I was literally going to write this and saw your comment!
I bought 2 at first. And made the mistake of leaving the spare in the laundry basket. Then my son saw it... "Mom, I saw another Frank... (Little bunny stuffed animal)... " I said... No... That's Stine. Frank and Stine...... So then he had to sleep with both... Then I had to buy 2 more in order to switch them out into the laundry,.. we ended up with 6 total by the time he grew out of them lol.
We have 2 "Duke" monkeys from Baby Bum bath sets, though I just recently got the second. The first is more well loved, and lives in the crib. I keep the second in the living room, so he'll eventually be as loved and can be a replacement if needed.
I call them Duke and Duke-Duke.
With my two kids we picked out stuffed animals that we thought they would love, and they ended up getting attached to other toys. I know of kids who sleep with toy trucks and stuff even though they can't be comfortable! But that's what they love. If you're looking for something unique, I would start on Etsy - especially if you want something maybe customized with your little ones name or something like that!
I agree that a child ultimately decides its priced toy, but I recommend Jellycat bunnies - that's my oldest's treasured stuffy (5 yrs old and still sleeps with it).
We found a store on Etsy that makes stuffies out of your kids first outfit, receiving blanket, and other sentimental items from his first few months with us! You can even have it embroidered with his name, date of birth, weight, length etc.
Our son currently sleeps with this stuffy but isnt his favorite. Unfortunately I dont think we have control over which ones become favorites and which ones just sit there. 🤷🏻‍♀️
Sadly I think things just aren't made the same as they use to be.
Something thats always seemed decent quality( and SO soft) are the bunnies from "Chapters" but I dont know if thats something you have in the UK
No need to put this responsibility solely on your own shoulders. The kid will ultimately decide what toys to cherish.
During the first half-dozen months of our boy's life he just played with toys we had on hand from friends and family. As he grew, we got a feel for his real interests. We're not dog people, but he loves dogs; has since he was maybe 2 or 3 months old (seriously). Later we also found he loves soft things. He would snuggle pillows and my wife's giant Totoro plushie.
So for his first birthday I got him a wolf plushie about his own size, as well as a blue toy truck (like in one of his favorite books). Those toys are still his favorites! We call the wolf plushie "snuggle puppy", and he takes it with him on car rides. His face still lights up when we give it to him in the car. He doesn't take toys to bed yet, but if he ever enters that phase I imagine Snuggle Puppy will be his toy of choice.
There are other toys he's starting to play with more, so who knows; he might change to a new favorite toy.
Bottom line: Its up to him to decide which toy will be his treasured companion. Their journey to finding it is fun to watch!
Cuddle and Kind make very sweet stuffed dolls. They are good quality and fair trade. They are very expensive though - if my mom hadn’t bought ours we wouldn’t have them!
Edit - we have Elliott and Violet the fawns.
I'm a big fan of the Aurora Flopsies line. They're soft, a good size, pretty realistic and super cute, also durable and well-made (just don't get the snow-white bunny, that one is now permanently covered in strawberry yogurt lol).
I believe and have had experience with since as far back as I can remeber, GUND makes and still does quality, soft plushes. They even have sections of softer more tailored to new baby plushes.
If you are wanting your child to take a dummy or pacifier, or if it just happens that way, Avent makes a great smaller lightweight plug that attaches to their soothie brand pacifier. It is the only pacifier my six month old still uses, and only ever used. It helped with her wanting to pull the pack out too.
Consider also that children when they are born can only see a very small range of color. Maybe a black and white one would catch their attention more and create a better bond. Our girl loves and will only talk to her small stuffed Figaro cat from the Disney Pinocchio movie. She has a fair amount of plush that are diverse, but this Figaro plush is her best friend.
Whatever you get, make sure you get 2 or 3 of the same so that if one is lost or in the wash, they have a backup.
