There's an app for that

iPhones are the best toddler toy ever. The most expensive too.

It comes in very handy in waiting rooms, on long car rides, in restaurants (when Nolan is done eating but we aren’t) and just when I need him quiet for a few minutes while making a phone call or whatever. I know, it is basically giving video games to a two year old, but I found some really great apps that are fun and educational and I don't mind that he plays them for a few minutes in my time of need. Nolan has an entire page of apps on my phone. Here are our favorites in order of how much Nolan likes them. All photos are screenshots from my phone.

Wheels on the Bus
This is Nolan’s absolute favorite! Each page is a different line of the song and he can touch the screen to activate the wipers swishing, the doors opening, the people going up and down, etc. I can even record my own voice to sing to him while he plays.

Peekaboo Barn

This is the cutest app. The barn shakes and knocks and when Nolan touches it, the doors open, an animal makes a sound and a child’s voice tells you the name of the animal. I goes through about ten animals and then it turns to night and shows the animals sleeping together in the barn. Adorable.

Shapes Quizzer

I swear this is how Nolan learned all of his shapes so early. It shows a few shapes, asks him to pick a certain one and when he does it claps and cheers for him. At the end of a round, Nolan picks a sticker for his sticker page. He can easily play this one for ten minutes. It’s a life saver at the doctor’s office!

Itsy Bitsy Spider

This is my favorite, and slowly Nolan is getting more into it. It’s similar to Wheels on the Bus, but it’s just one scene instead of pages and pages. It’s so cute and there are so many things to click on, including a little fly who gives facts about weather and nature and there's an Easter egg hunt. The spider collects colored eggs, goes up the spout and puts them on her web. So cute!

Preschool Adventure

This app has little games about colors, numbers, shapes, body, matching and sounds. Right now Nolan only really likes “body” where he attaches a monkey’s body parts.

Sesame Street: The Firehouse

Nolan always wants to play with this app because he loves Elmo, Sesame Street and fire trucks, but he isn’t quite into it yet. This is an actual book. He doesn’t really understand the story and he gets frustrated when he doesn’t see Elmo on every single page.

One thing I learned is that I have to turn my phone on airplane mode. Nolan likes to get out of the game, scroll through my phone book until he finds his Grandpa’s picture and calls him. Booger!