Showing posts with label toys. Show all posts
Showing posts with label toys. Show all posts

Tuesday, April 19, 2016

Reviewing A Parking Garage Set For Kids

Toy Parking Garage Can Be Oodles of Fun


toy parking garage
Parking Garage Image from Amazon.com
This Grandma finally has a little boy to buy for and I think that  the Melissa and Doug Parking Garage is something that I will get for him in the future. I love that it is made from durable wood to provide hours of fun for any little boy and not metal or plastic like so many toys of today.

The toy parking garage is suggested for children three years old or older so, I need to wait for a little while before I purchase it. There are two wooden cars that come with the set that can be lifted by an elevator to any of the four levels of parking.  Those four levels of parking provide plenty of room for all your little son's or grandson's small toy cars. The set also includes a parking booth with an attendant, a gas pump, and a car wash.

You will have to get Grandpa, Daddy, Mommy or Grandma to assemble this toy set but it comes with really easy and detailed instructions to follow. Once it is assembled the toy parking garage by Melissa and Doug measures about 17 1/4 inches tall by 15 3/4 inches wide and 15 1/4 inches deep.

I Have Seen This Toy In Action

I recently watched with delight as a little boy played with this parking garage set while I got the oil in my car changed. I was impressed with the high quality of the product and when I saw that it was a Melissa and Doug toy, I knew it was a great choice for this company to provide for little children to play with because it was built to last many years.  I noticed that someone had left little matchbox cars to be parked on the parking levels and they fit really nicely with the set.

Obviously as a Grandma, I would want to buy this for my grandson but it would also be a perfect gift for a pre-school, church nursery, or even a children's hospital play area.  Little boys and even little girls will have hours of fun playing with the Melissa and Doug Parking Garage. I can hardly wait until my little guy gets big enough to play with it.


Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”


Tuesday, January 26, 2016

Reviewing the Shopkins Mini Toys

Move over Barbie there some stiff competition

shopping cart
When asking one of my grandchildren what she would like for Christmas last season, I figured she would have a specific doll that she wanted to add to her ever growing pile of dolls but she surprised me. She said, "I would really like some Shopkins, Grandma." I will admit that I was at a loss because I had no idea what she was referring to.

"Are they like a Barbie or a Monster High doll?" I asked.

"Oh no, they aren't anything like that," she answered. "They are just cute little toys that my friends and I like to play with."

After doing some research so that I would know what I was looking for, turns out these miniature toys are more popular right now than the fashion dolls that have been on top of every little girl's wishlist for decades.


Above is an example of just one of the choices for little girls to add to their collection of Shopkins. I have to admit that they are really pretty cute and so little that they don't take up much space. Well, not much space until the collection grows, anyway.



An Australian based company came up with the idea of these mini toys back in 2014 and they have a real hit on their hands. They specifically marketed young girls for a collectible toy because they could see that there was hardly anything to compete with. Most of the toys are very inexpensive and come in small sets. As I did my shopping I noticed that I could purchase 3 or 4 sets for less than the price of a Barbie doll.

I looked over all of the sets available at the time and finally decided to get one that had the little toys encased in a vending machine that acts as a storage container, too. I also purchased a few small little sets. I just wasn't sure which ones she already had. When we were opening gifts on Christmas morning she opened one that was identical to the vending machine one that I got for her. I was so disappointed. So, when she opened the one that I gave her I told her that I would take her with me and we could return it. "Oh, no! We don't have to return it, Grandma! I can use these to trade for things that I don't have!"

Here is what I love about these little toys: they are encouraging almost an "old school style" of play. Girls are using their imaginations to play with items that resemble products in a grocery store. They are talking about which ones they have and actually trading each other for items that they don't have. There are even harder to find toys that the girls understand are worth more in a trade. They are learning about value (I know in an odd way but still) and having fun while they do it. Remember the Pokemon cards? Kind of the same thing except these are geared to girls and they can actually set them up and play with them.

Collectible toys are nothing new. I remember when my girls were little back in the 1980's it seemed like every week there was some new toy that came out with characters to collect. Remember, Strawberry Shortcake and My Little Pony? Goodness, our house was full of them! Here is the thing about Shopkins, though. The toys are much smaller and actually less expensive when you consider that you are getting more than one toy in every package and most packages are less than the price of one doll.

If you are looking for something to give a young girl from the age of 5 to 12, I don't think you could go wrong with a set of Shopkins.


Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”


Tuesday, November 24, 2015

Review of Dollhouses and Dollhouse Accessories

My Cousin Edna Surprised Me With a Dollhouse for Christmas

My Cousin Edna could think up the best surprises for me. One of them was my dollhouse. I only had vague ideas about what I might want but she always knew what would make my eyes sparkle more than I did myself. 



