My son was given his first wooden train set for Christmas, and he loved it!

It was actually a gift from his Grandparents who were keen to buy him a classic children’s toy and hit upon the idea of a BRIO wooden train set.

However a little bit of Internet research on Grandma’s behalf showed that by spending your money on cheaper alternatives your money bought more trains and more tracks!

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BRIO Alternatives

Typically we found that the basic branded wooden train sets, such as BRIO or Thomas the Tank Engine,  would come with enough pieces to make a rather dull circular track.  But by buying one from elsewhere you can a whole lot more, enough track to build a more complicated circuit as well as a number of accessories to plant along the route.

Here are some wooden rail tracks to investigate:

• Big Jigs
• Early Learning Centre (UK)
• John Lewis (UK)

Most of these alternatives claim to be compatible with one another, however it might be worth checking with your supplier if the person receiving the gift has already started building a collection.

However, to date, we’ve had no compatibility difficulties; the track slots together perfectly and the trains link up without any problems. If you find two sets that don’t play nice, please let us know.

If you are adding to an existing set then a battery powered train is another great gift idea.  We bought one of these for my son to add to his new track and it was a great success.  Not only did he love watching it go round the track but he got it running over the bed, across the hall way and everywhere else!

UK	US
Bigjigs Wooden Railw... £10.10	Bigjigs Assorted Exp... $24.99
Bigjigs Train Washer £8.35	Bigjigs Wooden Expan... $16.75
Bigjigs Railway Stat... £11.99	BigJigs Wooden Expan... $8.00

My son loves doing puzzles, it’s a real pleasure to watch him figures out how to get all the pieces in the right place.

It’s also a reliable way to distract him and calm him down when we are trying to quieten things down before bed time.

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Puzzles for Toddlers

The first puzzles to look at are the ones where you need to fit cut out wooden shapes into the appropriate holes.

Every child is different so it can be hard to choose the right level of challenge for the right toddler. If you are buying a gift for someone else’s kid then I would suggest a safe bit is to go for something more advanced if you are unsure. Then at least they will be able to grow into it.

For what it’s worth I can share my own experience, but of course all children develop at their own rate:

• By the age of one my son was happy to play with the basic puzzles, for example simple shapes such as circles and squares.  But he got the hang of these soon after.
• The next level would be to buy a puzzle with more complicated shapes and more places to put them.  It now takes greater skill and dexterity to finish it off.
• After the age of two you might want to consider basic jigsaws, but probably only up to half dozen pieces or so.

Puzzles are great fun for toddlers and an activity I enjoy alongside my son too.

UK	US
Melissa & Doug Vehic... £2.34	Melissa & Doug Delux... $5.97
Melissa & Doug Farm ... £2.47	Melissa & Doug Const... $5.00
Melissa & Doug Safar... £2.47	Melissa & Doug Shape... $5.08

I always remember enjoying crawling through tunnels when I was little, and it seems this pass time is a timeless classic!

It is common for nurseries and play groups to have these kind of toys, but actually they aren’t too expensive to buy for a toddler.

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Note: This does assume you have space for these things, you do need a good sized room if you’re going to have little ones running around!

Home Soft Play

We bought a tunnel and tent set for our son for his first birthday, and he enjoyed crawling through it from day one. But it really came into its own as he got a little older and started running around, diving through, jumping over and everything else.

A popular way to keep our son happy on a cold rainy afternoon in the winter months is to set up our own “soft play” room at home. We filled the paddling pool with balls, got the cushions off the sofa and place them around the floor, got out the pop up ten and of course laid out the play tunnel.

I can speak for our own little one and say that it would make an otherwise slow afternoon fly by in the blink of an eye, whilst making sure they get some exercise and are fully tired out, ready for bed.

If you are buying a birthday present for your own toddler, or for a friend’s, the pop up tunnel will be appreciated by parents and kids alike.

UK	US
Caterpillar Tunnel £15.99	Melissa & Doug Happy... $16.97
Pop Up Tent £12.99	Pacific Play Tents F... $34.99
Worlds Apart Generic... £12.99	Pop up Play Tent 3pc... $26.99

Whilst I will be encouraging my little boy to grow up into a modern man who’s not afraid to get his hands dirty in the kitchen, I can’t help but want to get him some proper boys toys along the way.

So when the Mrs bought him a pots and pans set for his birthday I had to retaliate by buying him his first tool kit! Similarly, I see no reason why daughters shouldn’t be encouraged to tackle the DIY basics, so this makes a great present either way.

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Toy Tool Kits

I have to say that the Tool Kit was a great success (and actually, so were the pots and pans!).  My son’s favourite being the hammer which he quickly worked out was for bashing things with (usually Daddy).

