Baby toys need to be durable, comforting and stimulating all at the same time. This is one of the reasons that stuffed animals that can also recite the alphabet are so popular. They can stand up to great abuse, they can be cuddled with and that alphabet song will keep your child entertained for hours.

Babies love to explore and quality baby toys can promote this. They love anything that makes noise or has texture to it. Babies, after all, are still discovering the world. They are curious about everything and want to make sure that they explore everything they come across. This means that everything needs to be touched, smelled and (very often) tasted. Your child isn't chewing on the coffee table because they don't know better, they are chewing on the coffee table to see if they like the way it tastes! Playing is how babies explore and learn.

Babies respond best to toys that are brightly coloured and have interesting textures. The bright colours aren't just cheerful; studies have shown that the bright colours can help to stimulate your child's visual development. Anything that provides a large amount of contrast is good because it will teach the baby how to differentiate between colours. There is a reason the Touch and Feel board books by the Dorling Kindersley publishers are so popular. Those are books that have big pictures in bright colours, are durable enough to be chewed on and often feature a new texture for the baby to touch.

Toys that encourage babies to do something are very popular among the under-two-years set. Toys that will reward the baby with a noise when a button is pushed are always a good idea. Babies will grow restless very quickly when given a toy that does not do much, if anything at all. There is, after all, a reason that the teddy bear sits quietly by while you get to listen to 'A sheep says baa-a-a-a-a' for the four thousandth time in a row.

Babies are a lot of fun to play with and making sure that your baby has the right toys are a great way to make sure that everybody enjoys play time.

About the Author

Gary writes about toddler and baby toys for his website and blog and sells a wide range of quality toddler and baby toys at his website www.monkeyshine.co.uk