Tonie Tips
A few things I've learnt along the way.
The one thing to know before you buy a toniebox
Tonies are hand-painted, which means the paint can come off and mark your box.
To keep your toniebox from looking like your kids went at it with crayons, I recommend a tonie topper.
There are official ones you can get from tonies direct, or you can buy a clear tonie topper, which is super cheap and won't change the look of your box.
If you'd like a topper, message me on the "Tonies Australia and NZ" Facebook group page and I can hook you up for less than $10!
Above is the top of my toniebox after just 1 week without a topper.
These are some of the official tonie toppers you can buy, and in the middle is a clear topper. A clear topper is fully see-through, so it won't change the look of the box while giving it full protection from your tonies.
My toniebox has paint marks all over it! How do I get them off?
If you're like me and nobody warned you to get a tonie topper before you got your box, and now it's all marked up, there's no need to worry.
You've probably heard of a Magic Eraser, and if you're a mum with a toddler you probably have some lying around. Gently rub it over the marks and they'll disappear like magic. Let the box dry completely before you apply a tonie topper.
I'd definitely buy a topper first and then clean up the box when you're ready to put it on. If you clean the box while you're waiting for the topper to arrive, you might need to clean it again.
My favourite tonie
I can't just pick 1! But I'll narrow it down to 2 for you.
My favourite tonie for my daughter is the Counting Fox. He's a fun music tonie that any kid could bop along to, and he has great educational value too. He has around 24 tracks and 44 minutes of nursery rhymes, all with some kind of number reference.
The best part is that he has 6 tracks of the exact same song sung in 6 different languages: Spanish, French, German, Mandarin, Arabic and Tagalog.
My personal favourite is the Sheep Night Light. The tracks are so peaceful that I think anyone, no matter how stressed, would feel better. It reminds me of my favourite day spa, so I could play it all day if my daughter let me.
Occasionally during her naps, once she's asleep, I'll take the toniebox out to my desk so I can listen to it while I'm working. I should probably buy myself my own box and sheepy night light. Do you think I can claim it as a tax deduction if I use it while I'm working?
Skipping tracks
I really don't have the qualifications to answer this one, I'm still learning myself. According to tonies, you just tap the box on the left or right side, depending on how you set it up in your app.
Finding the sweet spot is far beyond my capabilities though, and I sometimes find myself whacking it in frustration.
My very gentle one year old makes the tracks change with ease, tapping ever so lightly on the side. Unfortunately she doesn't speak in sentences yet, so I can't ask how she does it. I'll update you when she can, in about 3 years.