We went for the vTech First Tool Kit set which plays tunes and encourages interaction.  The counting out as we hammer the nails is a much repeated activity in our household.

However there are all kinds of options suitable for a toddler, for example you might want to consider:

• Traditional Wooden Tool Kits
• Interactive battery powered Kits
• Soft and safe plush Kits for younger babies
• Construction sets for older children

Great for letting little ones play along when Dad is attempting to do real handyman jobs!

UK	US
VTech My First Tool ... £36.95	Aurora Plush Baby 6"... $17.33
Melissa and Doug Tak... £5.88	Melissa & Doug Toolb... $13.99
Fisher-Price Laugh &... £20.00	Lamaze My First Tool... $17.59

Puppet books are fantastic! I love them, my son loves them. If you give one as a gift, the kid will love them and the parents will love reading them!

As far as I know, the puppet book idea is relatively new, or at least I didn’t seem any of them when I was a child.

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Bring a Story to Life

If you are unfamiliar with the concept, a puppet book comes with a hand puppet built into the centre of the book.  You place your hand into the puppet, and as you read the story you get to have all kinds of fun with your toddler, I do everything from:

• Make the puppet talk in silly voices
• Get it to pull crazy faces
• Chase after my sons nose
• ..and sometimes I even act along to the story!

There are a whole range of these books, but I’d recommend starting out with the Sam Lloyd books.   This charming series feature a range of monster creations from Boris to Doris appearing in a range of brightly illustrated stories.  Perfect for bedtime stories.

UK	US
Turn it Up Doris! (P... £2.99	Calm Down, Boris! (P... $7.10
You're Not so Scary ... £3.68	Wendy the Wide-Mouth... $7.00
Calm Down Boris! £3.70	You're Not So Scary,... $8.01

Is your partner, Dad or Granddad (or even Grandma!) a Whisky drinker? Don’t know the first thing about how to chose a fine bottle? This little guide should point you in the right direction.

In my case it’s my brothers who would be partial to a 25 year old Glenmorangie!

In this post we’ll take you through the basic principles to buying Whisky and ensure you’ll get a great present for your friend or relative.

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What is Whisky?

The one thing that Whisky from around the world has in common is that it is made from fermented grain. After that there are many different recipes and variations found all around the world, but for the purpose of this article and for buying a birthday present, we’ll stick to the world renowned Scottish Whisky.

There are three types available:

• Malt whisky: This is produced from 100% malted barley
• Grain whisky:  Made from a variety of cereals, which may or may not include a proportion of malted barley
• Blended whisky: A combination of malt and grain whisky

The Whisky is then produced by grinding the cereal to a coarse flour and steeping it in hot water. The resultant liquid (wort) is cooled, yeast added and the result is a strong ale, which is then distilled.

In Scotland, all Whiskies will be aged for at least 3 yeas in an Oak cask and will be at least 40% (abv).

So How Can I Choose a Whisky?

The following tips will help you choose the perfect Whisky gift for your friend or relatives birthday.

Regions

Scotland is divided into four producing regions which each deliver their own unique characteristics.

Islay:  Traditionally pungent, smoky, medicinal and intense, malts from the island of Islay take their characteristics from the peat used to dry the barley, and their proximity to the sea.

Highland Malts:  Speysides, from the banks of the river Spey, are the sweetest of all Highland malts.  From the northern half of the country, they are elegant and well flavoured.  They tend to have more complex, fruity tones and a richness and delicacy.

Lowland Malts:  These are drier than their Highland counterparts. They are usually lighter and slightly more spirity.

Speyside: The Speyside region is located within the Highlands, but the Speyside distilleries are adjacent to the River Spey and are thought to have sufficiently unique characteristics to warrant a region of their own.

Blended Whiskies are a mixture of single malt whiskies from different distilleries.

Single Malt vs Blend

If the person you are buying for is a seasoned whisky drinker then you should be looking at a single malt.  Single-malt Scotch allows for true discrimination, connoisseurship, lavish spending and unbridled snobbery.

However if you are introducing the drink to a new whisky drinker you should consider a smoother blended variety.   Scotch is an earthy beverage with strong, smoky flavours, and only those who have taken the time to acquire the taste will appreciate single malts.

Age

The longer a Whisky has been aged, the smoother it is.  Once you have decided on the variety, you should therefore try to buy the oldest available.

By law all Whiskies must be aged at least three years, but it really comes into its own after 10 years.  Try to buy a 12, 15 or 21 year old bottle if you can afford it,  and remember that ageing does not continue once bottled so don’t think keeping it in the cupboard for ten years will help!

