What "pretend" toys do your 2-year-olds like?

Yes, it's almost time for our local twins' club sale, and I'm making a shopping list.

We don't have a lot of "pretend" toys at our house -- things like baby carriages, pots & pans, lawn mower, etc. -- things that they can use to pretend to be like Mommy & Daddy. What kinds of things do your two-year-olds (of either gender) like to play with?

 

PLAY KITCHEN!! It has been the #1 toy since Christmas when they got it.

Big hits here are also:

dolls w/ easy on/off clothes
medical kit
little kid broom/dustpan
dressup clothes (halloween castoffs or my old stuff-nothing 'bought' for that purpose except some feather boas)
tea set
play camera/phone/purses
gardening tools for kids
mini golf set
their 'own' spatulas and measuring cups (they help me measure for muffins, bread, cookies, etc)
strollers for dolls
bubble mower (summer/spring/fall)

For the play kitchen & food- buy plastic fruits/veggies and then simply reuse/recycle your old cereal boxes, soup boxes, butter tubs, cream cheese tubs, rinsed out juice plastic containers, Puff containers, nut tins etc. Stuff the card board ones with squashed newspaper and tape the lids. 3/4 of our large amount of food is reused stuff. My girls LOVE having 'real' packaging and it holds up better than the cardboard store stuff as well as is easy to replace and great for recycling your old 'trash'! They also LOVE to fill paper grocery bags with their 'food' and put it away....very funny to watch.

 

vacuum
broom
dust buster
shovel/rake
play kitchen/food/pots & pans
large dump trucks

 

Play Kitchen w/ accessories (toy food, dishes, spoons, etc)
Baby doll equipment - strollers, carseat, PNP - I got a whole set from TRU fairly cheap, it's been a big hit
We don't have a lot of it, but they like play cleaning stuff when we are other places.
Accessories- hats, purses, etc

 

play kitchen with lots of accessories
dolls and doll accessories
I think they would love dress up clothes, they just don't have any (yet)

Oh, I got them these wooden fruits/veggies that have velcro between the two halves, and you stick them together and "cut" them with a play wooden knife that came with the set. It also came with a little cutting board. This is a HUGE hit, they play with it everyday, and when we go to EI it's one of the first thing Grace plays with too. I would have never thought of something like it had I not seen how much Grace liked playing with it at EI.

 

we also have the wooden :cutting" veggie set. Melissa and Doug make it. I have it in with all the play plastic food.

doll houses,
medical kit with small stuffed animals
lacing toys (I sew and they can "sew" with me)
train sets (pop-ons or Thomas)
cleaning sets (swiffers or toy broom)
dolls - beds, high chairs, strollers, clothes, doll feeding and bathing accessories,
tea set, dishes (we have metal ones)
little workshop with tools (we don't have but they like to play with it at church)
car garage
gardening stuff - little gloves, trowels/shovels, watering cans

 

mine love the play kitchen and pots and pans ....also fake food.

 

Great ideas everyone! I totally forgot about the doctor kit -- they have one at daycare and they love it. And tools are a great idea too. I was having a hard time thinking of things that weren't stereotypically "girl" stuff.

QUOTE(Babies4Susan @ Mar 14 2008, 05:18 PM) [snapback]669145[/snapback]
Oh, I got them these wooden fruits/veggies that have velcro between the two halves, and you stick them together and "cut" them with a play wooden knife that came with the set.

We have something like this too, except the food is plastic. It didn't come with a cutting board, but it came with a canvas "shopping bag." It was a huge hit. My only complaint is that I can't figure out where to buy an extra knife. Two kids + one knife = lots of fighting!

 

We got a set of 'cut-able' foods at Walmart and then had the same 1 knife problem and got a set at ToysRus for about the same price. Now we have 2 sets, but they are different so it works out....and 2 knives!

We have a smalll toolbench type thing, but they do not play with it (Dh is not a tool type person..so they dont see him using them).

Mine also LOVE paper and pen and expired coupons....they 'write' a list as I do mine and sort out coupons. It is cute actually...they put coupons in thier pockets and I find them later in the wash!! ( I put coupons I am using in my pocket when we shop so I know what to hand the cashier!).

 

regarding the knife fight, I just give one a plastic picnic knife or steal the knife from the play doh stuff. then they each have a knive and they have to take turns w/ the wooden knife.