I wasn’t going to make one of these, but then I was answering so many direct messages with favorites and passing ideas to friends, I figured I might as well put them all in one place. So here it is—our 2020 Kids Gift Guide. These ideas are pulled from my kids’ favorite gifts they’ve received, our most loved and used toys in our home, things they’re asking for this year and some fun gifts I’ve found that I know they’ll love. Happy Shopping!

FOR LAINEY

1. Personal Smoothie Maker 
Oh my God with the smoothies. I’m sick of my blender being dragged out for one smoothie and the mess that follows. This is just the ticket. A personal smoothie maker with the cup built in.

2. Glossier Cloud Paint and Lip Gloss
Lainey’s discovered the cult favorite brand Glossier (I love them too!). Lots of simple sheer colors and minimal makeup looks for tweens and teens dipping their toes into the fun expressive world of makeup.

3. The Adventure Challenge Family Kit or just the book 
Created to bring families together, these kits include a limited edition signature Lomography Automat Instant Camera and a book full of scratch-off adventures for families to experience and document together.

4. Towel Steamer
I smiled when I saw this on Lainey’s list this year—sister loves some self care rituals. I also love that I know how this request came to be. Lainey sets up spa days for Nella, and she wants to level up with steamed towels ready to go. I hope Santa brings this just so I can steal some towels for my own self care nights.

5. Tortilla Blanket
This has been on Lainey’s list for months. I admit, I don’t understand the appeal.

6. Fjallraven Crossbody Bag
Lainey received this last year and loves it. Lots of colors to choose from!

7. White Zoe Chelsea Boots
(similar boots from Zara if still in kid sizes)

8. Tezza Wall Collage Kit

9. LED Lights for Bedroom

10. Electric Ice Cream/Frozen Yogurt Maker

11. Write Here Now Journal
The prompts in this journal are so creative and inviting!

12. Canon Cliq Camera with Built-in Printer

13. Ipsy Subscription
$12/month (you can cancel any time). Monthly make-up bag with 5 deluxe-sized samples selected from a quiz you take with all your preferences.

FOR NELLA

1. Boden Rainbow Stripe Slippers

2. Olli Ella Suitcase
This timeless beautiful suitcase is one you’ll use again and again and save as a keepsake. Pretty enough to keep out as a display (we store doll clothes in ours when we aren’t using it for trips).

3. Wreck This Picture Book
Brand new book from the makers of the hit Wreck This Journal. This one’s just for kids! They’ll have so much fun making this book their own.

4. Spa Barbie
This is what Nella says she wants any time we ask her about her list.

5. Trish Scully Dress-up Dresses
Nella LOVES fancy dress-up dresses, but so many of them are cheaply made and one-size-fits-toddlers. These are beautiful real dresses that come in a range of sizes.

6. Galaxy Projector
Our galaxy projector is one of our favorite things we own for kids and something we’ve made memories with for years. They finally made this more affordable version (ours was $100–this one wasn’t available when we bought it several years ago).

7. Frida Kahlo Sweatshirt
We LOVE Piccolina Kids tees. It’s fun to wear our heroes.

8. Pottery Barn Kids Sleeping Bags
This is the gift that’s kept on giving in our home, and I highly recommend. They’re so well made, adorable and easy to roll up and store. We keep ours in our closets and pull them out to the living room every time we have a movie night.

9. Alice & Ames Dresses
Our signature twirly dress. Nella’s been through probably 15 of them over the years, and she loves them today as much as she did when she wore them as a toddler.

10. Olli Ella Dinkum Doll
The most beautiful doll—and the clothes you can order! Oh my God!

11. My Generation Retro Hot Dog Cart
My kids don’t even need the dolls to have fun with these.

12. Burger Balance Game

FOR DASH

1. MagnaTiles
If we had to take one toy to a deserted island, this would be it. They entertain every kid at every age, and I’ll have them in my house even after my own kids are old and grown. And you can keep adding more to your collection to build bigger structures. Currently, the kids love building our hamster MagnaTile obstacle courses.

2. Wood Bingo Game
How beautiful is this Bingo game?! Made in Japan and sold through a lovely black-owned business in Chicago.

3. Squeakee Balloon Dog Robot
This has Dash’s name all over it.

4. Worm Farm
Lainey and Dash have been wanting one of these. Excited to see if Santa pulls through.

5. Walkie Talkies
A hit gift for my kids at every age. The three of them will disperse both inside and outside and have so much fun communicating with each other only through Walkie Talkies.

