Ice Cream Toy -Leap Frog or Melissa and Doug

[CharlieMM1]

Does anyone have either, or even better have experience with both? Which would you recommend?

Have one son turning 2 and another turning 4 this summer. We tend to do just one or two gifts for birthdays. Who should I buy it for?

Any other recommendations for toys of this age group. We have lots and lots of toy cars, train set, Duplo(but neither are fans), tonie box for eldest.

Duplo we have are sets though like Peppa pig tree house and train, rather than loose bricks. I've noticed eldest getting into role play trying to take peoples orders etc and taking money for bus tickets. Which is a very new development

We just got rid of the Leapfrog ice cream cart and my kids are 8 and 5. They loved it. So I’d definitely vote for that but primarily as a gift for the 2YO. Does your eldest have any hot wheels sets yet? They’re popular with mine too, less so for DD now she’s 8 but she liked them when she was younger and DS5 is obsessed. 4 is also old enough for the first proper lego sets as opposed to duplo.

We've got the Melissa and Doug one. Got it when my eldest was 2 and they are now 4 and 2 and still regularly use it. It's good quality.

The Melissa and Doug one is at our nursery and all the kids flock to it.

Leapfrog ice cream and leapfrog pizza cart.

We have the Melissa and Doug one and it's a hit! Easily stored too

We had the Melissa and Doug one and it was played with regularly for at least 4 years. One of our most successful purchases ever.

We bought the Melissa and Doug one for DC2's 3rd birthday and it was very well played with by all 3 of our kids for years.

The Melissa and Doug wooden one is awesome and takes up way less space, we have it and my kids have played with the leapfrog one at a friends house and I would prefer Melissa and Doug

My kids are 11, 9 and 6. Leapfrog still played with 😁

Do they have a play kitchen? I'd get one off marketplace if you have room for it, with the wooden food etc
Otherwise I had both ice cream carts and preferred the leapfrog one, although the wooden one does look and feel better.
Aldi and Lidl do all sorts of wooden pizzas, foods etc for roleplay

I think for that age things that are good are role play doctors/vet sets, binoculars, sand toys for outside, water play etc
For the turning 4 year old you could get a large marble set with bigger sized balls that could be kept away from the 2 year old
Alternatively try the leapfrog reading books or the leapfrog talking pen. The books have games and reads the story to them if they press the pen to the page, it's quite good. I also liked the little leapfrog/vtech laptops for that age too. Easily bought from vinted or marketplace too

Maybe the little people sets for 2 yo? Happy land are nice. We liked putting the people in the bus and playing with them in their houses
DJ kit/piano or wooden musical instruments. Little Einstein brand does some cool instruments

Melissa and Doug, my 5 year old loves it.

Only experience of the Leap Frog Icecream cart. Grandaughter now 3.5 years loves it. Always asking us what icecream we would like, Grandson when he goes over to play with cousin loves it too. He spotted it straight away when he visited.