Pick of the Day: Creativity for Kids Felt Fashions Messenger Bag

If you have a school aged girl on your list this holiday season, take a look at Creativity for Kids’ Felt Fashions Messenger Bag. Here’s an easy to do craft project that girls will enjoy both doing and using! The felt pieces are fun to design with – and easy enough for 7 and up- for a full review  and shopping info visit toyportfolio.com.

Pick of the Day: Crayola Glow Station

I was driving home yesterday in the dark and as we got caught in traffic…I started thinking about one of my favorite toys that I wished I had in the car.  There’s something about being caught in traffic that brings out my inner eight year old.   Last year’s Platinum Award winner, the Crayola Glow Station.  Read our complete review.

Three Gender-Free Fantastic Art Activity Kits

Finding arts and crafts activities that will appeal to both boys and girls can be challenging since so many kits are so gender-specific.

Here are three from our Platinum List that will appeal to everyone!

Creativity for Little Kids Finger Paints (Creativity for Kids)

Crayola Crayon Maker (Crayola)

Money Monster Banks (Creativity for Kids)

Pick of the Day: Bejeweled Bead Chest from Bead Bazaar

A truly special gift for school age girls who will love both the wood chest and the painted wooden beads that come with it. Read our review.  This company makes lovely sets that always appeal to our tween, teen and adult testers.

Bejeweled Bead Chest from Bead Bazaar

Pick of the Day: Creativity for Kids Big Fun Crafts

If you have preschoolers that are making collages for the first time–you’ll quickly learn that if you have construction paper and glue–they’re happy to use just about anything. It’s the fun of manipulating objects…getting glue on them…and making decisions about where they go!  It’s completely about the process at this stage…that pure state of just exploring that we unfortunately lose along the way to result oriented adulthood.  A friend just posted that she went to an art class for the first time in 15 years–and loved it.  This summer, inspired by my mother I started exploring painting again.  I had such a good time. It was once again about the process…

If you’re looking for a kit with lots of goodies ready to go, this new kit from Creativity for Kids is perfect to bring home.  For a full review and shopping info, click here. You can also use that junk drawer as inspiration.  Better yet, as Fall really starts to take hold…take a nature walk.  Collect leaves, twigs…you remember the drill.  Just be sure you have plenty of glue!

Pick of the Day: Crayola’s Glow Dome

Our testers enjoyed trying this new activity toy out where you can decorate both the outer dome and the inner stand.  What I really liked about it–it’s really an open-ended drawing opportunity.  Yes, there are suggestions and print outs for tracing, but the sky’s the limit on what you can draw.  If you don’t like what you’ve designed it’s really easy to wipe off your creation and start over with the six glow markers. What is also really cool–the dome spins and lights up- making this a super night time decoration.  There are several settings for the type of light show you can display. The only downside–the motor is pretty loud as the dome moves.

Best Outdoor Toys

I really love that we’re heading into summer with longer days – which means more time to be outside with our kids. Here are some of our new favorites for the season…we’ll be continuing to update this list in the coming weeks.

Nature Station Playhouse (Step 2)  I love this little playhouse that is designed for older toddlers and preschoolers – maybe because it looks like Pooh, Tigger and Piglet should be there too. Kids enjoy having small spaces that are designed just for them. This playhouse has a working periscope (really fun), a sink, a working shutter,  and a fenced in area so if you’re invited in- there’s a bigger space for adults. This product is pricey at $249.99 but will be used for a long stretch. (This playhouse  is marked 3 & up  due to all the extra things that come with it–but the structure itself will be enjoyed by younger children. There are larger play sets from Step 2 that have more height–our recommendation is take your kids along when you’re shopping for this type of equipment. If you decide to bring this product  home to older toddlers, put the goodies away until they’re older.)

Sandbox Vehicles Eco Trucks from Sprig Toys were a hit with our testers.  These are very lightweight – making them easy for kids to use and to take along to the park or backyard sand box. Made from recycled materials. Our favorite is the Dump Truck.

Dump Truck (Green Toys)  The new line of green trucks from Green Toys are heavier than the Sprig trucks. They feel more like a traditional plastic toy truck- with the upside here being that they are also made from recycled materials.   Handsomely designed – they got high marks from our testers.

