I see tents everywhere as a Christmas gift for toddlers. I have a almost 2 year old and tempted to get her one for our playroom as her Christmas gift but can’t decide if it’s just a trendy thing that pottery barn has convinced us we need or if kids love it. Thoughts?
Thinking about this, too. My son did turn his anywhere chair over and tried to lay under it “like a tent, mama!” So I’m thinking he might like one but don’t really know.
Post by mccallister84 on Dec 1, 2018 7:52:00 GMT -5
Yes. We have a $4 tent I bought at a consignment sale - not the fancy pottery barn one or anything - and it’s a big hit with her and her friends. One of her little friends was so upset that it wasn’t set up for her second birthday party (it does take up a decent amount of space but it collapses flat).
DD loves her little pop up beach tent which we keep up in her room.
In the basement play room we also have one of those Discovery fort making systems, with the octagonal blocks and sticks. We throw old sheets overtop to make forts. She loves that thing too. Also keeps DH occupied building new structures all the time.
Mine does. It's a pop up kind so we can put it away easily. Very cheap from Amazon and attached to a tunnel and ball pit (all the pieces can be taken apart and used individually). But he'll watch TV in it or take naps sometimes.
Post by puppylove64 on Dec 1, 2018 11:41:16 GMT -5
We have an ikea tent and they love it. I’ve had it for 3-4 years. It takes up a lot of space so we often put it up for months and then pull it out for a few weeks and they play with it nonstop.
Post by steamboat185 on Dec 1, 2018 13:26:33 GMT -5
We have the 10 dollar IKEA tent and both my 2 year old and my 5 year old use it regularly. My DH gave me grief when I bought it, but it’s been worth the money for sure. I wouldn’t buy a $$$ tent.
My kids never cared for it and it took up a ton of space so I packed it up and no regrets. My bff’s kid only used his to go hide in while he took a dump, lol.
I don’t buy Pottery Barn anything and would not drop a ton of money on a tent from there! We have a princess one from amazon and it’s 👍🏻👍🏻
Ditto this! We have s cheap pop up princess one too. Dd loved it for a short period of time. However she won’t let me put it away and it takes up a ton of space. So it was kind of a mixed bag.
My kids never cared for it and it took up a ton of space so I packed it up and no regrets. My bff’s kid only used his to go hide in while he took a dump, lol.
My 7 year old has the ikea circus tent - we got it maybe 5 years ago? We recently moved it to my parents house (who have a playroom for the kids). We had gotten a VW camper van pop up tent and DS2 (3) loves it. It gets way more play than the circus tent did.
My son has the Lakeshore ultimate fort builder and he really likes it. He also has a fort closet that he loves to play in. It’s set up as a cozy space with blankets, pillows, books, and flashlights.
My oldest got one at 2.5 and it's still a hit in our house 5 years later. My almost 5-year-old and 21-month-old are in it together all the time. We will keep it up in the playroom for a few days. Then, they fill it with toys and it gets on my nerves, so I put it away for a bit. So, I don't think it's lost its novelty b/c it's not always available.
Post by dragon's breath on Dec 3, 2018 0:37:35 GMT -5
My son is 21 now, but when he was little he absolutely loved it when we set up a tent in the house. As a kid, I also loved playing in tents and wish we could have one in the house. So, I vote not trendy, since tents have been keeping kids entertained for a long time.
ETA: forgot I bought one for my niece to keep at my parent's house... it was an inexpensive little pop-up castle, and she loved it. She'd take a book in there and "read".
Yep. My 5 year old still uses her pop up castle tent she got 2-3 years ago. I took it down about 6 weeks ago for a party and she’s been begging me to set it back up. When my older daughter was about 2, she had a blow up Dora ball pit tent thing that she loved too.
I’d either get a pop up style (there is one that opens like an umbrella) or the Antsy Pantsy Kit at target. We have a similar one and use sheets but I no longer have old sheets (donated them to shelters the night of the flood) so it’s a pain. I’d rather be able to buy the different set covers and make it different things.
Post by hbomdiggity on Dec 3, 2018 12:42:30 GMT -5
I bought the teepee style from target a year or so ago. it took up a decent amount of space and he never used it. he is 3.5 now and we thought about bringing it out again to have a "quiet corner" but we haven't yet.
Post by DarcyLongfellow on Dec 10, 2018 14:54:47 GMT -5
Another vote for getting a tent!
My kids love them so much that we've been through 2 of them. Just the cheap pop up princess ones from Amazon. They want it up constantly, but it takes up a ton of space in our not-large house, so I leave it up until it annoys me too much, then I take it down for a month or so.
They like to pile it up with blankets and stuffed animals, pretend it's their den and they're hibernating, all sorts of things.