Toy Whimsy

Give Loopz some love...

It finally looks like people are catching onto Loopz, the new Mattel game reminiscent of the 80's favorite Simon (and also my personal favorite toy this year.)  Now that it has made some of the Best Holiday Toys lists, I want to make sure people don't forget about it during gift-giving time.  Here's my favorite clip of Loopz being used in music player mode -- but it can also be played as a memory game (like Simon) among other games.  Check it out. -- E. Christian Moore

 

Ugly Doll Party Ideas -- Guest Blogger Lisa Kothari

Does your child have an Ugly Doll (one of those dolls that are actually so ugly, it’s cute? That’s what I always think.)  How about you?  Wouldn’t it be a creative theme to build a party around these Ugly Dolls? Like it?  Read on for some Ugly Doll party inspiration!

1. Using your favorite colors of card stock, cut out the invitation cards in the shape of the Ugly Doll.  Write your party details on one side and have the birthday child decorate the Ugly Doll invitation with craft materials.

2. Those same Ugly Doll cutouts that you used for your party invitation can also be used as part of your Ugly Doll decor around the party room.  Cut out a large Ugly Doll shape and place on your front door with a “Welcome to (Birthday Child’s Name) Ugly Doll Party!”  Place smaller Ugly Doll cutouts on the party walls, table, and suspended from the ceiling with fishing wire.

3. For a table centerpiece, place several Ugly Dolls in the center with balloons tied to them.

4. Have the kids make their own Ugly Dolls.

5. Play Hot Ugly Doll, just like Hot Potato.

6. Play Pin the Eye on the Ugly Doll, using a real Ugly Doll that you don’t mind getting pinned.

7. Let the kids free play with their Ugly Dolls.

8. Create small slips of paper with the Ugly Doll characters written on them.  Have the kids choose a slip of paper and act out the Ugly Doll personality for the rest of the guests to guess.  Give everyone a turn to play these Ugly Doll Charades.

9. Make Ugly Doll shaped cookies and have the kids decorate them with colorful frosting and candies to match their dolls.

10. The kids can take their Ugly Dolls home for their party favors. -- Lisa Kothari, PeppersandPollywogs.com

Summertime…when the playing is easy (Guest Blogger Wendy Smolen)

No batteries. No lights and sound. Almost no rules. Seems like 1970? Some of the newest toys I’ve played with this summer are also some of the simplest and most fun. Here are three to reach for when the hot sun and lazy days seem to zap your desire for battery-powered energy.

Rory’s Story Cubes by Gamewright literally keeps the good times rolling with nine die, each covered with six pictures instead of numbers. Roll ‘em then, starting with any image, begin to tell a story using all the face-up pictures. Players can take turns, share the plot, or play solo. The myriad “once upon a times” promise an open book of possibilities.

Stix & Stones by Educational Insights is a mash-up of Pictionary and Name That Tune. Players vie to see who can use the fewest sticks and stones to “draw” an object chosen from a deck of cards. “I can build this object in 6 stix!” Variations for team play, young kids, and 3 players make it adaptable to most situations. I also found it fun to challenge myself to make solo “prehistoric” pictures.

For the youngest (6 months and up) kids, the newness of the Stacker by Green Toys isn’t in the classic play pattern, but in the use of recycled plastic material; the non-traditional, non-primary colors (egg yolk yellow, orange juice orange, sky blue, and lime green) and the cleverly molded shapes that stack in any order, not just big-to-small. Each shape also has tiny holes that will probably fascinate a baby who watches water seep through them in the bathtub. -- Wendy Smolen

Guest Blogger Wendy Smolen is co-founder of Sandbox Summit®, a series of conferences that explore the synergy between play and technology. The most recent Sandbox Summit was presented by MIT’s Education Arcade in May 2010.

Club Penguin Party Ideas -- Guest Blogger Lisa Kothari

Club Penguin is a hugely popular video game for school aged children.  If your child is a fan, building a birthday party theme around Club Penguin may offer a fun and unique party theme. Club Penguin can also serve as a fun play date party for kids to gather together and play the games.

Create a Puffle Penguin Invitation using heavy card stock in bright colors that the Puffles come in: red, blue, pink, black, green, and more.  Further decorate with Penguin stamps and stickers.  On the reverse side of the Puffle, write all of your party details.

