Reviews for $0-20
HEXBUG Micro Robotic Creatures$9.99 - 19.99 at HEXBUG |
We were delighted — and not the least bit squeamish — to be introduced to our little HEXBUG friends at Toy Fair in New York last month. HEXBUGS are beautifully designed and affordable micro robotic creatures appropriate for ages 8 and up. Currently there are three models available for purchase — the “bug,” the “inchworm,” and the “crab” — while the newest “ant” will be available this spring. We’ve fallen hard for our green inchworm, the only HEXBUG that is controlled by a tiny infrared remote control unit. What’s fascinating about it is its steering capabilities, and its ability to pirouette in place when stopped on its center pod foot. The HEXBUG crab reacts to light and sound, hiding in shaded areas until a loud sound or exposure to light chases it out into the open. The original bug reacts to touch and sound, and the newest ant has legs and wheels that allow it to move faster than the others. Each HEXBUG comes with button cell batteries included and are available in a variety of fun colors. Your grandkids don’t need to be robot fans to enjoy HEXBUGS — anyone, including adults, will have fun with them. Their affordability makes them great surprise gifts, and, unlike real bugs, anyone would be happy to have them roaming around the house!
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Hoppers Jr. is a fun and challenging peg solitaire game designed for kids ages 5-7 to play on their own — although I’ve been having just as much fun with it as my kid testers! Once again, Thinkfun has done a great job with the design of this game (as with most of their games). The square sturdy board (along with a handy travel bag to carry the pieces and hook onto the board) is intended to mimic a lily pad pond, and the object is to have the chunky little frogs hop over each other until only the red frog remains. The green frogs can hop over each other in any direction, and the 1 red frog can also hop over the greens, but the greens can not hop over the red. Like many of Thinkfun’s games, Hoppers Jr. comes with a Challenge Book with game board setups ranging from Easy to Super Hard. Some of the challenges actually start getting “challenging” in the medium range, so somewhere along the way your grandchild will likely require some friendly encouragement and assistance. At the more difficult levels it will be necessary to navigate the board more than once, possibly many times, in order to crack it. Similar to Chess, it helps to study the board and try to see all of the remaining moves, or hops, ahead of time. However, there is only one player so there are no surprises — just good mind-stretching fun! Thinkfun also sells a version of this game for older children (ages 8-12).
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We recently took our first long car ride with the Snack & Play Travel Tray by Star Kids. Our trip was more relaxed than usual because our 4 year-old daughter was able to entertain herself without as much reaching, dropping, and asking for help. The Snack & Play Travel Tray was created by a entrepreneurial mom who wanted to address a problem recognized by most parents — how to keep young children occupied, self-sufficient and happy, with toys, snacks, etc., during extended travel in the car, plane or stroller. What’s novel about this tray is that it is just firm enough to color or roll toys on, yet is still soft and comfortable on a child’s lap. It can be used with any car seat, booster or stroller, and has a mesh pocket hanging from each side so your grandchild can store toys, cups, snacks, etc. This, in conjunction with the fact that the tray itself has a border around it, means a lot less reaching back to hand-over or pick-up hard-to-reach toys. The Snack & Play is manufactured in accordance with European standards, the strictest regulations in the world, and has been crash tested by a federally recognized testing facility — the tray system’s softness makes it much safer than other trays in the case of an accident. The fabric wipes clean and is certified lead and phthalate-free.
