Toys

Toys to Keep Kids Busy During the Christmas Break

Once the presents have been opened and you hear “I’m bored” pull out these toys to keep them busy and happy.

LiteBrix by Cra-Z-Art are fun building bricks that actually light up. They fit with LEGOs and other standard building bricks. You can set sets of them to build specific things like robots, motorcycles, cars, and trucks. Available at Amazon.com

Drip Drops is an interactive iPad app that let’s kids draw and create with color, animation and music, all while getting to know the Drip Drop characters. Designed for kids ages 2 to 6, Drip Drops let kids express themselves through their art. The Drip Drops ebook is available as a Free Download on iTunes and Google Play Market. The Drip Pros app is available for purchase for $2.99. Listen to Free Drip Drops music online.

Singalongz are cute cuddly friends that sing along with your kids. Sing or talk into the mix and your Singalongz friend will repeat everything they hear in their own unique voice.

Hexbugs are plastic bugs that kids can move around with a remote control (the larger ones) and the smaller ones can be played with on a race track.

Teenage Ninja Mutant Turtles have never gone out of style. Michelangelo, Leonardo, Donatello, and Raphael, are at it again, fighting petty criminals, evil overlords, and alien invaders. My kids played with them when they were growing up and watched the original series on TV and kids today enjoy playing with them just as much.

Yummy Dough is the dough kids can make, mold, play with and eat too! It’s safe to eat raw or baked. Includes 4 colored, just-add-water dry mixes, mixing spatula, measuring tool and reusable bucket

Kids will love learning to perform Magic Tricks with Ryan Oake’s Magic Show. There are a variety of kits. The large one includes disappearing card box, traveling handkerchief, vanishing salt, cup and balls, magic paint can and many more.

If these toys aren’t enough, banish the phrase “I’m bored!” with these kid-friendly craft ideas designed to keep little hands occupied over their holiday break from Martha Stewart Living.

Take a Ride in the Radio Flyer Ultimate EZ Folding Wagon

Have you ever taken your kids on a walk and put them in a wagon? I know we have and we also use a wagon to take all of their stuff to the beach in the summer. We just received the brand new Radio Flyer EZ Full-size Folding Wagon to try out. It folds up just like a stroller so you can store it in the back of your SUV or trunk of your car. You can’t do that with a regular wagon. The Radio Flyer EZ Folding Wagon is going to make going to the beach much more convenient. I can see using this wagon in an airport with a couple of small children instead of a stroller.

Watch Layla take the Radio Flyer EZ Wagon for a spin.

Features of the Radio Flyer EZ Folding Wagon

easy grip handle
one hand folding
compact when folded
store and take anywhere
2 comfort seats
easy clean DuraClean™ fabric
4 child cup holders
2 adult cup holders

It comes in a very large box and is already folded. There are a few parts you need to put on the wagon and you will need a Phillips head screwdriver and a wrench. It only took about 10 to 15 minutes to put it together and it comes with clear, step-by-step instructions with pictures.

How to Put the Radio Flyer EZ Wagon Together

Grasp each side and pull outward to open the wagon. When you pull the sides out the seats will automatically fold out in place.
Press down on the middle panel to snap it into place.
Attach the two front swivel wheels. Each wheel is labeled L for left and R for right so make sure to put them on the correct side.
Attach the handle with the bolt and nut provided in the box.
Push the four canopy rods into the holes and press down firmly.
The canopy then attaches to the rods with snaps.

The Radio Flyer EZ Folding Wagon folds just like a stroller and fits two toddlers (ages 18 months and up). Our daughter Layla, age 3, fit perfectly in it, and it would also hold another toddler or a child up to about 3 to 5 years old. It is quite large measuring 20″ x 11.8″ x 28.4″. It comes with a detachable shade canopy with is a nice extra for hot days to keep the sun off the children. The Radio Flyer EZ Wagon is made out of a DuraClean™ fabric and it seems built to last.

The Radio Flyer EZ Wagon is a mix of plastic and fabric. The plastic doesn’t feel cheap and the fabric seems pretty rugged. The overall build quality seems solid and it should last years with little kids. The seats and floor are made out of plastic. The seats even have seat-belts to keep kids from standing up. The large wheels are also plastic and rubber. The wheels on the back are held on with a rod so they don’t swivel but the wheels on the front (where the handle is located) swivel to make it easy to turn and navigate. We had no problem pulling it over rocks and grassy areas.

On the outside and inside of the wagon you will find drink cup pockets. A sippy cup or bottle fit fine in the inside cup holders (there are 4 of them) and adult size bottles can fit in the two outside cup holders.

To fold the Radio Flyer EZ Wagon, you just lift up the handle inside located on the floor and it folds up just like a stroller. Make sure you remove the canopy first.

The Radio Flyer EZ Folding Wagon is available on Amazon, RadioFlyer.com, Toys R Us and other retailers.

Watch this quick video to see the Radio Flyer EZ Fold Wagon in action

Creative Valentine’s Greeting Card Boxes to Make at Home

When I was a child, we covered shoe boxes with brown paper and pasted colorful paper doilies and construction paper hearts onto the outside of the box to make a Valentine’s Day Greeting card box. Today there are many, many ways to decorate Valentine’s greeting card boxes. You don’t even need to use a shoebox, you can decorate a gift bag as as shown below. A Valentine’s Card mailbox craft is perfect for kids to complete before they share candy and cards on Valentine’s Day.

Visit Giggles Galore for instructions for Valentine’s Monster greeting card box.

