Life, Toddler

Henry Turns 2 Years Old – Every Gift My 2-Year-Old Got for His Birthday

The big day has passed and my fun-loving little boy is now two years old. I know every mother says it, but it’s hard to comprehend where the time has gone. It’s amazing to hear this little boy speaking in sentences, telling me all the things, and making sure to say bye-bye phone when I’m not present in the moment with him. He’s a sweet boy who loves his family and I hope that never changes. Today I’m recapping his birthday weekend as well as sharing every gift my 2-year-old got for his birthday in case anyone else is looking for birthday gift ideas!

Seeing Animals on the Farm for 2nd Birthday

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Read:
Henry’s Birth Story – An Unexpected C-Section And A NICU Baby
Recovering From A C-Section With A NICU Baby
The First 2 Months With A Newborn (he was so little!)
Day In The Life With A Toddler – 15-month-old

We got up early on Saturday to go to the National Zoo with my dad, step-mom, and step-sister. It rained on the drive there and started sprinkling as we were walking out, but our 3.5 hours at the zoo were perfect because the overcast skies kept it cooler. We barely saw anyone in the first hour and it never felt crowded or busy at any point. It was actually one of the nicest visits I’ve ever had to the zoo!

We had great views of the gorillas and orangutans and Henry fell in love with the playful otters on the Asia trail. We saw almost everything that’s currently open at the zoo and we were on our way out by 11:30. We spent the rest of the day at my dad’s house to celebrate Henry’s birthday with them. Before we put Henry to bed, we read a special birthday book I got to start an annual tradition called “The Night Before My Birthday“.

Sunday was Henry’s birthday and we spent the morning at Green Meadows Petting Farm. We had a bad experience with the lady while paying which left me feeling a bit sour about our whole experience… but Henry had a blast and was instantly excited to go running everywhere. We saw horses, donkeys, pigs+piglets, chickens, roosters, turkeys, and so many more animals. A highlight was watching Henry pet the cutest little chick and duckling.

We eventually ended up by a large wooden firetruck-shaped playground that was surrounded by large kids’ toys. We spent a significant amount of time in this space as Henry was enamored by all the climbing opportunities and the kid’s cars. We had fun at the large red tractor with the slide, and the water pump duck races, but when it was time to wind down (he was getting tired), Henry had a little meltdown and really wanted to go back to the firetruck.

It’s an hour’s drive for us, so not the most conveniently located but it was an incredible experience for Henry. I know he’ll enjoy this type of thing even more as he gets older.

After his nap, Henry played with his cars while I made his cake and then we all went for our first bike ride in two months. Henry has loved bike riding since we got this seat as one of my birthday gifts at the beginning of quarantine. I love that he can see everything and it’s a lot of fun talking with him and pointing things out together as we go for bike rides. I’m excited to go on frequent rides again as the weather is mellowing out! After our ride, we opened presents and had cake and ice cream!

A Few Things About My 2-Year-Old Son

Loves

Reading books – this kid could read books all day long.
Cars, trucks, trains, and any vehicles.
Elmo (funny enough from a seek-and-find book, not the TV show)
Coloring with crayons
Going for walks, being outside, playgrounds
Slides – he’ll go down the biggest slides but has a slight fear of swings.
Food – goldfish, crackers, cucumbers, chickpeas, NOODLES, grapes, strawberries, blueberries, popsicles, raisins, sour cream/yogurt, and beans are some of his favorite foods.
Music and Dancing
Lightning bugs
Baths
Cats and dogs
Sticks, leaves, and rocks – walks can be especially slow these days as Henry loves to collect nature.
Mommy and daddy. I hope we always stay his favorites!
Blocks – he has a lot of different blocks but the bristle blocks and Duplos are his favorite right now.
Numbers and Letters. Henry learned to say and recognize 1-10 between 15-18 months old. He was about 20-21 months old when I realized he could recognize and say all the letters as well. He always likes to read license plates and point out letters and numbers when we’re on the go.
Blues Clues (with Steve) and Clifford (PBS version)
Buckles/Buckle Toy

Dislikes

Having to stop doing something fun.
Diaper changes because he wants to keep playing.
Being in the car for a long time.
Going to bed.

That’s mostly it for dislikes! He doesn’t usually want to do things on command but he’s a very happy kid and he always has been.

Favorite/Funny Things Henry Says

“Mommy sit! Come! Sit!”
“Bye-bye phone”
“Luh (love) you Mommy”
“Oh no! Chicka Chick Boom Boom!” – (song and book)
Saying “Thank You”, “You’re Welcome”, and “Bless You”
“Watch this!”
“Good Job!”
He repeats a lot of things we say and it’s pretty funny to hear what words he’s picking up.

What else can I say? I love being a mama to Henry. I love the way he calls out mama from his room when he wakes up. I love how he will spontaneously run up to me, completely wrap himself around my leg, and just look up at me with the happiest grin on his face. I love how determined and energetic he is even when I don’t always have the energy to keep up with him. I love this age. I love watching my son develop more personality and become who he truly is. It’s not always easy, but it is the greatest joy of my life to be a mama to Henry.

I’ve spent months curating a list of toys to help him play independently, imaginatively, and to complement the collection of toys he already has. This week I plan on weeding out the toys he’s outgrown and organizing them into a few groups for rotation. Once I’ve done that, I’ll share a new update with ALL of the toys and things we use at home to stay entertained throughout the day. But for now, here is every gift my 2-year-old got for his birthday (including gifts from family members).

Every Gift My 2-Year-Old Got For His Birthday

It is extremely important to note here that many of the gifts on this list have a manufacturer recommended age 3+. I have marked these gifts with a *.

Elmo stuffed plush animal
Bucket of sea creatures*
PicassoTiles 100 Piece Set*, 42 Piece Designer Artistry Set* (windows, etc)
Kids’ Percussion Floor Drum
Musical Steel Triangle Instrument
Kids’ 6″ Tambourine
Farmer’s Market Color Sorting Set*
Hotwheels Monster Trucks*
Matchbox set of cars*
Play-Doh
Do A Dot Art*
Chalk*
Richard Scarry Cars and Trucks and Things That Go Book
Llama Llama Mess Mess Mess
Bentgo Kids Lunch Box*

So that’s every gift my 2-year-old got for his birthday. Make sure to save and share this post for when you need toddler boy gift ideas. Also, let me know in the comments what gifts your toddlers love!