6. The Upside Down Challenge
We love games for gifts, especially around the holidays because we’re home and relaxing and have lots of time to play them together. This one is sure to elicit lots of laughs and is something the little kids can play too.

7. Candylab Trucks
These keepsake cars and trucks are so fun to collect and display, even if they’re beyond the play-with-trucks age (which, to my delight, is still going over here).

8. Real Doctor Bag
My kids love playing clinic with each other and have gone to elaborate measures (making full body casts out of toilet paper) to make their clinic feel real. They’re kind of over the pretend doctor sets, so this year I’m making them a real one. I found a big black doctor style bag at a thrift store, and I’m filling it with a this real kit (cheaper than some kid doctor sets), Ace bandages, medicine syringes that look like shots, prescription pads, etc.

9. Bad Guys Books
Dash is OBSESSED with Bad Guy books. So obsessed, his teacher lets him take them home from her library for a reward. He hoards them like candy and gets super excited when he acquires a new title.

10. Jellyfish Tank Table Lamp
Looks so real! These kind of things delight Dash to no end.

11. Nerf Gun Target Set
If you can’t go to the carnival, bring the carnival games to you. Maybe I won’t find Nerf balls all over the house if he’s at least aiming them all in one spot.

12. Chasing Fireflies Game
This game is the cutest, and my kids are going to love playing this in the dark.

13. Gravity Maze 

It’s here! It’s here! If you’ve been following here long, you know my extensive stocking stuffer list is my favorite list to put together, and I take it VERY seriously. I keep a notebook with ideas all year long, and every time I see something in a little shop, catalogue, website throughout the year that would make a great stocking stuffer, I make notes. Stocking gifts are my favorite gifts to buy, and my kids would probably agree they’re the most fun ones to open. I look for unique gifts and things kids and teens will love and use, and I buy or have bought most of the things on these lists. The amount of hours behind this list is insane, but I love bringing you this every year.

Ready, set, go shopping!

 

STOCKING STUFFERS FOR KIDS

1. Melissa & Doug Reusable Sticker Book, Chipmunk House
These are super affordable and provide hours of entertainment for kids. We love ours and take them on our annual Christmas trip to Chicago every year (which sadly, we won’t be taking this year) to entertain the kids while we hang in restaurants. I especially love this one because it reminds me of our hedgehog dollhouse.

2. Smencils Scented Pencil Pack
We’re big Smencils fans—scented pencils with cute toppers. School has had a lot of fun zapped out of it this year due to Covid, so anywhere we can inject a little joy and fun is helpful. 

3. Police Light & Siren for Bike
Dash is going to love this—a light/siren to turn your bike into a police car. Now all he needs are some fake tickets to pass out to his sisters.

4. Kids Police Handcuffs
..to go with that police light and siren. Even better: handcuffs!

5. Digital Wrist Watch
Several colors available—a simple digital wrist watch. Great for counting down the hours during school.

6. Kids Chopstick Set
My kids love eating with chopsticks when we have rice or Asian-inspired food but give up after two bites. These kid-friendly cheater chopsticks are adorable.

7. Magic 8 Ball
Our kids love pulling ours out and asking it silly questions or using it to torment siblings. “Does Dash have a crush on _________?” “Yes, Definitely.” Cue fight.

8. NeeDoh Gum Ball s
A fun squishy stress ball that looks like bubble gum.

9. Glitter Wand
Did you even live through the 80’s if your sibling didn’t accidentally whack you with one of these? For multiple kids, get the 4-pack.

10. Make More Faces Sticker Book
Santa’s bringing this one this year. I love anything Chronicle Books publishes. This little book includes 52 images of unique objects, and sticker sheets with amusing details (eyes, noses, hair, etc.) to decorate them.

11. Land of Dough
The most beautiful, amusing play dough out there. Gorgeously packaged and features vibrant colors, glitter, creative designs and the best part—handmade in the USA.

12. Kitpas Art Crayons
We’re big fans of bougie art supplies. These art sticks are made in Japan, water-soluble and transform to watercolor paint with a wet paintbrush. You can write on windows and mirrors with them, and it can be wiped right off.

13. Fidget Toy Brain Teaser Ball
This brain teaser ball is a simpler take on the Rubix cube. Scramble the colored balls and get them all back in their corresponding color-coded hole. 