Currently, there are no Club Penguin birthday party supplies, so go the budget-friendly way and use your favorite solid colors to decorate the party area with balloons, streamers, and table ware. Club Penguin merchandise (if you have any) can also add to thematic decor.  Penguin posters, stickers, decals, etc. are also additional decor pieces to bring Club Penguin’s on-line world alive.

Play Club Penguin as a group!

Hold a series of Puffle Relay Races or send them on a Puffle obstacle course.

Create a Penguin Igloo using sugar cubes and vanilla frosting. This sweet craft could be taken home as the party favor.

Hold a Puffle Snowball Contest.  If it’s winter, real snow can be used in this contest to see how far the snowballs can be thrown.  White wiffle balls can serve the same purpose for warmer times of the year.

Using a penguin cookie cutter, cut out sandwiches, cheese, brownies, gelatin in the penguin shape for a Club Penguin menu.

Any Club Penguin merchandise would serve as a wonderful party favor, although other penguin merchandise would also be great.

Hope the kids and their puffles have a very happy Club Penguin Party. -- Lisa Kothari, Peppers and Pollywogs, Inc.

http://www.pepperspollywogs.com

Kool Houses for Kids

I saw these really cool playhouses for kids on MSN.com earlier this week.  (Yes, even the bug-thing pictured above is a playhouse...sort of.)  Though some can be a little pricey, they definitely capture one's imagination.  Click here to see the entire slide show.  Enjoy. -- E. Christian Moore

Having Fun When “We’re NOT Almost There Yet" -- Guest Blogger Wendy Smolen

As much as I love our tradition of spending long holiday weekends with best friends at the beach, I dread the thought of sitting in traffic (especially when it’s sunny outside and I’m sitting on sticky leather rather than soft sand). When my kids were younger, games and activities that kept them busy were a backseat must. Though iPods, iPads, and their own sets of car keys have now replaced the necessity of boredom busters, I’m still always on the lookout for great travel games. Zingo! To Go, by Thinkfun, is a simple variation of Bingo with some clever car-compatible twists. Each player gets 2 to 4 sets of plastic “traffic lights” as their Zingo board. The lights click together to make a flat game board that’s easy to hold on a small lap. Kids take turns shaking a dice-filled “smart car” that displays two pictures of objects that may or may not be on each player’s game board.  Like Bingo, the first player to get three objects in a row (in this case, complete his traffic light), wins. But unlike most travel sets, nothing in Zingo! To Go is loose -- or lose-able. The game board images “flip” to show a blank side when called; the dice are enclosed, and there’s even a travel bag to store everything when you’re done playing. No reading is required so you 4 year-old can play just as easily as your 7 year-old. Each game takes only a few minutes so, if one child wins first, the next game will hopefully produce another winner. All in all, a good option for families on the road this summer. -- Wendy Smolen

Guest Blogger Wendy Smolen is co-founder of Sandbox Summit®, a series of conferences that explore the synergy between play and technology. The most recent Sandbox Summit was presented by MIT’s Education Arcade in May 2010.

Get Your Game On...Together

We here in the Magic Land of Toy Awesomeness decided that we needed to start playing more board games at the office.  (Okay, Michelle, our Games buyer, did, but still...)  The first one we tried was "Forbidden Island" by Gamewright.  (They also make the new outdoor game, Boochie.)  The object of the game is to work together as a team (not against each other or other teams) and figure out how to help one another get off of a sinking island.  The game requires strategy and some luck, but it can be played by just about the whole family.  (The game is for ages 10 and up.)  I personally had never played a cooperative game before but I enjoyed the experience.  I'm sure your family and friends will, too. -- E. Christian Moore 

OMG! Txt Msg your Fridge: Guest Blogger Wendy Smolen

When I first traded up my 1970’s classic white fridge for a sleek stainless steel model with a built-in water dispenser, ice maker and all the bells and whistles a refrigerator that costs five figures could have, I was delighted. My whole kitchen looked new. Modern. Uncluttered. The glaring absence of love notes, teacher reminders, childish art, family pictures, and souvenir magnets on these shining non-magnetic silver doors was truly beautiful. But now, several years later, the gleam has worn off, fingerprints too often mar the doors, and every once in a while I miss that homey jumble of paper and pictures.

Then I saw Txt Messaging magnets from Magnetic Poetry’s Magnifico line. And I was almost willing to recycle my old box. This clever set of refrigerator magnets contains 64 letters and symbols that put the fun back in fridge art. They will have you rotfl. Not just 2day. But 2moro 2. They’re gr8! I <3 them! And fyi, I usually don’t even speak txt. But thanks to a translation guide included in the package, I’m msg-ing like a pro on the new magnetic bulletin board I hung just a few feet from the boring fridge. And even better, my kids are reading my notes. Imho these are xlnt!

