SPECIAL NEEDS WISH LIST!!
Warning: This is not your typical Christmas Wish List, but if you have children with special needs, you'll understand!
So, I thought I'd make a big long list of some of our FAVORITE things....most of them are therapy-related items, or items that we've found to be helpful as adaptive equipment for our girls. So if you're a parent of kids with special needs, maybe this list will help you come up with some useful gifts for Christmas! It's not your typical "holiday wish list" but if you're anything like me, you're very picky about what items come into your home....I always choose gift ideas with purpose. I'm not listing a ton of "toys" here because we have very few toys that don't serve a purpose in our home! I know some of the items I'm listing may not sound "fun" and you probably won't want to wrap some of them up and put them under the tree for your kids or they might cry, but we all know having children with special needs is expensive, so there are some ideas listed that you might ask family members to buy when they're asking what you NEED :)
A lot of these links are amazon links because I'm an Amazon fanatic and have the Amazon Prime Membership! However, prices are always changing, so if you see an item you like do a search for it to see if you can find it cheaper somewhere else! An example of this is the radio flyer 3 seater wagon! I only paid $50 for it by finding an already awesome sale on it, using a coupon code plus a gift card and having it shipped to another city (for some reason it was cheaper that way?) and then having my brother pick it up for us! Also, when shopping online, check when items have multiple colors of the item available, often certain colors are cheaper than others depending on the stock!
Keep in mind, my children are 2-5, so most of the items are geared toward younger children! And lastly, none of these companies are paying me to say anything nice about their products, we just LOVE them!
EDUCATIONAL GIFT IDEAS
(We have the Signing Time Series 1 and 2 as well and love all of them, if you're going to pick a few though, the Baby Signing Time ones move a bit faster with more music to hold interest longer!)
(We have TONS of the DVDs/Books/Flashcards/Placemats from this company and I've blogged about them several times....a definite favorite!!)
GROSS MOTOR GIFT IDEAS
Weighted Medicine Ball
PBK Anywhere Chair
(We've used these for so many early gross motor skills during physical therapy!)
Walking Wings
(We've used these for so many early gross motor skills during physical therapy!)
SENSORY GIFT IDEAS!
Headphones for iPod
White Noise Lamb
Playaway Doorway Bar for Indoor Swing
Little Tikes Swing (for use with above item)
Swing Swivel Hook
(for use with homemade platform swing)
Playaway Doorway Bar for Indoor Swing
Little Tikes Swing (for use with above item)
Swing Swivel Hook
(for use with homemade platform swing)
FINE AND ORAL MOTOR GIFT IDEAS!
SAFETY GIFT IDEAS:
OTHER GIFT IDEAS:
CREATIVE GIFT IDEAS FOR FAMILIES OF CHILDREN WITH SPECIAL NEEDS:
1. A Zoo Membership
2. A Month or Year Full of Dance/Gymnastic/whatever Classes
3. A Gas Gift Card (we spend lots of gas driving to and from therapies)
4. A Grocery Store Gift Card (some kids with special needs have special and expensive diets-like ours)
5. A babysitting coupon! Parents of kids with special needs have a harder time finding willing babysitters!
6. A Gift Certificate for a Family Photo Shoot
4. A Grocery Store Gift Card (some kids with special needs have special and expensive diets-like ours)
5. A babysitting coupon! Parents of kids with special needs have a harder time finding willing babysitters!
6. A Gift Certificate for a Family Photo Shoot
I hope there's something here that will be helpful! Please let me know if any of the links are broken or incorrect!
Awesome post! Love that you included the monkey locks - we've been looking for something exactly like this! Thanks!
ReplyDeleteAlso love your creative gift ideas at the bottom - a zoo membership or a year of classes would be such an awesome gift!
Awesome!
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful list of items, I am sure your readers will find the list most useful. So looking forward to Sofia’s 11/12 month home post. It is so interesting how the three girls have stimulated each other to do more. What a year for the Bee’s both big Bee’s and the little Bee’s.
ReplyDeleteThis is the most comprehensive gift list for special needs children I have come across! I have twins with Cerebral Palsy and it's so hard to explain to family that "normal" toys just don't always work. This is an excellent example.
ReplyDeleteThis is the most comprehensive gift list for special needs children I have come across! I have twins with Cerebral Palsy and it's so hard to explain to family that "normal" toys just don't always work. This is an excellent example.
ReplyDelete