By Kerrie Simon-Lawrence, MD® Editor
OK mamas, let’s pour ourselves a glass of somethin’-somethin’ and let’s chat toddler.
Raise your hand if you are all out of ideas for what to do with your mini to keep them entertained at home?
Keep that hand up in the air if you really want to spend quality time with your little person, but just haven’t found that ‘thing’ to bond over yet (that you both enjoy).
Ok, lean in close because we’ve got the answer you’ve been searching for at the bottom of the toybox. It’s LEGO® DUPLO®, mama. #Create something cool, connect with your babe. It’s a game-changer on all levels.
Think traditional LEGO®, but for smaller people. DUPLO pieces are bigger, the colours are brighter and the challenges are age-appropriate for your boo. Your mind will be blown as you watch your mini-me create scenarios, role play and build structures. They absolutely loveeee it!
And rather than spend your bonding time requesting they not spill the paint / draw on the walls / lick the swings at the park, you can find yourself a clear patch of floor and get involved.
There are LOADS of DUPLO options to choose from, but in our opinion, animals are always a safe bet, especially if this is your first foray into the world of DUPLO with your little person.
Get your hands on the Tropical Island set, and watch your bebe’s imagination shift into overdrive at the very sight of the elephants, tigers, monkeys and toucans! Their fine motor skills will be put to the test as they build palm trees, platforms, even a pully-system.
Alternatively, grab the World Animals set, and go on a global tour with your babe as you meet the giraffes and lions of Africa, the whales and penguins of the North Pole, Asia’s pandas, Europe’s deer and rabbits, South America’s toucan and Central America’s squirrels. The set comes complete with a surfer dad and child (along with their boards and Combi van), a canoeing mama and child, and an aeroplane because, of course.
And then, take your #DUPLO in the bath, we say! Grab the Submarine Adventure set. All the bricks (how cute is the flippered and snorkel’d little dude?!) are waterproof and add a whole new level of learning to creative play. The yellow submarine floats and makes air bubbles, while the coral, clownfish, whale and seagull lend themselves to chats about the animals that live in and around our oceans.
There’s something you should know though. Once you’ve become a DUPLO fam, it can be hard to pack it away at the end of the day. As with #LEGO bricks, it has endless opportunities to create and, yep, there’s a good chance you and your baby-daddy will be building towers and DUPLO kingdoms long after the kiddos have gone to bed.
Seriously, it’s our fav toddler toy ever. Don’t attempt toddlerhood without it!
