Toys for Baby andToddler
Toys for a baby’s early months should be colorful, particularly yellow and red and blue as babies respond most to those colors. It should be suitable and safe for mouthing because in the early months a baby is all about the mouth. They determine much about their surroundings by taste and feel in their mouth. And then the teeth show up, at which point, a teether becomes all important.
A plaything should allow a child to use it, to be creative-to have a bit of a challenge but not to be overly frustrating. 
If it easily falls apart or breaks that is an example of unnecessary frustration for your child. Items and objects that are real (real in the sense that are the “real” thing i.e. a real telephone) are appealing to a child but by their nature require close supervision. Sometimes the box the toy came in is even more exciting than the toy or gift itself.
Before your newborn is sitting up, you can hang a mobile or a string of bells securely over the crib or cradle. There are little activity centers that fasten within baby’s reach on the side of a crib. They have things like a phone dial, a squeaky something, bells, a mirror (non-breakable), clicking and clacking items, and some tactile areas.
As your newborn grows, appropriate playthings are rattles, balls, squeaky or squeezable objects, freezable teethers, cloth books with zippers, buttons, Velcro, snaps, etc. And of course stuffed animals. Puppets are great. Babies seem to relate to them.
Don't forget to baby proof your house. Get down and crawl around and see what your on the move baby sees. Remove anything that could harm baby (see safety guidelines)
from toys to safety guidelines Inspect inspect and inspect. It's easy to overlook some little tidbit, so inspect. 
It’s a gradual transition from baby to toddler toys. If you have a variety of age appropriate level of playthings your child can choose what they are ready for. So always have a few “older” skill level activity items to challenge your baby waiting in the wings for them to try out as they are ready.
Some playthings are called universal toys and they are timelessly valuable. Some are blocks, telephones, legos or stick together shapes, construction and building materials (for example: the “Lincoln Logs” of days gone by--they can still be found if you look around), a shape and sort box, paints and crayons, a xyloaphone. Puppets. Toddlers relate to puppets. They also have a special affinity to animals and sometimes will respond to animal figures when they won’t to adults.
--Tea Tree oil
-- (less ideal but at times appropriate) soak in a solution of bleach and water to disinfect ( 1 gal. of water, 1 tablespoon of bleach) Drain, rinse and air dry overnight
--Hydrogen peroxide to disinfect (using food grade hydrogen peroxide is a safe way to clean various items)
--White vinegar to clean
--Boil in water (I would not recommend boiling toothbrushes. As a young—kind of clueless, you might think!—mother, I did that and I can attest to the fact that it doesn’t work. All the bristles fall out! But a safe way to clean toothbrushes is to use food grade hydrogen peroxide).
Some commercial products are designed to disinfect using harsh chemicals. It is not necessary to use these as some of the above cleaners disinfect as well or better without adding toxic pollutants to the atmosphere. In addition, it is probable that these types of products contribute to the growth of super bugs as germs develop more resistance. And finally, developing ways to use non-toxic ways to clean is much better for your baby’s environment.
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When you consider toys or gifting, do consider a variety of interests with your choices. You never know what might spark a hidden talent or passion in a blossoming child.