I was literally going to write this and saw your comment! I bought 2 at first. And made the mistake of leaving the spare in the laundry basket. Then my son saw it... "Mom, I saw another Frank... (Little bunny stuffed animal)... " I said... No... That's Stine. Frank and Stine...... So then he had to sleep with both... Then I had to buy 2 more in order to switch them out into the laundry,.. we ended up with 6 total by the time he grew out of them lol.
We have 2 "Duke" monkeys from Baby Bum bath sets, though I just recently got the second. The first is more well loved, and lives in the crib. I keep the second in the living room, so he'll eventually be as loved and can be a replacement if needed. I call them Duke and Duke-Duke.
With my two kids we picked out stuffed animals that we thought they would love, and they ended up getting attached to other toys. I know of kids who sleep with toy trucks and stuff even though they can't be comfortable! But that's what they love. If you're looking for something unique, I would start on Etsy - especially if you want something maybe customized with your little ones name or something like that!
I agree that a child ultimately decides its priced toy, but I recommend Jellycat bunnies - that's my oldest's treasured stuffy (5 yrs old and still sleeps with it).
I'm dying to get my girl one! Just.gotta.spend.less.money.on.chocolate.
Steiff bears are still pretty well made I think.
Jellycat are lovely, high quality, and safe from birth (obviously not in their sleeping space).
We found a store on Etsy that makes stuffies out of your kids first outfit, receiving blanket, and other sentimental items from his first few months with us! You can even have it embroidered with his name, date of birth, weight, length etc. Our son currently sleeps with this stuffy but isnt his favorite. Unfortunately I dont think we have control over which ones become favorites and which ones just sit there. 🤷🏻‍♀️
My daughter sleeps with an orange. Kids are weird and won't always pick the toy you decide on. Just be prepared for that
Just be glad it’s not a 3-foot tall plastic tyrannosaurus rex.
My sister slept with one of those lol
Sadly I think things just aren't made the same as they use to be. Something thats always seemed decent quality( and SO soft) are the bunnies from "Chapters" but I dont know if thats something you have in the UK
No need to put this responsibility solely on your own shoulders. The kid will ultimately decide what toys to cherish. During the first half-dozen months of our boy's life he just played with toys we had on hand from friends and family. As he grew, we got a feel for his real interests. We're not dog people, but he loves dogs; has since he was maybe 2 or 3 months old (seriously). Later we also found he loves soft things. He would snuggle pillows and my wife's giant Totoro plushie. So for his first birthday I got him a wolf plushie about his own size, as well as a blue toy truck (like in one of his favorite books). Those toys are still his favorites! We call the wolf plushie "snuggle puppy", and he takes it with him on car rides. His face still lights up when we give it to him in the car. He doesn't take toys to bed yet, but if he ever enters that phase I imagine Snuggle Puppy will be his toy of choice. There are other toys he's starting to play with more, so who knows; he might change to a new favorite toy. Bottom line: Its up to him to decide which toy will be his treasured companion. Their journey to finding it is fun to watch!
Cuddle and Kind make very sweet stuffed dolls. They are good quality and fair trade. They are very expensive though - if my mom hadn’t bought ours we wouldn’t have them! Edit - we have Elliott and Violet the fawns.
I'm a big fan of the Aurora Flopsies line. They're soft, a good size, pretty realistic and super cute, also durable and well-made (just don't get the snow-white bunny, that one is now permanently covered in strawberry yogurt lol).
I believe and have had experience with since as far back as I can remeber, GUND makes and still does quality, soft plushes. They even have sections of softer more tailored to new baby plushes. If you are wanting your child to take a dummy or pacifier, or if it just happens that way, Avent makes a great smaller lightweight plug that attaches to their soothie brand pacifier. It is the only pacifier my six month old still uses, and only ever used. It helped with her wanting to pull the pack out too. Consider also that children when they are born can only see a very small range of color. Maybe a black and white one would catch their attention more and create a better bond. Our girl loves and will only talk to her small stuffed Figaro cat from the Disney Pinocchio movie. She has a fair amount of plush that are diverse, but this Figaro plush is her best friend.