Pls wb. -- Wendy Smolen

Guest Blogger Wendy Smolen is co-founder of Sandbox Summit®, a series of conferences that explore the synergy between play and technology. The next Sandbox Summit will be presented by MIT’s Education Arcade later this month.

Make Earth Day a Little Greener (Part 2): Guest Blogger Wendy Smolen

Plant a garden, take a walk, chase some butterflies, and definitely stop and smell the flowers. There’s no better reason than Earth Day to play outside  -- especially when you can reduce, reuse and recycle with toys that are as green as these.

The Eco-Disc from WHAM-O
Nothing says spring quite like the flip of a Frisbee. Play a lively game on the lawn with this 9-inch flying saucer made from the original Frisbee mold using new earth-friendly materials.

4-in-1 Sand Truck from Sprig
This multi-tasking toy gives a new twist to reduce, reuse, re-shovel, combining  a shovel, rake, pail and truck all in one. All the pieces are made from a durable bio-composite of recycled wood and reclaimed plastic infused with natural colors.  And it’s dishwasher safe for easy cleaning.

Makin’ Mud Pies by MGA
Dishing up mud pies is probably the dirtiest fun you can have that’s not X-rated. This kid-sized outdoor sink set has a mixer, strainer, mold and a reservoir of water that keeps all the essentials at hand. Just add your own dirt.

Econtronic Flashlights by International Playthings
Ever notice how everything looks better when you see it by flashlight? (Especially under the blankets after bedtime.) Now kids can light up the night without running down batteries. These farm-critter flashlights are squeeze-powered by dynamo technology, sized so small hands (instead of batteries) can keep them shining. An illuminating idea! -- Wendy Smolen

Guest Blogger Wendy Smolen is co-founder of Sandbox Summit®, a series of conferences that explore the synergy between play and technology. The next Sandbox Summit will be presented by MIT’s Education Arcade in May 2010.

Getting Eco for Earth Day: Guest Blogger Wendy Smolen

You have to admit, it feels good when you reduce, reuse and recycle. You’re being environmentally conscientious, making the earth a better place for all its creatures, plus setting a stellar example for your kids. As we come up on the 40th anniversary of Earth Day (older than many parents themselves), we have to wonder why it’s taken so long for eco-awareness to kick in. Was plastic the only option? Were natural wood toys that boring? Just in time to celebrate, here’s a fresh crop of toys that address ecology in innovative ways might encourage our kids’ generation to be the one that finally changes the world for the better. 

Recycled Cardboard Dollhouse by Creativity for Kids

Beginning with the packaging itself, this sturdy,100% recycled cardboard kit transforms into an almost-2-feet-tall, ready-to-decorate dollhouse. Comes with markers, stickers, easy-to-assemble furniture (watch out Ikea) and even pretend people.

Totter Tower by HaPe
This sleek, modernistic stacker is composed of an assortment of elliptical bamboo rings. The distinct angles of the  rings create endless (and addictive) possibilities for building shapes and structures. When your kids tire of it, I can definitely see it “recycled” as a great coffee table toy.

Gathering A Garden by eeboo
Like most of eeboo’s products, this eco-minded board game is beautifully illustrated and thoughtfully designed with no plastic pieces. The object is to work your way around the board, stopping at various vendors to gather some flowers, vegetables and fresh bounty for your garden.

Sumoku by Blue Orange
A cross between Scrabble and Sudoku, this crossword-style game is played with numbered tiles that have to add up to multiples of the number shown on the die. It’s as easy-–or hard---as the players’ math skills make it.  Play it solo or with up to 8 opponents. Blue Orange as a company is noted for its commitment to planting two trees for every one tree used to make their products.

Tugboat by Green Toys
I call this the tub-boat. A sturdy but lightweight design makes this easy for toddlers to grab by the handle and ferry across a tub. The body of the boat doubles as a bucket, with the bow acting as a spout to bilge all the water.  Made from recycled plastic milk containers, and eco-friendly all the way to the soy ink on the packaging.

Next time, eco-friendly outdoor toys. Let’s go out and play! -- Wendy Smolen

Guest Blogger Wendy Smolen is co-founder of Sandbox Summit®, a series of conferences that explore the synergy between play and technology. The next Sandbox Summit will be presented by MIT’s Education Arcade in May 2010.