmo’s play kit, Lovevery offer the following description…

“Your baby is starting to put it all together and understand concepts at a deeper level. This Play Kit encourages your baby to define and organise information while engaging their budding imagination.”

They also include the following Parent to Parent reminder which I absolutely love. I try not to take any notice of milestones really and firmly believe that Cosmo will come to things when he’s ready, but it is nice to read things like this for reassurance…

“Your baby’s development path is unique. Development happens in age ranges that can span weeks, even months. There’s a lot of emphasis on ‘milestones’ and it can be hard not to compare your baby with others. Lovevery is here to help you focus on what’s important to you and your baby, and can help you tune into what your baby wants to learn at each stage.”

Included in ‘The Thinker’ kit is the following;

Animals I See mini book

A little hard book containing pictures of some of Comso’s favourite animals. They recommend offering this book during a nappy change to distract baby which I can confirm has worked for us!

Its also so lovely to see Cosmo holding books with both hands, sometimes it’s upside down but he looks so sweet ‘reading’ a book.

Organic Cotton Baby Doll

Designed to be a play friend and to give your baby a chance to practice learning parts of the body. C finds it hilarious when I take off ‘Sergio’s’ (named by his dad) Baby grow to reveal his little embroidered belly button. These dolls are inspired by the dolls used in Waldorf educational programmes and are designed to be neutral and simple, therefore promoting creativity & imagination.

Opposite Balls

Two identical blue plastic balls except one is heavy and one is light. The fascination that spreads over C’s face when he realises they are different is amazing. Lovevery suggest taking them in the bath to show how the light one floats which is on our to do list.

Sliding Top Box

Designed to build your baby’s hand & finger strength as well as develop their hand -eye coordination. It’s also works on problem solving skills whilst they figure out how to move the lid to find the ball inside.

This one was a challenge for Cosmo to begin with, the ball is ever so slightly too big to ‘drop’ into the hole and needs a little push to get it inside. He absolutely did not have time for that at first but a week later is now pushing it down with the palm of his hand and easily sliding the green lid to reveal it hiding. Watching him really learn something in real time has been so rewarding!

Sensory switchboard

For us, this is currently the only toy in the play kit that Cosmo has shown no interest in. I’ve offered guidance. Pressing all the buttons and making the noises to encourage him but so far nothing. I have every faith it will come and know it will be so much fun for him when he gets there.

Lovevery describe this toy as ‘schema play’. This toy allows baby’s to form a cognitive blueprint for how the physical world works by encouraging the repetition of a behaviour (like flipping a light switch on and off).

Pincer puzzle

The Pincer puzzle was an instant hit in our household. Such a simple little toy that has kept C distracted for a long time! Cosmo loves to pick tiny things up with his fingers, usually grains of sweetcorn or peas but he really enjoys picking this up and putting back in the hole, very satisfying.

Wooden Peg Drop

And finally, the wooden peg drop. The three coloured blocks can be posted through the holes at the top of the toy which then fall through and make a noise which helps them practice their motor skills. There’s also a tab release on the side which can be adjusted to hold the pegs in place and delay the drop - perfect for creating a problem solving challenge.

Of course there is still a very big place in our lives for soft toys, building blocks and kitchen utensils but I am very glad I tried this kit as it’s really opened up a new world of play for us. From speaking with Lovevery and getting to know their products a little better, they have very very kindly given a generous discount code to share with Straw Baby Club.

Lovevery are offering SBC a huge £40 off new Play Kit Subscriptions using our code LOVESTRAWBABY40 - I hope those of you who have also been interested in trying these kits can use this amazing code to give them a go! (Terms & Conditions are at the bottom of this newsletter)

Next week I’ll be back talking about our 12th month and what it’s like to be a mother of a 1 year old - it never feels any less crazy to write that!

Hope you all have a fantastic weekend

Love,

Emily

Straw Baby Club