Review of Dollhouses and Dollhouse Accessories
My Family and My Dollhouse
Photo Is from Family Collection

Both my grandmothers died when I was a child. One I'd never known except for a total of about ten days. She lived in Oklahoma, and my parents had only taken me to visit my father's parents once. My mother's mother was closer and I have some early memories of doing things at her house, but she died when I was seven. It was Cousin Edna, my father's mother's first cousin, who filled in for my grandparents. The magic she worked in my life made her seem more like my fairy godmother.

My dad had promised his mother that he would act as a son to Edna, who had never married. She lived about thirty miles from us, and we visited her every Sunday afternoon unless we had invited her to our house. We also visited her on Christmas and Easter. After Santa (or the Easter Bunny) had visited me at home, we would then go to dinner at Cousin Edna's to see what he had left at her house. He really outdid himself there.

It was on my fourth Christmas that I discovered Santa had left me a dollhouse under her tree. Cousin Edna must have realized I would need something quiet to do since I was still convalescing from scarlet fever. There were no antibiotics back then and I had to limit my activity to get completely back to good health. That dollhouse was just the right medicine. I loved dolls and I had a vivid imagination. You  can see me with my dollhouse that morning with my parents in the top photo. 

Back then, we did not have television. That meant the media didn't tell us what we needed to make us happy. To make a Christmas list, one actually had to look through a paper catalog, magazine, or news ad or visit an actual store. I never would have thought to ask for a dollhouse. I'm not sure I even knew they existed before I found mine under the tree. But it was love at first site.

So often today, children only know to ask for what their friends are talking about as the “coolest” toy or what they see advertised on television or the internet. Sometimes they will even tell you they want something because the other children they know are talking about it – not because they really want it. Some children, like me, can be even happier with something that a loving parent or grandparent who knows them well, picks out to match their interests. Perhaps there's a special little girl in your life who wants a dollhouse or princess castle and just won't know it until you give her one. Or maybe there's even a boy who would like to be lord of his own castle or the father of the house. 

Everyone in my family knew how much I liked to play with my dolls. Cousin Edna usually gave me a new one every Christmas. It's no wonder Cousin Edna thought I might be delighted with a dollhouse, and she was right. I was.


Like Any Other House, a Dollhouse Needs Furniture


Review of Dollhouses and Dollhouse Accessories
Interior of My Dollhouse, from Family Photo Collection
Cousin Edna saw that my dollhouse was fully equipped so that I could start playing with it immediately. It came with its own baby doll and a furnished nursery. It also had a finished kitchen, dining room, and living room, complete with a grand piano downstairs. The bedroom, bathroom, and nursery were upstairs. I'm guessing Cousin Edna had a lot of fun setting this up. You can imagine all the fun I had playing with it.

Today one can buy even prettier dollhouses. You can buy almost any style at Amazon. After reading through endless reviews,  I have recommend the dollhouses below for young children. The Fisher-Price Loving Family Dreamhouse comes with its own family -- male, female, school-age girl, and baby. It seems to be the easiest dollhouse to assemble and requires a Philips screwdriver and three AA batteries. Reviews by users state it took them ten - fifteen minutes to get the job done.

This dollhouse has a flushing toilet, doorbell, and other sound effects, and has lights that light. Very little furniture comes with the house, just enough to start playing. You may want to purchase more. There is no kitchen, but there is a room for which you can purchase kitchen appliances. Although this model has a Caucasian family, you can also get it with an African-American family. Read the complete reviews on Amazon and watch the videos, including that by a purchaser, for a wealth of information and answers to commonly asked questions.

The KidKraft dollhouses accommodate dolls up to the size of Barbies, but do not come with their own dolls. They do, however, come with more furniture than the Fisher-Price Loving Family Dreamhouse. It is a large dollhouse and some models have rooms completely open to the outside to make the pieces easier to play with from outside. The larger size makes this ideal for more than one child to play with at a time. Read the complete descriptions and watch the video and other reviews when you click through to discover the unique features of each dollhouse. The Kidcraft dollhouses do take more assembly time -- hours, not minutes, and some suggest a helper would be useful. If I were assembling this, I would not wait until Christmas Eve or whatever day you want to give this to a child before beginning to assemble. I always expect things to take longer than stated. Murphy's Law always seems to apply when I do something with my hands. According to the reviews, the work is worth it because the children love these dollhouses.