When considering blended varieties, any age statement claimed must be that of the youngest whisky in the blend, which is invariably the grain, as they need much less ageing than malts.

If you are in the UK, take a look over here for a selection of the finest Scotch Whiskies.

UK	US
101 Whiskies to Try ... £6.22	The World's Best Whi... $15.41
Jim Murray's Whisky ... £6.51	101 Whiskies to Try ... $11.52
Whisky: The definiti... £13.92	Whiskypedia: A Compe... $3.59

Not so long ago I recommended Mega Bloks as a great birthday present idea for young kids.

Like most of the suggestions on this site, this recommendation was born from personal experience and in this post my son and I wanted to share some of our favourite Mega Block creations!

Our set is the “Monsters” pack which contains a load of monstery type building blocks that allow you to make some scary monsters – RRRAaaaaarrrr!

Here are our best efforts, we’d love to hear about yours!  I hope these construction ideas inspire some monster creations of your own.

Mega Block Ideas:

So what have you made from your Mega Blocks, please share your ideas with us.

UK	US
Mega Bloks 70 pc Bui... £12.99	Megabloks 80pc Lrg M... $14.80
Mega Bloks 70 pc Pin... £14.99	Megabloks 80pc Lrg M... $15.00
Mega Bloks 3-in-1 Pl... £18.99	Mega Bloks Play 'n G... $29.95

I never really paid attention to kids TV programs until I had my very own toddler, and although I had come across In the Night Garden before, I had no idea how much time I was going to spend watching it!

Popular children’s TV shows like this have always produced a whole range of merchandise which will naturally provide a whole range of potential birthday present ideas.

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BBC’s In the Night Garden

The genius behind this show is that it was created to help wind children down and put them into the bedtime zone, and sleeping children, as any parent will know, are a very precious thing!

But despite the intentionally incredibly repetitive and formulaic make up of the program, I have become rather fond of it myself. And needless to say, my little toddler adores the show!

Characters such as The Tombliboos and the Pontipines have quickly become household names and of course we now all know the actions and words of the Iggle Piggle and Upsy Daisy’s songs!

We also love watching the little clips that you can find online, check out the official page over here.

In The Night Garden Birthday Present Ideas

My son was given a bedtime Iggle Piggle toy by his uncle for his first birthday and it quickly became his comforter of choice. Not only that but one of his first ways of communicating was to fetch Iggle Piggle and point at the TV indicating he was in the mood for some Night Garden watching!

Since then we have come across a whole range of merchandise that, according to the producers, are designed to extend the experience beyond the television set. The cynical might suggest it’s more about making them some additional income but either way, our little boy loves the products which make them a good option for a Birthday Gift.

Here are some suggestions:

• Iggle Piggle Cuddly Toy
• Mega Bloks Night Garden Gazebo
• Episodes on DVD
• A Pinky Ponk or a Ninky Nonk!
• Story Books

Head over to Amazon and you’ll find a whole range of products from toys, games, back packs, books and DVDs.

UK	US
In the Night Garden:... £8.49	The Orphan's Tales: ... $9.84
In The Night Garden ... £10.78	In The Night Garden ... $16.41
In the Night Garden:... £0.61	Playskool in the Nig... $129.99

What do you buy the geek who was everything? How about a periodic table mug!

As a former Chemistry student I know all too well how important the periodic table is to science, and any real geek will be proud to bear such a drinking vessel!

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Gifts for Chemists

The periodic table mug is a classic geeky birthday present, and the reality is – if someone had bought me this for a gift I’d be secretly very happy.

Perhaps if I had been given one I might have actually managed to learn more than a handful of the transition metals.

Any science fan will well understand the massive significance of the periodic table and the importance it holds for understanding chemistry. And apart from that, these mugs just looks kinda cool!

UK	US
Periodic Table Mug (... £6.99	Periodic Table Mug $9.95
Periodic Table Mug (... £9.95	Periodic Table 11 oz... $11.99

As I got older I noticed a strange thing happened. I began to voluntarily read the type of books I bent over backwards to avoid at school!

Who would have thought I would be here recommending a book on economics as a birthday present!

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Freakonomics

This is of course this is no ordinary book on economics, Steven D. Levitt’s funny and at times controversial book, along with the follow up Super Freakonomics, attempts to solve some of the everyday mysteries of modern life through the science of economics.

The book discusses a wide variety of topics that all of us will find interesting in some way:

• The effects of naming babies
• The hidden economics behind drug dealing gangs
• The link between legalised abortion and subsequent affect on crime  rate

UK	US
Freakonomics: A Rogu...	Freakonomics Rev Ed:...