Best Baby Toys of 2007

Haba's Animal Den Peek A Boo is a soft ball that enhances Peek-A-Boo play for infants. It is a sort of a 2-in-1 toy which your infant can play with as a ball or use the pull out animals from their hidden position inside the ball for a grand Peek-A-Boo time. There are five animals that can be pulled out and pushed back in again. This is sure to excite babies and keep them preoccupied trying to figure out where the animal came from. The animals are made of soft material and are completely safe as is the entire product. A couple of the animals also produce some sounds when pressed which is sure to delight your baby. The ball is just the perfect size to be handled easily by little hands. This product is meant for ages 6 months to 2 yrs.

Corolle’s Sorbet Melodie Doll from its Babicorolle line is simply a superbly crafted and extremely soft doll that your baby is going to love. Corolle’s world class mark of quality is easily evident in these dolls. As with most Corolle products, this doll has been designed in France. Melodie is 13” tall and is machine washable. She is meant for infants, ages 0+ and sells for $30. Not cheap but certainly the best quality doll that your money can buy.

I really liked this wonderful stroller toy from Tiny Love. Babies are simply fascinated by the Grip and Grasp stroller toy. I don't blame them - this cute set of three toys in one is full of stuff that babies like. A key item in the Grip and Grasp is the baby-activated woodpecker with jangling bell, crinkly wings and a brightly colored tail. Useful as well as entertaining, the Grip and Grasp features a transparent rattling bottle holder and a bounce-back cricket with crinkly wings.

This extremely cute blue elephant is a great hit with babies this year. The specialty of this toy and all Taggies toys is that they have these little tags attached all around. I don't know if you've noticed, but most babies are fascinated by tags! My own one year old will spend a good amount of time pulling and mouthing the tags on his blanket. In addition, the Taggies elephant makes chiming sounds and uprights himself when you roll him on his side.

Fisher-Price’s Little Superstar Sing Along Stage scores over other similar products by incorporating several activities for infants and toddlers to enjoy. There is a play microphone, a piano, rolling balls and several other ways for your baby to interact with this toy. Babies love to dance, and they love to sing along with their favorite songs. The "stage" experience is created by 4 flashing lights forming an arch. Your baby can even watch himself in the large mirror. As baby gets older, he can learn to play music on the small keyboard as well. Well crafted, well thought out toy and definitely one of the hottest toys in this category.

Musical toys have always been popular with all age groups. LeapFrog has introduced the extremely cute Learn and Groove Animal Sounds Guitar. Shaped like a guitar, it actually has a whammy bar and fret button just like a real guitar. This colorful guitar plays animal sounds and helps kids to learn more about animals as well as numbers and counting. There are two language options - English and Spanish. Your baby is definitely going to feel like a rock star as he plays the guitar and grooves with the music. The Animal Sounds Guitar is meant for ages 1-3.

Fisher Price’s Rainforest Melodies and Lights Deluxe Gym is the best baby gym of 2007. What is special about this gym? For starters, the multiple activities it provides in a well-organized manner without compromising play area for baby. There are 20 songs and repositionable toys such as a soft hanging monkey, a soft toucan with jingle, an elephant with soft ears and a spinner with beads, a parrot with a paddle spinner, and a frog character mirror. Additionally, when music plays, two satin butterflies fly over baby while colored lights pulse on and off. The mat has a rainforest theme.

The aim of this simple toy is to put a soft ball through the ‘octopus’. As soon as the ball passes through, the octopus comes to ‘life’ where its soft arms move up and down and it shakes from side to side. It almost looks like the octopus has started walking. As the name implies the octopus also starts giggling at this point and then plays music. All this action is triggered off by just putting the soft balls into the octopus. This cute toy from Shelcore is meant for ages 1+.

My two little ones are forever wanting to grab at my phone whenever they see it. VTech’s Disney themed Winnie The Pooh Teach 'n Lights phone comes as a welcome relief! This phone has big number keys to press and a convenient handle for youngsters to carry/drag around. This phone is designed like a desktop phone with a removable handset. Aside from the 10 number buttons, there are also three shape buttons and three letter buttons to teach numbers, shapes, and letters to kids. There are 4 entertaining modes: Learn It, Find It, Call My Friend, and Follow It. Although the manufacturer recommends this phone for ages 2+, I can easily see younger kids having a fun time imitating their parents while picking up the included handset.

Fisher-Price’s Laugh and Learn Learning Puppy is a colorful puppy that has play, music and promotes learning in your baby or toddler. Your baby can learn about the different parts of the body by pressing different spots on the puppy. The dog collar lights up accompanied by music which there is plenty of - 10 lovely songs. Aside from songs, your baby will also learn their ABCs, numbers and parts of the body in a melodious fashion. This toy is meant for ages 6 months to 3 years.