My toddler loves Melissa and Doug peg puzzles {his review}

At the time of writing this, my son is 28 months old (2 years, 4 months old). We got his first Melissa and Doug peg puzzles as a gift (that we requested on a wishlist for his 2nd birthday). As soon as we unwrapped them, he was up and running, setting the pieces in the right places and repeating back what he was learning. They're educational, low-tech but high quality, made of wood, bright and beautifully designed, and best of all - FUN and ENGAGING for my son. That is what makes these puzzles the best toys for a child between the ages of 2 and 3. His little brother is only a newborn, but pretty soon, I'm sure, he will be enjoying these puzzles too. A word of caution however...some of the pieces are small (rated for 3+ year olds), so always supervise!

To give a different spin on these ubiquitous puzzles, often reviewed by adults, I will let my *genius* toddler give you his take on things....thanks for not taking things too seriously :D

This was my first peg puzzle. I like all the colors. It's funny how all the fish are the same shape. I like how I can mix them up and make cool-looking different-colored fish! I know the right spots for them but I make Mommy laugh when I pretend I don't know. I mean, seriously, the color is pretty obvious and the name is written right on the fish body...how can I miss it?! The colors are: orange, black, pink, blue, red, green, yellow, brown, white, and purple.

Ziw-wo, wun, too, thwee, bo, bie, sigs, seh-ven, ate, nine.....ten! See I can count all the way to ten, even though the puzzle is only 0-9. I like how there are pictures under the numbers, just in case I forget. And even though it's easy to mix up the 6 and 9, Mommy says I just need to line up the stripes and I'll know which goes where. But I like matching the blue 6 with the bluebirds that are pictured there. That makes much more sense to me. Blue with blue...duh!

I would sing you the alphabet song but I only know how to hum it right now. But I can say each letter one at a time. It's fun talking about all the letters and what word goes with each letter. Mommy knows all sorts of words, not just the ones in the pictures. How did they fit those pictures on there anyway?? Some are as big as the MOON (which is my favorite word by the way). Some letters are really small, and I'm not allowed to give them to my baby brother to play with, because he might choke on it. Why would he want to eat a wooden letter anyway?

Trucks are awesome!! I wish I had a real life one for every day to ride on around and around the dining table like I do with my yellow dump truck and tricycle and train...and oh my gosh I can't have enough things to ride, even though Mommy says I have enough already! Anyway, this puzzle shows all kinds of vehicles like a moving truck, an ambulance, a taxi, and a schoolbus. When am I going to get to ride one of those I wonder?

Ever since I was little, I loved animals. I know about so many animals and my room is even FULL of animals, like lions and monkeys and frogs. Too bad those aren't on these puzzles, or that would be awesome. But the ones on there are okay too - like rooster and turkey (these two mess me up though) and a sheep and goat, two different horses, a cow, a dog, and a bunny. I think I could mix and match the animals but I don't. Why do I want to see a cat with a cow's BE-HIND, as Mommy calls it, whatever that is.

If I get messed up with some of the similar ones, I can just look at the peg color and match it to the right puzzle. The yellow PETS puzzle has yellow pegs and the reddish pink FARM ANIMALS puzzle has red pegs. I still think it can be hard to do some of the animals, so Mommy has to help on a couple. But I still like it because I LOVE ANIMALS!! Mommy says I act like a wild animal sometimes...is that a good thing?

How did you like my son's honest and unique perspective? He seems to love to do these puzzles every day, and I have noticed a jump in his learning and retention of colors, numbers, letters, words, and sounds, since playing with these. I tend to talk about the words with him and praise him enthusiastically when he makes the connections and places pieces by himself. Of course, we also read every day and watch "educational" cartoons together. Click HERE to visit another hub about some other ways to teach your toddler. Whatever you do with your little ones, remember to interact and have fun with them. It's the best way for them to learn!

*Disclaimer: I am not paid by Melissa & Doug to review their products...I just really like their toys and puzzles! I am however, an Amazon Affiliate, and get advertising fees (commission) when you shop Amazon using my links below. All opinions and pictures are my own. Thanks for reading!