Visions of Christmas morning bring to mind squeals of delight as the kids rush into the living room to see the presents under the tree. Wonderful family memories are created during these great years of toddler excitement.

However with the huge holiday rush to buy, buy, buy things can get a bit crazy and you can feel a bit overwhelmed with toy selection. So here are a few tips to help you buy for your precious little ones.

Tip #1: Watch the Number of Pieces in the Toys. Although some of these little gifts look great in the box, it is important to think about how possible it is to keep everything together. For some toys it does not matter if things get separated, but for others it takes away from the toy fun when pieces are missing. And let’s face be honest, it does take a bit of work to keep toy pieces together.

Tip #2: Buy Sturdy Toys. Little ones love to play, chew and throw. So make sure the toys are really toddler proof. It seems silly to me that not all newborn and toddler toys are not made to last when ‘real kids’ use them. This is especially with books. I always buy board book or fabric books instead of the thin page books.

Tip #3: Buy Different Stage Toys. Yes, your adorable six month old needs toys for play and development. But in just eight weeks your baby will be eight months and heading into the next development level so have different members of your family buy different stage toys. This way your little one can really enjoy the toys he/she receives.

Christmas is also a great time to buy tricycles that the kids will be ready to ride soon. If you do not have an outdoor playset, it is also a great time to think of some these bigger tickets items.

Tip #4: Buy a Good Variety of Toy Styles. I am thrilled at the variety of toy choices you have to buy for ages 0-3. When you are Christmas gift shopping buy a variety of toys.

• Noisy (trust me, you only need one Christmas of buying all noisy ones to remember this one)

• Quiet toys (a true blessing at the end of a long day)

• Learning

• Books (board books)

• Moving toys (ones to pull, push, crawl with)

• Bath toys

• Sit and play toys

Here are a few of my top Christmas gift ideas.

1. See and Spy Shapes Board Book

Baby Einstein's See and Spy Shapes Board Book takes you and your child on an adventurous discovery of 7 shapes: ovals, rectangles, diamonds, circles, triangles, stars and squares. This book contains a series of bold, colorful images each highlighting an individual shape in seven sections. Playful, rhyming verse in each section invites your child to locate each of the shapes of the pages of See and Spy Shapes. Baby Einstein See and Spy Shapes board book uses lovable Baby Einstein characters in bright, happy scenes that will make this one of your favorite books. The Baby Einstein books are built for durability so the book can last the through the toddler stage which is quite an accomplishment. This book sells on amazon for $15.95.

2. Little Tikes Climb & Slide Castle

Turn the little ones in your life into knights and princesses with this climb and slide castle that can be used both indoors and outdoors. Since this set is only a little after 3 feet high it provides easy rock wall climbing for beginners. Adventurous crawl through tunnel and hide out. Gentle slope slide for soft landings. Realistic steering wheel for imaginative play. This product is supposed to take 10 mintues to assembly but I would advise setting it up before Christmas morning and allowing for more than 10 minutes. Since you can use it year round it is a great buy at $74.95 from amazon.

3. Lamaze Mortimer the Moose

Mortimer the Moose will keep baby amused for hours with his many colors, textures, and sounds. His antlers are soft, sturdy rubber that’s perfect for teething babies, his feet are colorfully patterned and make a variety of sounds, and he chimes when you pick him up. From birth on up, Mortimer is a cute toy that will hold your baby's attention.

The Lamaze link on his back makes it easy to take baby's favorite moose along, and you can hang the toy over a crib, car seat, or play mat. Your baby can enjoy the chimes, squeaks, rattles, and crunches anywhere you go.

Have a great Christmas with your family.