Melissa & Doug Toys Review and the Terrific 25 List

 For the Kids, For Toddlers  No Responses »
Nov 252013
 

Melissa & Doug carries some of our favorite toys!  This year they have again put together their Terrific 25 List, listing the Top 25 gift ideas for the holidays.  They are also giving away one toy per day until November 28th, and one Grand Prize winner will also receive all 25 toys!  Keep reading for the entire list plus a review of a couple of our favorites.

Melissa & Doug Terrific 25 Gifts

A couple of my favorites on the Melissa & Doug Terrific 25 List are:

  • Take-Along Show-Horse Stable
  • Catch & Count Fishing Rod Game
  • Let’s Play House! Stainless Steel Pots & Pans

Check out the entire list of 25 toys and start making your wish lists now!  And don’t forget to visit the Melissa & Doug Facebook page to enter their giveaway! Continue reading »

Clean Up Games Make Picking Up Toddler Toys Easy

 For the Kids  12 Responses »
Nov 202013
 

Thank you to Delta Furniture for sending us something to help with getting toddlers to pick up!  All words and opinions are my own.

Bubbles is usually pretty good about picking up her toys.  She might not get to them right away, and there may have been a whirlwind of blocks, trucks, dolls, and more around the living room and her bedroom before it’s completed, but it does get done.  Occasionally, though, it does take a little prompting.

Rather than turning those rare “I don’t wanna” toy clean up times into a flow of tears, Bubbles and I came up together with a game.  It’s such a fun game for her that she has been known to strew crayons and Lincoln Logs across the floor just so we can play.  No method is perfect, right?

One of Our Clean Up Games: "Find it Flashlight"

We call our cleanup game the “Find It Flashlight Game”.  And it’s very easy to play.  Bubbles brings me her little flashlight and I swirl the light beam around the room, saying “Hmm, what do I see… what do I see?”  Then the beam of light lands on a toy, and I call “I found something!” prompting Bubbles to run over to the toy, pick it up, and store it away. Continue reading »

Welcome to the Neighborhood: New Daniel Tiger Toys

 For the Kids, Reviews  11 Responses »
Nov 192013
 

I participated in this program on behalf of The Fred Rogers Company and The Motherhood.  All opinions are my own.

I don’t think that I’m alone in the fact that I grew up watching Mr. Rogers Neighborhood.  It was a show I stopped to watch no matter what I was doing, one that I would specifically request if it wasn’t already switched on.  Fortunately with such great values and lessons being modeled, my parents were happy to oblige me.

Sharing Mr. Rogers Neighborhood with my daughter is something I had hoped to do, and I was a little sad that I wouldn’t be able to do so.  Then one day last fall I flipped over to PBS KIDS and saw something new: Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood.  It’s a new animated follow-up to the original Mr. Rogers Neighborhood and it instantly took me back to my childhood.

Recently I had the opportunity to talk with some of the folks behind Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood and the new line of Daniel Tiger toys.  It was awesome to see the enthusiasm and passion that they had for the original and how well they were able to carry over the storyline.  If you look at the side-by-side of Mr. Rogers and Daniel Tiger you can easily spot the similarities.

Meet the Friends of Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood #DanielTigerToys

Continue reading »

Holiday DVD Favorites from PBS KIDS

 Entertainment, For the Kids  5 Responses »
Nov 172013
 

Thank you to PBS for providing review copies of these Holiday DVDs.  All words and thoughts are my own.

If you’re looking for holiday DVD options from your kids’ favorite characters, you’re in luck!  Many of the PBS KIDS shows have put out their own specials packed with winter- and Christmas-themed shows.  The DVDs include both older

Dinosaur Train: Dinosaurs in the Snow

PBS KIDS Holiday DVD Dinosaur Train: Dinosaurs in the Snow

Dinosaur Train is a favorite in our house and we’ve been enjoying the Dinosaurs in the Snow DVD for the last few weeks.  We’ve watched the dinosaurs travel to and see the North Pole for the very first time.  While there Tiny, Don, Shiny and Buddy also saw their first snow.  Later there was a discussion on whether or not tall trees – like Christmas trees – could really have grown from a tiny little seed. Continue reading »

Bubble Science Fun with The Young Scientists Club Clifford the Big Red Dog Kits

 For the Kids, Reviews  11 Responses »
Nov 122013
 

Bubbles has been a big fan of, well, bubbles, for quite some time now.  Nearly every day she asks if we can go outside and blow bubbles.  Doesn’t matter if it’s raining, windy, 100 degrees, or snowing – she wants to be outside playing with bubbles.

We were recently given the opportunity to review a scientific experiments kit from The Young Scientists Club.  After taking a few minutes to visit their site, my choice for a kit was a no-brainer.  They have a line of Clifford the Big Red Dog Science Kits, and we love Clifford.  But more exciting was the fact that one of the kits was a Bubble Science kit!

Clifford the Big Red Dog Bubble Science Kit from The Young Scientists Club

Continue reading »

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