My Favorite Toddler Apps

I shared 5 of our favorite toddler apps over at Wife on the Go. You can see my list here.

We have so many more amazing educational apps that my son loves! I wanted to write a special post just for you guys and tell you about the rest.

Here are 5 more favorite apps:

1.  Farm 1,2,3

This app isn't free, but it does have a great free version your kids can still get lots of play out of before you decide to purchase. I'm a big fan of try before you buy!
This app teaches your kids about animals and counting. They put a bunch of animals on the screen and say something like "count 3 cows" and your kids get to practice not only counting to 3, but identifying the correct animals amid the dogs, cats, and roosters. My little guy loves it! I credit this app for helping him learn to count objects.

2. Elmo Calls

Okay, this one isn't free either. Noah went through an Elmo phase and I couldn't resist. I was really impressed with it though! They also have a Cookie Monster version if that's more your speed.  This app allows your kids to listen to voice mails from Elmo, as well as enjoying video chats with Elmo. My son loves it! He's convinced that it's really Elmo regardless of the fact that he always says the same thing. It's adorable!

3. Laugh & Learn Puppy Player

This app is FREE which we love. My son can watch short educational clips from Fisher Price. The videos feature the beloved Fisher Price puppy character. They learn about the alphabet, numbers, shapes, and colors. There are also several very cute nursery rhymes and a song about how to say "Hello" in different languages. It's all free and it doesn't require data or wi-fi to watch the videos which makes it perfect for those long trips in the car.

4. Peppa's Paintbox

This app is FREE too! If your kids love Peppa Pig as much as mine does they will love this art app. You can color, draw, and use stickers on the screen. There are also several interactive options where your art can "come to life." I think even kids who don't love Peppa would have fun with this one! You can choose to play as Peppa or George and each character has different tools. My son especially loves George's dinosaur stickers and muddy puddles!

5. Tiny Hands Towers 1

This app has a free version you can try before you buy. In fact, my son is so satisfied with the free version that I haven't purchased it yet. It's great for building Montessori style skills if you are using that method of schooling. This app has several cute stacking activities. Noah's favorite is building an igloo. When he finishes, there are confetti and balloons he can pop. I love it when they are learning and don't even know it!

-The Crazy Earth Mama

Too Much TV

Yes, I read everything about the dangers of television. I know it's not good for young children to watch TV. If you've never used technology to entertain your kid [and said child is at least one year old], I'll give you a cookie. Really, you deserve it. 

I caved.

Letting him watch some TV in the mornings while I tried to get ready for work seemed like a small thing. It was even kind of cute when he got excited about the singing Shushybyes cartoon on the Baby First channel. 

However, lately I've been noticing a trend. He's watching a little TV in the mornings while I rush around. He's watching a movie between play time at the grandparents' houses during the day. He's finishing off the night with Peppa Pig [his current favorite]. When I started adding up the hours I became alarmed. 

We learned early on that asking the grandparents to cut it out wasn't going to work very well.  Having grandparents to watch our son while we work has a ton of benefits, but one of the drawbacks is that it's pretty tough for them to draw a line between caregiver and grandparent.  

So, I knew that if I wanted to cut back on the TV time, it was going to have to happen on our end.  We are four days in and I think we are doing pretty well. 

Tuesday, he watched 30 minutes of Monsters Inc. and a few short Peppa Pig episodes for a total of 90 minutes. Under two hours so I was happy.

Wednesday, he watched two movies at the grandparents. He was a little peeved that I wouldn't let him watch Peppa Pig that night, but I had to compensate somewhere.

Thursday, he watched two more movies at the grandparents and had a meltdown when I turned down TV time that night. It was hard, but I didn't cave. 

Friday, he watched 30 minutes of The Croods with my sister and is currently enjoying some Peppa Pig with Daddy before bed. 

We definitely can't quit cold turkey, but as long as it's 2 hours or less and he stops waking up asking to watch a movie I'll be happy. Maybe I'm old fashioned but I think kids should wake up ready to play, not sit in front of a television. 

We let the TV time get out of hand. Here's hoping we can fix it.