 KidKraft Savannah Wooden Dollhouse, Over 4 Feet Tall with Porch Swing and 14 Accessories, Gift for Ages 3+Check Price Fisher-Price Loving Family Dream Dollhouse with Caucasian Family(Discontinued by manufacturer)Check Price KidKraft Majestic Mansion Wooden Dollhouse with 34-Piece Accessories, Working Elevator and GarageCheck Price

 



Many dollhouse styles are available -- even a castle  or two. There are also more Victorian, dolls of different ethnic origins, royal families, medieval figures, and princess dolls -- any kind of doll your child needs for imaginative play. If a dollhouse has a garage, you can be sure there will be a car you can add on to go inside of it, and maybe even a roadtrip set to add on.

I have included some fold and go wooden dollhouses below. These are more portable when entertainment is needed away from home, or even in a different room. These dollhouses also may be more appealing to boys, especially the castle with its medieval figures and horses. Children can be kings, queens, knights, squires, etc. The regular Melissa and Doug Fold and Go Wooden Castle comes with six play  figures. The Medieval Castle doesn't have dolls included. Reviewers were very happy with the Schleich Knights, Dragons and other action figures they purchased separately. Other reviewers thought the cheaper set of ten Safari Ltd knights and dragons that have a carrying tube were just right. I have also suggested the Melissa and Doug Princess Castle Accessory Set for the castles.

When you click through to a product page, you will see several suggested accessories such as additional furniture, dolls, cars, pets with their own housing, etc. Use your own creativity to put just the right package together to give your child years of imaginative play. The possibilities are endless. Be sure to check age recommendations if you are buying for a young child. Some items in the suggested related products may be for older hobbyists.

 Melissa & Doug Fold & Go Wooden Dollhouse With 2 Play Figures and 11 Pieces of FurnitureCheck Price Melissa & Doug Fold and Go Wooden Castle Dollhouse With Wooden Dolls and Horses (12 pcs)Check Price

 



I was still an only child back in the 1940's, and I depended upon my imagination and books for amusement. I could play out endless scenarios with my new doll in its dollhouse. Television was not even being talked about yet, and it would be years before the first one appeared in our neighborhood. Children read or played with toys. My favorite toys were dolls, and that included the one that came with my dollhouse. It was many years before I stopped playing with dolls and my dollhouse, but I kept it to pass to my own daughter when she came along.

Today, with all the available electronics, many children haven't experienced enough of the imaginative play they need. Most children will be able to enact many scenarios from their life experience in a regular dollhouse. This kind of play helps them try on different roles and outcomes. If you get your child a castle, it's a great way to familiarize him with a different period of history. Maybe you could stick a book like The Knight at Dawn (Magic Treehouse #2) or one of your favorite age-appropriate medieval stories, inside the castle, to get his imagination going. Read it aloud to young children. Those ages 6-9 may be able to read it themselves.

 If your child is very visual, try A Year in a Castle from The Time Goes By series. It's appropriate for any child of kindergarten age and up. Even older children will get lost in the intricate illustrations of castle life, and all readers will learn what activities were a normal part of castle life and the names of what you might find as part of or inside a castle. Either of these books will provide enough for a child's imagination to make good use of the new castle dollhouse in his play.

Whether your child wants to be a princess, a parent, a knight, a king or queen, or even a dragon, playing with a dollhouse will provide hours of happy and imaginative play. Why not put one under the Christmas tree for a child you love?



Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”


Wednesday, October 21, 2015

Reviewing Play-Doh Disney Royal Palace

Make A Palace For The Disney Princesses With Play-Doh

play-doh royal palace molds
I have been looking for some items to get for my youngest grand-daughter for Christmas and since she loves to play with play-doh I thought the Royal Palace set would be just the right choice for this year. She loves the royal girls from Disney, so this seems to be a perfect choice, but is it?

The Play-Doh Royal Palace looks like so much fun with the different molds that can be used. There are two dolls included in the set, Princess Ariel and Cinderella. Their dresses can be decorated with the neat colors of play-doh included in the set or you can pull out other colors from your toy chest. I love the sparkle dough of green and turquoise that are included!

Rapunzel's tower can create long strands of hair that can be used for other decorations if you choose or just leave it hanging from the tower for a neat look.

At first glance of the box and seeing everything that comes with it, I am inclined to think that my little munchkin will love this set. She has been playing with play-doh for a couple of years now and still refers to it as "my may-doh" which I think is adorable. Even though it is suggested for 3 years old and up and she is now 4, I have to wonder if it might be frustrating for her to play with. She has reached an age where it matters to her if the creations she works on are not just like the picture shows. I watched a video showcasing this set and I am waffling on my choice of this particular set.



