The Quarter in the Toe and the Candy Cane Are Both on the Choking List
It is the twenty-third, and you are tipping the shopping bag out onto the bed. A candy cane. A bouncy ball. A shiny quarter for the toe, the way your grandmother did it. Your two-year-old’s stocking is about as long as her leg, and everything in it is headed for her mouth.
Stocking stuffers are small on purpose. That is the charm, and it is exactly what the safety rules for children under three were written against.
So the job changes. You are hunting for things that still feel like a surprise and stay too big for her throat.
Which classic stocking stuffers are on the choking list?
Start with the toe. The American Academy of Pediatrics keeps a plain list of household items to keep away from infants and children, and it reads like a stocking inventory: balloons, coins, marbles, toys with small parts, small balls, and pen or marker caps.
Hold that against the bag on your bed. Your quarter is a coin, and the bouncy ball is a small ball. Those mini figures count as toys with small parts. Even the candy cane makes the list, since the same page says to avoid or modify hard, gooey, or sticky candy and chewing gum for young children.
For anything the list skips, borrow the test from the Consumer Product Safety Commission. A small part is anything that fits entirely inside a cylinder 2.25 inches long and 1.25 inches wide, about the size of the throat of a child under 3. A toilet paper roll is wider and longer than that official tester, so it errs on the side of caution. Our guide to toy safety for toddlers has the full test.
Balloons get their own line. The AAP says they pose a choking risk to children up to 8 years of age, so the party pack stays out of the stocking.
What about button batteries, magnets, and water beads?
Button batteries first. The AAP list of where they turn up includes flashing shoes, flameless candles, holiday ornaments, and musical greeting cards. Yes, the card that plays a tune.
The AAP says a swallowed battery can damage or burn through the esophagus within 2 hours. If you suspect a swallow, go to the emergency room or call 911. The National Battery Ingestion Hotline is 800-498-8666. Before you wrap anything that lights up or plays a song, check that the battery door is secure and consider taping it shut. The ornament that sings has its own section in our toddler-proof Christmas tree guide.
Magnets next. The AAP says to be careful with toys that hold high-powered magnets, because loose ones tempt young children to put them in the mouth, nose, or ears. Water beads can grow up to 100 times their original size, and with young children in the house the AAP says it is safest to have none. For a swallowed bead, seek treatment right away or call Poison Help at 1-800-222-1222.
Is a 2-year-old’s stocking different from a 3-year-old’s?
Yes, and the line is the third birthday. The federal small-parts ban covers products made for children under 3. Toys made for older kids with small parts get a warning label instead.
That is why a three-year-old’s stocking can hold a few more small things. It is also where the trouble starts, since a three-year-old often shares a house with someone younger who has never read the label.
The food line sits a year higher than the toy line. The AAP says to keep high-risk foods from children until 4 years of age or older, depending on each child’s development and maturity level. So even the three-year-old’s stocking skips popcorn, nuts, gum, and hard candy.
A split that works: the two-year-old gets things she can hold in a full fist, and the three-year-old gets small pieces in a higher stocking that is emptied at the table. Reusable sticker books suit that second stocking. Our list of stocking stuffers for kids covers the school-age sibling.
Walenced Reusable Sticker Book for Toddlers
Six books in one set. One for the stocking, five for the car bag.
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What goes in a toddler’s stocking instead of toys?
The non-toy stocking has three easy shelves, and toddlers treat all of them like presents.
Bath goes first. A washcloth mitt or a set of suction-cup spinners turns the ten minutes before bed into an event. Our list of things for a bathroom with a toddler in it has more.
Suction cups hold it to the tile while you rinse her hair.
Snack comes second. Anything edible in the toe should be food you would serve at the table anyway. The AAP says to cut food for young children into pieces no larger than one-half inch, so think of a squeeze pouch, or a clementine cut small once she is in her chair.
The book comes last. A lift-the-flap board book like Dear Zoo asks a two-year-old to do something on every page, and the flaps are part of the page. Our roundup of books to give instead of a toy has more.
One animal behind every flap, and something to do on each page.
What can you put in a toddler’s stocking for under $5?
More than you would guess, and most of it is not plastic. Start with what her hands love, like pouring and scribbling.
Jumbo crayons and a pad of plain paper cover the scribbler, and crayons beat markers here because marker caps are on the AAP’s list. Grippy socks help the kid who runs on hardwood. A metal measuring cup and a wooden spoon turn into a drum set by noon. Most of this costs a few dollars at a grocery or discount store.
Wrap each one in plain paper. Two-year-olds love the tearing, so skip the ribbon.
If your toddler seeks out textures and squeezes, our list of sensory stocking stuffers has ideas that will not turn to junk by January. Gift lists love to sort by girl and boy. Ignore the aisle. A two-year-old wants to scribble and splash whatever color the box is.
Run the tube test on the kitchen floor the night before
Once the kids are asleep, tip the bag onto the floor and drop each piece into a cardboard tube. Anything that fits goes up high in the older kid’s stocking, or back in the bag for next year. Check every battery door and cut the snack down to size. Then stop earlier than feels right. A half-full stocking looks like plenty to a two-year-old, and our piece on how many presents a child should get for Christmas has a rule for where to stop.
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Frequently asked questions
Choose things too big to fit inside a cardboard tube: a board book, jumbo crayons with a pad of paper, a washcloth mitt, a suction-cup bath toy, or a snack you would serve at the table. Skip coins, small balls, marbles, balloons, hard candy, and anything holding a coin battery.
Reusable sticker books, a small puzzle, play dough, a picture book, and a set of stamps with a washable ink pad all suit a 3-year-old. Keep small pieces away from any younger sibling, and skip gum, popcorn, nuts, and hard candy, since the AAP says to keep high-risk foods until age 4 or older.
No. At two and three, both love pouring and scribbling, so choose by what your child does all day. The safety rules stay the same too: coins, small balls, balloons, marbles, and coin batteries stay away from every toddler, whatever color the box is.
A pack of jumbo crayons, grippy socks, a metal measuring cup with a wooden spoon, a tube of bubbles, or a used board book from a thrift shelf usually cost a few dollars each. Prices vary by store, so check the shelf before you count on a number.
If you suspect a button battery was swallowed, go to the emergency room or call 911 right away, and say it may be a lithium coin battery. The National Battery Ingestion Hotline is 800-498-8666. If you suspect water beads were swallowed, seek treatment right away or call Poison Help at 1-800-222-1222.
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