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How'd They Build That - (Fire Truck)?$8.99 at Amazon.com |
We’ve been introduced to a new series of educational kids DVD’s called, “How’d They Build That?”. How’d They Build That – Fire Truck will appeal to aspiring young firefighters (and other children who are generally interested in how things are built) from ages 5 and up. With adult supervision, some even younger enthusiasts will certainly learn a thing or two as well. This particular DVD visits Seagrave Fire Apparatus, in Clintonville, Wisconsin — a company that’s been around since 1881 and makes many of today’s fire trucks. The simple narrated format tells how Seagrave started out as a ladder company, and then, with requests for custom-made ladders from fire departments, eventually began building the trucks to go along with the ladders! The DVD shows some of the components of the vehicles, including various types of ladders (which average 100 ft. long when fully extended!), hydraulic platforms, etc. Fun Facts are also dispersed throughout the 58 minute program. For example, one Fun Fact states that there are between 1,800 and 2,500 parts in an average fire truck. Another one explains that it takes between 1,500 and 3,500 hours to build a single truck. Also, did you know that some parts are held together by very strong tape? Or that fire trucks can actually be any color whatsoever, even though the standard is red? In addition to the Fire Truck DVD discussed here, the How’d They Build That series also includes: Big Truck, School Bus and Concrete Truck.
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Recently my kids and I have had the pleasure of playing with some of the wooden toys handcrafted by Tom Seal, of Bearded Seal Woodcrafts. We especially appreciate fine handcrafted wooden toys, and these are some of the finest we’ve seen. Tom custom-makes each product entirely by hand. He received his earliest inspiration as a child wandering the forests of his native Pacific Northwest. By high school he was crafting wood, and then honed his skills studying fine arts in college. He applies this appreciation of wood, as well as his knowledge of how to expertly craft it, into each of his products — from vintage wooden cars to classic wooden tangram puzzles. My kids have been vroom vroom’ing around non-stop with a gorgeous classic Ford mustang crafted from Makore & Bolivian Rosewood ($32). The tangrams set is crafted using American Black Walnut, and comes packaged in a decorative silk travel pouch, along with plenty of suggested tangram puzzles ($17 for domestic wood or $22 for exotic). We love tangrams, and what a treat it is to be able to play on such a beautiful set. If you and your grandchild enjoy logic puzzles (and also have some pretty good fine motor skills!), Tom also sells several other logic puzzles, such as a Sword puzzle and 2 Ring puzzle (both $7), as well as games, such as Marble Solitaire ($18). Tom’s signature pieces are his line of beautiful handcrafted wooden rocking horses. The Rocking Thoroughbred can be custom-ordered and made with any of the woods Tom uses (average price is $460). Or choose from various designs crafted from Pine and stained as light Golden Pecan to dark Walnut colors ($134). For a small fee, Tom can add a personalized inscription on many of his pieces. All of Tom’s wooden creations make fantastic kids gifts and, incidentally, are sure to delight all of us grownups, too!
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Hop To It! by Playroom Entertainment offers a new twist on memory games. It’s fast paced and appeals to kids of all ages (recommended for ages 5 and up), as well as parents and grandparents. 21 picture tiles are arranged in a row or a circle — although you need to be sure to have a beginning and an end. Then 3 discs are used to cover the first, second, and third (for advanced play) picture tiles. Each player is allowed to briefly view all of the tiles before beginning play, and when ready, the hourglass timer is set and the player must remember what the object on the first tile is. If they guess correctly, another player quickly moves, or “hops” that cover disc onto the third object tile. Then the player must quickly recall and say what the object on the second tile is, and so forth. When the time is up each player collects the picture tiles they’ve recalled and when each player has had a turn the tiles are counted and whoever has the most wins. The next time the game is played the object tiles are mixed up and rearranged. This is definitely one of those games that can be challenging for both children and adults (a great intergenerational activity!), requiring one to exercise and train the part of the brain that controls visual memory. It’s certainly been challenging for this game reviewer and her family! We also like that it’s small and portable — and the affordable price makes it a great gift idea for anytime!