After having watched the adult struggle with getting the dress molds to stick and making some of the accessories, this may be too difficult for a 4 year old little girl to play with. Now, the good thing about the video is that the adult does show how to correct some of the easily made mistakes in order to get the molds to work so it was beneficial to watch. It would help me or my daughter to help our little one to learn how to create the different pieces from the molds. 

The set is just so cute and I know she will love the idea of making dresses for the two Disney Princesses, I just don't want her to be disappointed or frustrated when she begins to work with the molds and play-doh. What I am thinking is that it might not be a bad idea to get this as a gift, knowing that this is one that will require some adult attention for a while. It would be a good challenge for her and will help strengthen her dexterity and work with her fine motor skills. 

So, my conclusion is that I will probably purchase the Play-Doh Royal Palace for her and make sure that either myself or my daughter sit down to play with her when she opens the box the first time. When it comes to toys like this, it is a good idea to really look it over and make sure that it is going to be something that a child will have fun with. I think we have to be realistic in our expectations and understand that the examples on the box are always going to look much better than anything our children will be able to accomplish or even ourselves for that matter. Will they be disappointed? Will they get frustrated to the point that they will not play with it? It might not be a good choice if you feel that they will experience either one or both of these emotions. Then again, if you look at it as a challenging way to play, a learning experience and a way to encourage the child to try new things and practice so that they get better; it could be a wise choice after all. 




Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”


Saturday, May 2, 2015

Review of The Vegimals, Members of the Fisher-Price Octonauts

Fisher-Price Octonauts - The Vegimals Set
Fisher-Price Octonauts - The Vegimals Set


My grandson, David, was approaching his sixth birthday.  While checking with his parents as to what toys might be on his birthday wish list, I was told about a recent favorite of the kindergarten set – the Octonauts!

The Octonauts

Being a grandmother with my children all grown and my five grandsons living far away, I'm out of the habit of knowing what toys are popular with today's children. Therefore, I needed to do some research into this latest craze... and thus this review for other grandparents and parents who might not be aware of these adorable toys.

It seems the Octonauts are an underwater exploring crew of eight little anthropomorphic animals who live under the sea in their Octopod and have undersea adventures using a fleet of aquatic vehicles.



Animated Series


Octonauts Wall Decal
Octonauts Wall Hanging available on Amazon

The Octonauts began in 2010 as a British TV series on BBC based on American-Canadian children's books written by Vicki Wong and Michael C. Murphy.  It's an animated series which appeals to children ages 4-12. 


The Octonauts encounter real marine animals in their natural habitats while having adventures. It's rather a bit like a combination of 'Star Trek and the Thunderbirds meet Jacques Cousteau!'







Octonauts Characters



Image of the 8 Octo-Crew Octonauts
Octo-Crew of 8 Octonauts

The eight main Octonaut characters include the Captain, Barnacles the Polar Bear, along with Kwazii the Cat, Peso the Penguin, Inkling the Octopus, Shellington the Sea Otter, Tweak the Rabbit, Dashi the Dog, and Tunip the Vegimal.


The Vegimals

 

Personal photo of the Vegimals set I got David for his birthday
The Vegimals Set I Got David for his Birthday

Which brings us to the set I purchased and mailed to David for his birthday – The Vegimals!  David has already begun collecting all the main Octonauts characters, so I have added to his collection with this set of five characters which are really cute.  They are soft and squishy and measure about 1.5 inches tall.

Vegimals are part animal and part vegetable and are a special breed of underwater critters who love making tasty kelp cakes and helping out around the Octopod! They include Barrot the carrot, Grouber the ginger, Tominnow the tomato, Codish the radish, and Tunip the Turnip. Tunip is also the Ship's Cook and Gardener and a regular member of the regular 8-character team.



Toys by Fisher-Price 


The Octonauts and Vegimals figures, along with their Octopod and vehicle playsets, are products of Fisher-Price, which is a name I've trusted in toys for children for nearly 50 years.





Gup Speeder Gup-O with Kwazii the Cat toy
Gup Speeder Gup-O with Kwazii the Cat

By the way, along with the Vegimals set, my birthday package included a Mini Gup (vehicle) with Kwazii the Cat, which I learned is David's favorite Octonaut. There are a whole line of these vehicles and playsets, which make nice additions to your child's collection as time goes on.


This birthday request became my first-ever introduction to the Octonauts and their friendly Vegimals and I find them adorable.  I have to say I am delighted to make their acquaintance and I see a whole bunch of birthday and Christmas Octonauts in my grandsons' future! 




Grandson David with his new Octonauts toy
David, Age 6


Happy Octonauts Birthday, David!


*Review written by Wednesday Elf on 5/2/15




Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”


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