Hot Wheels Color Shifters Blaster (Mattel) I’ve already blogged about this toy and I think I’m a little sad that I gave our sample away!  My mother doesn’t agree with my over the top enthusiasm for this play set–but I really think this is one of the best toys going.  I’m suggesting that it’s even better if you play with it outside–because truth be told-it does get alittle wet if you’re really playing with it full tilt.  The cars react to cold and hot water–and will turn a different color when put into either temperature (I KNOW!)  Best yet, it comes with a squirt bottle so you can change the cars by squirting them.  If you don’t want to buy the whole set–I’d suggest buying one of the cars–you can use any squirt bottle to have the same experience.  If you want to be the super cool grown up, bring this toy home to any three year old you know. I do think the car that turns from blue to yellow is much more dramatic than some of the other color changes (yellow/orange).

Sports

Drive, Chip and Putt Golf Trainer (Little Tikes) There are two different”ts’ to hit the golf ball from…making this a little different from your average plastic golf set.  Our testers really enjoyed the sport of this game and the sturdy design made it a solid choice for the 2-4 crowd.

Monster Badminton Set (International Playthings)  This set will be ready next month but I had to show it to you now.  These over-sized rackets and birdies are just what our family needed. They are fun for little kids–but truth be told, if you’re not the most athletic person–this is a set for you!  You’d be hard pressed to miss this birdie!  It does not come with a net–our toy testers just liked playing with it alone.

Scooters

Maxi Scooter (Kickboard USA) Maybe because I’m not the most coordinated person, I loved the idea of this scooter.  It comes with three wheels and a wider platform for added stability but still  looks cool.  As I hoped, our new scooter testers had no trouble with this scooter and really enjoyed it. It comes with two handles–a traditional T-handle and a joystick.  We recommend the traditional handle as a starting point. It’s designed for kids 6-10.  The company now also makes a Mini Kick Scooter (smaller in scale for younger kids 2-5)…also with three wheels.  Helmets are a must!

Razor Spark Scooter (Razor) The granddaddy of scooters just got a very neat feature. When you break, it sparks out the back. Our testers thought this was pretty cool–although if you’re the one doing the braking, it is hard to see the spark–but your friends will!

Outdoor Treats

Freeze Pop Factory (Little Kids)  According to the company, more than 7 billion freeze pops are sold each year (makes you think we should all go into the freeze pop business!) ….in any case, this do-it-yourself kit is really fun. Comes with those pop sleeves (which magically close up and don’t leak) and plastic molds for making bigger pops.  You can experiment with making your own family recipes and limit the amount of sugar your kids use. Every grown-up I’ve mentioned this kit  to has asked the same question, “Could you make grown up freeze pop for a party?” and then they say…don’t say that out loud….but it’s true. Just don’t get them mixed up. It comes with 36 sleeves for making the pops…and the good news is that you can also order more ($4.95 for 50 including shipping) from the company’s site or by calling (800) 545-5437.

Pure silliness!: Klutz’s Invasion of the Bristlebots

This time of the year with all of the toys pouring in for review, it takes a really unique product to make me laugh out loud!  I just took a look at Klut’z new toy/book – Invasion of the Bristlebots.  Imagine an oversized head of a tooth brush–attach a motor– and then imagine that someone thought of lots of silly things you could do with two of these little creations.  You can paint, you can add cut outs, you can race…you get the idea.  We have not gotten a safety certificate yet on the toy portion of this toy…but I wanted to share.

Pick of the Day: Scratch Art’s Wacky Scratch Deluxe Activity Kit

We’ve always been big fans of Scratch Magic from Scratch Art Co. – it’s a fun craft activity that’s easy to explore and works for a range of ages.  You start off with a black sheet and with the enclosed wooden stylus–you scratch off the black to reveal the print or colors hidden beneath the blank overlay.  You can draw your own design or use the enclosed stencils.  This deluxe set, Wacky Scratch Deluxe Kit $15.99,  comes with sixteen drawing boards (trust me you will want to try this yourself), stencils and three frames for displaying your work.  They also make travel sized sets—  useful and easy to take along when you need your kids to be entertained, sitting down and quiet (at least for a little bit!). You can also buy this bigger kit and break it up into small sets to dole out as you go.  Also a good to choice to have in your office for when your kids drop by and you have some work to do.

Move Over Barbie: Tattoos for Kids

Last week there was a lot of buzz about Barbie getting Tattoos, but one of the trends we’ve been watching are tattoo kits for kids.  The first two have arrived from Creativity for Kids, there’s Fresh Ink Color-In Tattos for Boys and for Girls.  The tatoos in the girl set are pretty safe…flowers, butterflies, hearts.  There is a skull and cross bones (wearing a bow)…and the boys kit has more traditional skull and cross bones as well as aliens, a baseball and more biker motifs.  These kits can be fun for a party…but how do you feel about putting skull and crossbones on your six year old?