14. ME! Fill-in Journal by Wee Society
We LOVE Wee Society kid journals.They’re so well-designed and kid-friendly offering kids I nvitations to explore who they are through drawings and fill-in-the-blank journal prompts. Makes for an amazing keepsake journal. Their Write On Creative Story Journal and Yay Celebration Journalare also great.(Don’t worry, if you have older kids, there’s a comparable creative writing journal on the teens stocking list below.)

15. Light-up LED Shoelaces
Who needs Christmas lights when you have light-up shoelaces?!

16. Kid Genius Magnetic Poetry
I LOVE this vocabulary-building creative exercise for kids. Magnetic poetry with double-sided synonym word magnets. On one side “laugh,” on the other “guffaw.” “Happy” flips to “jubilant,” etc.

17. Blume Doll
My kids adore little toys like this. You pour water into the little flower pet to grow a doll. Magic.

18. Clingy Crawlers
(make sure you click on 1-pack, not the 6-pack) Sticky little “spiders” tumble down a wall like they’re crawling.

19. Schylling Floating Ball
I love simple old school toys for stockings. Blow in the pipe to keep the ball afloat.

20. Sweet Pups
Reminds me of the cool 80’s toys I pined for after seeing them on commercials—Popples and Sweet Secrets. These plush pastries transform to reveal a surprise puppy.

21. Break Your Own Geodes 
4-pack—split them up between multiple kids. What kid doesn’t want to whack a hammer on a rock to see it break open and reveal crystals?

22. Ballet Magnetic Dress-up Doll
Petit Collage, another brand I love for stocking stuffers. The perfect-sized tin for dress-up fun on the go.

23. Star Wars Light-up Saber Toothbrush
The coolest toothbrush there ever was. Complete with 1-minute timer and voice sound effects.

24. Prank Squirting Camera
Dash is the king of pranks, and you can never go wrong with gag gifts for him.

25. World‘S Smallest Uno Game
A full working Uno game in the teeny tiniest size.

26. Heatable Lavender Plush
Have you seen these? They’re Warmies, microwaveable soft toys lightly scented with lavender. I love the idea of putting your kid to bed in a cold climate with a warm plushie.

27. Candylab Cars
Solid beechwood, beautiful little collectibles to save for years to come. We have several, and we love them.

28. PAStex Pasta Building Connectors
Brilliant. Create bridges, towers, and STEM creations using uncooked spaghetti noodles with these flexible connectors that keep them together.

29. 100 Great Words Flashcards
By eeBoo, another great stocking stuffer brand. We have these, and every time they show up on Instagram, I get questions about them. They introduce challenging and interesting words in a fun way. My kids love when I read the sentence on the back and see if they  can figure out what it means based on the sentence. Flabbergasted, omniscient, disingenuous… Great vocabulary builder and decoding skill sharpener.

STOCKING STUFFERS FOR TWEENS AND TEENS

1. Pep Talk Notebook
A fun way to communicate with your teen/tween when they’re not exactly sharing all their feelings. You might also want to pick up the Passive Aggressive Checklist so they can tell you how they really feel or the Self Care Rx so you can prescribe what they need.

2. Write Here Write Now 
Another great one from Chronicle Books, this illustrated guided journal is so perfect for teens and tweens (Santa’s picking one up for Lainey.) with unique, quirky prompts to get them writing, imagining, and exploring who they are. Click through the preview pages on the link, and you’ll see! (Here’s hoping she’ll let me read her answers!)

3. Sneaker Balls
They’re not babies anymore, so cute little feet that smell like cookies isn’t a thing. Santa can take care of it with sneaker balls to keep their shoes fresh.

4. Ramen Puzzle
The perfect size (70-piece) to kill some boredom. Lainey’s a huge Ramen fan, so this is perfect for her.

5. Classic Paperbacks Memory Game
A gorgeous keepsake gift for your literature lovers, this memory game features paintings of vintage paperbacks.

6. Splendid Fountain Pen
Another favorite stocking stuffer brand (Ooly). An old-school fancy fountain pen with a modern twist. Comes in several colors, refillable.

7. Hothands Hand Warmers
Great for stuffing in mittens and gloves on cold days, tucking them in socks when you can’t warm up or keeping them in the glove compartment for emergencies.

8. Write On Pencils
My favorite pencil pack with positive messages every teen needs to hear—“You are so smart.”, “You are Gold, Baby. Solid Gold.”, “You’re really pretty.”

9. Face Mask Refresher Spray
Who would ever think this would be on a 2020 stocking stuffer? A great way to quickly refresh a mask, especially if you’re wearing one all day at school.

