It’s that time of the year where the temperature approaches 100 degrees before 10 am & everyone is looking for an alternative to all of the fun outdoor summer activities.  We spend most of our summer outdoors: swimming at the pool, riding our bikes around the street, & playing baseball in the backyard.  But, sometime you just need a break from the hot and humid weather of summer & head indoors.  The kids have spent a lot of time this month, especially during the afternoons while Avery naps, playing together inside.  Today, I wanted to share a list of ten of our favorite toys that have helped us survive the heat wave of summer!

10 Favorite Toys to Beat the Summer Heat

Stuffed Animals:  Our giant collection of stuffed animals has been the biggest hit this summer!  The kids use their stuffed animals to play pretend baseball games, teach school, & even build their very own animal hospital.  If there has been one big hit this summer with Abby, it’s been her Minnie’s Happy Helpers Pet Carrier.  This carrier comes with fun accessories, including a special collar, pretend food, & a brush to comb the kitty.  The handle on the carrier pulls up so you can drag the kitty (and a few friends!)  everywhere.  This toy pretty much goes wherever Abby goes!

Dress Up Items:  One of my kids’ favorite things to do together is to play dress-up.  We have a giant box full of accessories & costumes for both boys and girls.  Some of the boys’ favorites include: plastic swords, Star Wars masks, & superhero costumes.  Some of Abby’s favorites include: pretty plastic shoes, her Bodacious Bow, & a collection of princess dresses.

Character Toys:  Whatever your child’s favorite character may be at the moment, it’s always fun to have a few character toys to have on hand to foster their love for play.  Abby is a huge fan of Doc McStuffins, so one of her favorite toys is her Lambie & Stuffy plush animals.  I’m pretty sure that this Hospital Care Cart will be on her Christmas list!  Courtney’s boys are really into PJ Masks so they are loving their new PJ Masks Deluxe & Mini Vehicles.

Mini Playsets:  All of my kids have their favorite little toy sets that they can pull out of the playroom closet & play with for the afternoon.  We have several different playsets that the kids love to pick from.  Right now, we have two favorite playsets that get used daily in our house.  The boys love to play with their giant collection of Imaginext toys, including the Shark Bite pirate ship.  Abby’s absolute favorite is Puppy In My Pocket with the miniature dogs & puppy park!

Puzzles:  During the summertime, I let the kids keep puzzles that they are working on out on our dining room table (since we don’t eat there often!).  The kids have loved working on different puzzles all summer long.  Our favorite puzzles in our giant puzzle collection are created by Ravensburger & Melissa and Doug.

Building Toys:  If there’s one toy that my kids never seem to get bored of, it’s a few good sets of building toys.  They love to build different cities & towns throughout our basement, then use their Hot Wheels cars to play “vacation”.  Some of our favorite building toys include: Magnatiles, Legos, & this Wooden Building Block Set.

Play-Doh:  Play-Doh is always a favorite around here, especially during witching hour.  We keep a basket of our favorite colors of Play-Doh with some of our favorite Play-Doh accessories stored in our living room cabinets so we can just pull it out when we need it.  It’s a great way to keep the kids busy while I quickly prep and cook dinner!

Toy Cars:  No matter the age or gender, a small collection of toy cars is great to have on hand at all times.  And with the big hit movie of the summertime, it’s no surprise that all of the new Cars’ toys are a hit this summer.  Courtney’s boys are loving the Cars’ Mobile Tool & Crash’Ems Plush Characters this summer.

Card Games:  Card games are not just great for at home, but also on the road.  With all the traveling we have done this summer, we have put our favorite card games to good use.  Some of the kids’ favorite card games this summer include: Chomp!, Wig Out, & Sleeping Queens.

Play Kitchen:  We bought our play kitchen over five years ago & it is still one of our most used toys!  This is one thing that the kids love to play together.  They love to create a play restaurant where they take turns being the server, cook, & patron.  We always keep our cash register, a set of play menus, & a couple guest check pads right by their play kitchen!

We hope you enjoyed our list of 10 Favorite Toys to Beat the Summer Heat.  

To see some of our favorite outdoor toys, make sure to check out this post!

Disclosure: We were not compensated for this post. We have received a few of the items for the purpose of review. As always, all opinions are our own.