Baby Bowling Sets

Baby bowling sets are a great way to encourage active play, build hand-eye coordination, and teach your baby or toddler how to roll a ball and see results. I have several friends who used a baby bowling set with their older baby as they grew into the toddler years, and it always went over quite well. I'm currently shopping for an appropriate bowling set for my own year and a half old girl, and quite a few of the sets I've found look awesome.

One thing I'm not sure how to handle with a bowling set is age issues and restrictions. Some sets look like the would work just fine for my daughter even though they have a slightly higher age requirement due to small pieces that may be torn off decorated bowling pins. For my child, who is past the stage where she puts things in her mouth and rushes to give mommy anything small she finds on the floor or rips off a toy, these sets would probably be just fine. I'm going to list them near the bottom of this Hub with a note about the age situation, with sets safe and appropriate for a younger child or anyone more concerned with small pieces near the top. Either way, I've found some awesome sets and I'm not sure which one I'm going for yet.

The Fisher Price three pin set for infants looks like the most basically functional set I've found for an infant who isn't standing yet. I'd use that set for my daughter if she were under 1 year because it seems designed so well for younger babies. Unlike the other infant sets listed here, these pins look like they'll be really easy to set up and knock down without adult help. I like the wide bottoms that look like they will work well on carpeting too. Be careful when buying these from Amazon, I saw several sellers listing this set for almost $70 when it apparently retails for under $30.

Baby Bowling Sets Are Great For Active Play

Personally, I like many of the bowling sets designed for older toddlers over the ones designed for a baby moving to toddler my daughter's age. I'm not sure yet, but I may get one of these sets and just keep a close eye on her to make sure she doesn't develop a sudden interest in chewing on pieces, picking at stickers, etc.

The simple plastic set listed here is one I've seen another mother use successfully with her under two year old toddler boy.  She pulled the stickers that are around the pins off before he could get his hands on them, and kept the carrying case out of his reach when it wasn't holding pins.  I'm probably most likely to get this set for my daughter since it comes with two balls, which decreases the chance that she'll misplace one.  I remember the set being really light and easy to set up, though it may be a little bit more of a pain on highly piled carpeting like any set that doesn't have a really wide bottom.

Overall, I think most any of the baby bowling sets I've found listed would work well for a toddler, with some being specifically good for a younger baby.  With supervision, I think some of these options could be a great choice for play for the whole family, like the giant inflatable set listed above, even though they may not be appropriate or usable for a toddler on their own.  I'm interested in teaching by daughter to enjoy active play activities by doing active playing with her whenever I get the chance, so anything that can work as a good active game for her either alone or with other kids or adults is perfect.  I'm probably going to end up going with the plastic set I've seen friends use successfully, though I'm tempted by several of the others as well.