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Personalized music CD’s are always a good gift idea for kids, especially for toddlers and preschoolers. Young kids love to hear their names mentioned in songs, and if the tunes are catchy and they can sing along with them, even better! My daughter is enjoying her “You are my Friend” CD, which includes 8 personalized songs, from “Let’s Spend the Day Together” and “Let’s Pretend,” to “I Spy” and “You’re Special.” This particular collection of songs emphasizes positive self-esteem and simply having fun. As an adult, you may find yourself humming or even singing along! This CD makes a nice birthday gift, and you can also order “Hip Hip Hooray It’s Your Birthday,” specifically intended for birthdays. Also choose from sports themes, holiday gift cd’s (for Christmas & Hanukkah), nursery rhymes, and more. You can have a personal message printed directly on the CD, which makes the gift more special for you and your grandkids. And, especially nice is the under $20 price. Here’s to finding a high impact, sure-to-please personalized kids gift that’s easy on the pocketbook!
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The TickleMe Plant (Mimosa Pudica from seeds) kids gift is a great science kit for ages 5 and up and fun for the entire family. Kids can experience the joy and responsibility of growing their own TickleMe plants from seeds, and then interact with them. Once the plants’ mature leaves have grown (within a month under the right conditions), you and your grandchild can literally tickle them and watch them move. This kit includes a reusable recycled plastic greenhouse (the gift’s packaging) to help nurture the seeds, as well as 3 TickleMe seed packets (with 10-20 Mimosa Pudica seeds and growing instructions on the back), 6 flower pots, 6 soil pellets and 10 science experiment ideas, such as: Use a toothpick to try to find out which part of the TickleMe Plant is most sensitive to touch. TickleMe plants can be re-potted when they are big enough and brought outside once temperatures don’t dip lower than 65 degrees. Seeds will take longer to grow in rooms that are cooler than 70 degrees. The company’s website has a Growing Tips section with specific instructions for growing, including tips for the Fall and Winter seasons. And for a budget-friendly gift idea under $10, TickleMe Plants sells a Mini greenhouse gift package that includes 1 seeds packet, 1 flower pot and 1 soil pellet for $5.95. This is a great birthday party favor idea as you can purchase 6 mini kits for $29.95. Parents may also want to mention the idea to teachers, as the company sells classroom science kits. TickleMe Plant Company was actually founded by a science teacher and, thus, has that seal of approval. A fun, creative, and educational gift idea!
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The Message Marquee is a portable, wearable or mountable (if desired) light-up message board that can be used for work or play, and that the entire family will enjoy. The concept is simple. Use the black wipe-off marker to write a message on the front white-board of the Message Marquee. Turn it on and little flashing white lights surround the white-board message. Just like a marquee! Your grandchild may decide to hang it on the bedroom door with a “I’m studying” message, or family members can wear a “Happy Birthday” marquee to help celebrate someone’s special day. I’ve been using it to get my kids’ attention on school mornings and urge them to “Get Ready!” It’s a little bit silly but can help get a point across in a fun, smile-provoking way. Perhaps your grandchild could find a use for it during school presentations — or younger kids (with supervision) could use it for dramatic play setups. However your grandchild and family members choose to use it, the Message Marquee gets the point across!
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Some preschool and elementary school kids are learning Spanish words and phrases as part of their curriculum. These Use Your Words™ Kids Shirts by Whimsical Walney are another tool to help teach kids Spanish one word at a time, while also being fun and fashionable. The shirts come in short-sleeve or long-sleeve, and are made of high quality extra soft interlock cotton. The collars on the girls’ shirts are narrow, and would be considered more of a dressy tee. Each shirt features a perfectly clear and pleasing to the eye illustration of the thing to be accompanied by its English or Spanish word. You can choose shirts from three categories, such as Fruits & Vegetables, Professions, and Whimsical. Our daughter loves her long-sleeve watermelon shirt, which is white, and features a big chunk of watermelon in the middle of it. Underneath the image, in a playful yet clear lower-case font, reads “la sandia” — or you can also have it say “watermelon.” Choose Firefighter, from the Professions category, and the shirt will feature a firefighter’s hat, with “soy bombero” beneath it. Or choose Bubbles, from the Whimsical category, and the shirt will feature a bubble wand with floating bubbles and “las burbujas” beneath it. We should note that some styles are also being offered in French as well. Choose from size 6 months to 4. Muy Bueno, Whimsical Walney!
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