10. Billie Razor Starter Kit
For all the new shavers out there—this is the best razor! And swanky packaging teens will love.

11. Affirmators! Affirmations Cards
My favorite affirmations card deck. Every card holds important truths tweens and teens (okay, and adults) need to hear but written with sarcasm and without the syrupy self help stuff. The Creativity Deck is also great—inspires creative motivation in a fun way.

12. Little Letters
This little book is full of 75 adorable letters that fold into tiny included envelopes and seal with included stickers.

13. Unicorn Snot
2020 calls for holographic body glitter gel.

14. Chit Chat Glass Word Bubble Markers
These stick on any glass, ceramic or smooth plastic and make for some fun conversation starters. I’m already imagining what Dash will write on his sibling’s cup markers.

15. Spark Family Fun Pack
Another from favorite Chronicle Books—this matchbox is full of 50 “matches” with prompts and talking points to get families connecting and playing together.

16. Celebrity Face Mat Drink Coasters
Since we’re seeing the same small circle day in and day out these days, we might as well invite some celebrities to our holidays. Tweens and teens will love these—plus they make for some funny pictures.

17. Retro Vinyl Coasters
So the orange juice they snuck to their bedroom doesn’t leave a ring on their dresser. Cute enough to leave out for some good teen room decor.

18. Tech Wipes
Ask your teen how often they clean their cell phone. Never mind, you don’t want to know. These make it super easy. Shove some in their backpack, their pocket, their top drawer. Safely cleans monitors, phones, dashboard displays in cars, glasses, etc. We also use alcohol wipes on our phones to kill any germs.

19. Acrylic Glitter Frame
A fun way for teens and tweens to frame memories with their friends for their rooms.

20. Blue Q Toothbrushes 
Blue Q makes the most hilarious gifts, and the sayings on these toothbrushes (25 different designs!) make me smile and laugh out loud. Loved them so much, I bought one for Lainey and the “Badass Woman who takes care of everyone” for Santa to slip in my own stocking. There are some great ones for guys too!

21. Harry Styles Sequin Pillow Cover
Because who doesn’t want a pillow with Harry Styles’ face on it?! Fits 16×16 pillows.

22. Mini Yule Log
Take cozy winter vibes wherever you are with this tiny desktop fireplace. It even glows and has crackling sounds!

23. Watercolor Paints
Every art-exploring teen needs a good watercolor paint palette. This goes nicely with #27, the watercolor postcards.

24. Wooden Tetris Game
I’ve put this on so many lists, but we love having this; and it always sparks connection. I highly suggest getting two so you can have duels where two family members compete to see who can finish their puzzle first. 

25. Ice Roller
My friend introduced me to this roller this year, and now we all pull it out of the freezer for a quick pick-me-up. It’s great for pain, face puffiness in the morning, eyes, etc. 

26. Colour Me Good 80’s Coloring Book
I feel it is my parental duty to make sure my kids properly celebrate 80’s culture—and also keep the childhood art of coloring alive and well in their adulthood. These line drawings are amazing and make for some great adult coloring.

27. Watercolor Postcards
Goes well with #23. This watercolor paper pad is perfectly sized to frame their drawings or mail them as postcards.

28. Lavender & Chamomile Microwaveable Neck Wrap
To deal with all the stresses of tween and teen life.

29. Brilliant Brush Markers
Santa fills our stockings with a lot of Ooly products—they’re so good. These brilliant brush markers are my favorite markers for fun lettering. 

30. Barron’s SAT Vocabulary Flash Cards 
Whether teens are prepping for the SAT or not, these vocabulary flash cards are great for anyone to study to be proficient speakers and writers. 

31. Poo-pouri 2-oz Spray
No one wants to be responsible for stinking up someone’s bathroom. Teach ‘em young.

32. Movie Tarot Cards
A fun unique tarot card deck inspired by iconic film characters. Oh please let me get Julie Andrews in Sound of Music.

33. Auto Tissue/Napkin Holder
For the driving teens. Why have I never had this for my own car? I can never find a tissue or a napkin!

34. Daily Mood Flipchart
For teens who don’t love telling their parent each and every thing that’s going on in their lives, this is a great way to let your family know how you’re feeling without having to talk much. Flip the chart—“Hey, I’m feeling a little neglected!”

35. Light-up LED Phone Charging Cord
They’ll never lose it again!

36. Dog Socks
Colorful, fun stripes and a cute pooch on the back of each pair—comes in a 5-pack.