Toddler Approved Gifts for Parents!!

This post is sponsored by BKY Kid but all opinions are mine. This post also contains Amazon Affiliate links.

Are you looking for a last minute gift for your spouse or for a friend or relative that is a parent of a toddler or preschooler?

In this post we are going to share four ideas that would be quick and easy to put together for parents or friends!

1. Playmat T-Shirt from BKY Kid

We love love loved the Car Playmat Race Car parent/child shirts we tried out earlier this year so we were super excited when we got sent the Outer Space Shirts to check out. The back of the shirt is a playmat so dad or mom can lie down and kids can give them a massage 🙂 while driving their cars on roadways, in space, or even on train tracks. This idea from BKY Kid is genius!

I gave my husband his Outer Space shirt as an early Christmas gift so that we could show it off and let our toddler play with the playmat too. I was happy to hear from my husband that he liked this shirt even better than the last one, which is saying a lot! He thought the Outer Space shirt was a great fit, super comfortable, and he was really excited that it was black, since that is a color he'll wear often! Sometimes when I give him gifts they never see the light of day and get buried in his closet. I was so happy to see him wearing his Outer Space t-shirt around without me encouraging him to wear it. He likes it!

The coordinating kid shirt is absolutely adorable too. I had a hard time getting my toddler to take it off! He loved running around with his cars and then driving them on his tummy.

He also thought it was pretty hysterical when I would have him lie down and I would drive cars around on his tummy. I got some good giggles! We loved learning some new vocabulary words with this Outer Space shirt too- like spaceship, alien, star, planet, etc. Everywhere we go we get compliments on this outer space shirt and his other car mat one. They are quite popular!

2. Parenting Books

If your kids are like mine, you have some days when you want to pull your hair out because some of the stages or behaviors are so challenging. There is nothing better than giving a gift to a spouse or friend that is actually useful, which is why I love giving parenting books.

I wish someone had given me these two books when my oldest (who is now 6) was little. I think I would be such a more organized and calm parent if I'd read these books earlier. Fortunately my younger two kids (ages 4 and 2) are benefitting from the new things I am learning.

Janet Lansbury's book No Bad Kids: Toddler Discipline without Shame is fabulous.

 You can read my review and thoughts on the book here in my post called Toddler Discipline without Shame. 

Joshua Becker's book Clutterfree with Kids is one that I often find myself talking about at park playgroups and dinner parties.

You can read my review of the book along with some things I learned from it here in my post called Clutterfree with Kids. I even wrote an additional post called Keeping Your House Organized with Kids after I tried out a few of Josh's strategies. I am far from perfect yet, but I sure have learned a lot!

Do you have any other favorite parenting book resources you've enjoying getting as gifts? I want If I Have to Tell You One More Time by Amy McCready and Peaceful Parent, Happy Kids by Laura Markham.

3. Date with Kids Kit

One thing we did a few years ago as gifts in our family was to create date night kits for the kids to give to their dad. I helped my kids put together bags filled with items so that they could take their dad out on a date! Moms could help kids do this for dads or dads could help kids do this for moms. 

For my son's date he decided he wanted to launch stomp rockets and go swimming with his dad, so we put his bag together with all of the items he'd need for that activity, plus some snacks.

My daughter decided she wanted to go to a local playground and dog park and check out all of the dogs. We also packed her some snacks. She loved it and so did my husband.

You can read more about the date night kits plus some other gift ideas in this crafty gift ideas post I shared at Life Your Way.

4. DIY Gift Cards for a Day Off

I don't know about you, but all I dream about some days is sleeping in as long as I want and time in my house to get my house cleaned and organized without anyone around. That is what I consider a day off. I wouldn't mind a trip to the spa either, but usually a break for me is all about just catching up on life.

Here are some printable gift cards that you could help put together for your spouse or a friend if you want to give them a customized gift card this holiday season...

• DLTK lets you customize your gift certificate.
• Homemade Gift Guru also has some quick and easy certificates to print off.

I love giving the gift of babysitting to some of my girlfriends. I give them a gift card for a specific number of hours that I'll watch their kids. Some have done it for me too... it is priceless!

If you could pick your customized gift card, what would you ask for?

What are some other gifts that you've given to your spouse or friends that they've felt were really useful?

If you are looking for more gift ideas for teachers, friends, etc. pop on over to my Some Gifting pinterest board and see if I have any other ideas that are useful.