Duct Tape Valentine’s Box

Instructions and photo by Michael’s Craft Store. These directions are for the Valentine’s Box on the top in the photo above.

Supplies Needed:

Shoe Box (or other box with removable lid)
White Duck Tape
Foam heart stickers
Pink Polka Dot Duck Tape
Retractable Utility Knife
Glue Stick
Sharpie Marker

Instructions:

Leave the lid on the box and attach a strip of White Duck Tape horizontally around the center of the outside of the box.
Remove the lid and set aside.
Draw a curlicue line in the center of the White Duck Tape strip all of the way around the box.
Embellish the top and bottom edges of the Duck Tape strip with foam heart stickers. Set aside.
Cover the lid of the box with Pink Polka Dot Duck Tape.
Cut a large slit opening with the utility knife.
Add a foam heart sticker to each side of the opening on the lid and draw an arrow on the outer side of each heart with a Sharpie® marker.
Write the child’s name near the opening with a Sharpie marker.

XOXO Valentine’s Mailbox Instructions:

Use an empty cereal box, freezer paper, some felt letters and hearts to make this simple, and cheap Valentine’s Mailbox.

Supplies Needed:

Empty Cereal box
White Freezer Paper (you can buy this at the grocery store)
Felt hearts and letters
Tape
Glue Stick

Instructions:

Tape the top of the cereal box closed.
Cover the cereal box with freezer paper just like you were wrapping a present.
Cut a long slit in the one front panel of the box. Make the slit wide enough for a card to be pushed through, about 1/2″ high.
Decorate the box by using the glue stick to stick on hearts and letters. If you don’t want to spend the money on felt hearts and letters, cut them out of construction paper.

Luv Bug Valentine’s Day Card Bag

You may purchase this as a kit from Oriental Trading Company or use your own supplies and our instructions below. You can’t buy just one kit from OTC and you would need to buy a lot of 12. This Valentine’s card bag can easily be made by using our instructions and craft supplies you have on hand or buy at your local craft store.

Supplies Needed: a pink bag with handles, foam hearts in various sizes, glue, one sheet of red construction paper, a single sheet of red felt, a single large pink pom pom (or cotton ball if you don’t have a pom pom), two small pink pom poms, silver pipe cleaner, and a pair of googly eyes.

Instructions: Cut four red construction paper strips, 1″ wide by the length of the paper. Fold each the strip accordion style. Glue a medium size, red foam heart to the end of each strip. Cut a large heart from the single sheet of red felt. If you want to make it more stable, cut the same size of cardboard and glue the heart onto it. Cut a mouth opening in the the heart and in the bag (as shown). Staple or glue the large heart onto the bag, matching up the mouth. Using the photo above, decorate the front of the bag by gluing other small hearts. If you staple the heart onto the bag cover the staples by gluing a heart over each staple. Glue the arms and legs onto the bag (as shown).

Owl Valentine Box Card Holder Craft Kit

This foam owl thinks it’s wise to keep your cards in one Valentine’s box! This is a craft kit that may be purchased from Oriental Trading Company. Includes self-adhesive foam pieces. All craft kit pieces are pre-packaged for individual use. These kits include instructions and extra pieces.

Free PAJANIMALS Printable Valentine’s Day Cards

In the new Jim Henson DVD, “Pajanimals Playdate”, the Pajanimals love to play games, sing songs and go on great adventures to meet new friends.

February is the month of love with Valentine’s Day and Pajanimals want to help you celebrate by offering new FREE PAJANIMALS-themed Valentine’s Day printable cards

The PAJANIMALS include Cowbella, Apollo, Sweetpea Sue and Squacky and they have quickly become popular with children and parents alike! The Pajanimals television series airs nightly on 24-hour preschool television channel Sprout® during its The Good Night Show and also airs on NBC on Saturday mornings as part of the NBC Kids programming block. Find the Pajanimals TV Episodes are Scheduled and see if you can get the Sprout network in your area.

The Pajanimals will be coming to a town near you this Spring. Find out the tour date and town nearest you.

New! Simplay3 Game Day Push about Football Helmet Car

Simplay3, a new company by Tom Murdough, the founder of both Little Tikes and Step2, just came out with the Simplay3 Game Day Push about Helmet. They sent us one to test out and this is what we thought.

The Simplay3 Game Day Push About Helmet is the darn cutest thing you’ve seen in awhile and it’s Made in the USA! When ordering, you can pick your favorite team – Pittsburgh Steelers, New England Patriots, Dallas Cowboys, Green Bay Packers, or pick your favorite color – black, gray, white, red/orange or blue. When your buggy arrives it will come your team’s color along with colorful football-themed stickers to decorate the sides. It does not come with official NFL team stickers but you can get those on Skinit.

The Simplay3 Game Day Push about Helmet comes unassembled but only takes about 15 minutes to put together. There are clear instructions in the box and everything you need to put it together.

Once you have the Simplay3 Game Day Push about Helmet Car put together the fun can begin.

Layla is 3 and she fits in it perfectly. It should be fine for toddlers up to 3 or 3-1/2 years. She was absolutely thrilled the first time she saw it.

Layla loved climbing into the helmet shaped cab and its football shaped steering wheel added to the fun.

It’s easy to get inside and then make sure to buckle up for safety. It comes with a seat belt. It even has a cup holder in the front.

The football handle turns so kids can get right in the action and feel like they are in the driver’s seat.

The Simplay3 Game Day Push about Helmet car is very sturdy and has a double-wall plastic construction. It’s a perfect transition vehicle taking children from stroller to the more advanced ride-on cars.

Awww mom, do I really have to get out now?