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
When my three year old asked me for a skateboard, I knew I was in trouble. He is a bit of a dare devil, and the prospect of him whizzing by on a skateboard was little much for mom. Thank goodness for Radio Flyer's new product, the Scoot 2 Skate. This great product satisfied both apprehensive mom, and dare devil boy. The Scoot 2 Skate is an ingenious combination of a skateboard and a scooter. Check out the video of my little guy and then keep reading for the Amazon.com Parents' Review:
Parents' Review: 5 Stars for Wonderful, 1 Star for Terrible:
Assembly: 5 Stars, Four screws were included to attach the handle to the skateboard. It went together in under 5 minutes (which was great because dare devil boy could not wait much longer!).
Fun Factor: 4 Stars, Although he is just in our driveway in the video, our little guy has enjoyed taking the scooter to the local school yard and park to be able to ride more. He has even been insisting that he be the one to carry it up the hills on the way back to our house from the school. It is very light weight, while still very sturdy and well-built. I would give it 5 stars, but he does seem to tire of it after 15 minutes, but that also could very well be because he is only 3. I am sure we will get a lot of use out of this over the next few years. (Although I did tell dare devil boy that he has to be 5 to ride it as a skateboard after he asked me about 10 times a day for the first 5 days we had the toy.)
Educational Factor: 4 Stars, While I wouldn't call this educational in the traditional sense, it is great for teaching my little guy balance, body awareness, and large muscle movement. We try very hard as a family to teach our kids the importance of staying fit, healthy, and active. The more I can get them up off the couch, the better it is for them and motivation is now even easier because all I have to say is "Wanna go outside and ride your scooter?" and dare devil boy is out the door before I can finish the sentence.
Novelty Factor: 5 Stars, I love that this is a versatile product. If I were to have given in and bought my son a skateboard, I have a feeling it would have ridden it twice, and then fallen, and then it would be in the back of the garage collecting dust for a few more years. With the ability to serve him now as a scooter and later as a beginner skateboard, I am sure it will be in use for many years to come.
Overall Score: 4.5 stars- Very highly recommended for the versatility in use, the sturdy build of the product, and the years of use a child will get out of it.
Editor's Note: Amazon
provides our toy testing families with free samples of toys that have been
provided by our vendors. Amazon does not influence the opinions of our toy
testers or their parents.
Does your child love Nerf toys? Full of action, adventure, and running around, Nerf toys make an awesome toy to build a party theme around. It also makes for an awesome summer party – given the space you will need to hold the Nerf activities. However, if your party is in the middle of winter, you can rent out a large play space or gymnasium space and have your Nerf party there too
Gather up all of your Nerf toys and based on what toys you have create party activities. This is a good party to limit the guests based on the number of toys you have so no one feels left out playing and the guests don’t feel they must bring a Nerf toy that they may not have. However, if you believe all of your guests have Nerf toys, then you can also ask them to bring them to the party.
Target Practice. Designate one of the guests or an adult at the party to be a target tat must be hit with the Nerf guns. Create an obstacle course that the rest of the guests must complete without being hit.
Nerf Wars. Divide the kids up into two teams and have a war using the Nerf toys. Make sure you have plenty of space and adult supervision, and it can be played much the same way that Laser Tag is played.
Wii offers a Nerf Gun Game that may serve as a great party activity too.
Don’t forget to hand out sunglasses to protect their eyes during these games, and these can also serve as a party favor
Make sure to ask parents of your guests if they are OK with a Nerf Gun party and being a part of war and target games. Some parents have strong feelings against this type of a party and you would rather have them know in advance than afterwards.
Play Capture the Flag using Nerf Guns.
Of course, Nerf makes all types of soft balls for those favorite games, like bowling, basketball, and more. What do you have in terms of Nerf Balls? Play those games!
Using a ball cake pan, make a Nerf Ball cake.
For your Nerf party favor, send them home with their sunglasses and if you want to purchase inexpensive Nerf toys, that would also be right in line with this party theme.
As you all know, kids are getting more and more high-tech these days, even learning their ABC's from their parent's iPhones. While I'm a big advocate of kids getting outdoors and playing, I completely get the allure of computer games/video games/iPhone apps. We found an interesting site (courtesy of the cool peeps at Lifehacker.com) that is both fun AND educational. Soup Toys is an online "toys" site that allows kids to play while they learn all about basic (wait for it) physics. It's more fun than it sounds and even grownups get caught up in playing on the site. You can check it out here. -- E. Christian Moore
Today we have one of the oldest toys every, dating back to ancient Greece!
Here's a little bit of history on the Yo-yo from wikipedia:
Ancient History:
"The earliest surviving yo-yo dates to 500 BC and was made using terra cotta skin disks. A Greek vase from this period shows a boy playing yo-yo. Greek records from the period describe toys made out of wood, metal, or painted terra cotta (clay). The terra cotta disks were used to ceremonially offer the toys of youth to certain gods when a child came of age—discs of other materials were used for actual play. Philippine historical records indicate that 16th century hunters hiding in trees used a rock tied to a cord up to 20 feet in length to throw at wild animals beneath them—the cord enabling retrieval of the rock after missed attempts."
Modern History:
"James L. Haven and Charles Hettrick of Cincinnati, Ohio, USA, received the first United States patent on "...an improved construction of the toy, commonly called a bandelore..." in 1866.
However, the yo-yo would remain in relative obscurity until 1928 when a Filipino American named Pedro Flores opened the Yo-yo Manufacturing Company in Santa Barbara, California. The business started with a dozen handmade toys; by November 1929, Flores was operating two additional factories in Los Angeles and Hollywood, which altogether employed 600 workers and produced 300,000 units daily."
The Duncan Era:
"Shortly thereafter (ca. 1929), an entrepreneur named Donald Duncanrecognized the potential of this new fad and purchased the Flores Yo-yo
Corporation and all its assets, including the Flores name, which was
transferred to the new company in 1932. Duncan's first yo-yo thereafter
was the Duncan O-BOY. Duncan is reputed to have paid more than
$250,000, a fortune by depression era standards. It turned out to be a sound investment, making many times this amount in the years to follow.
Declining sales after the Second World War prompted Duncan to launch a comeback campaign for his trademarked "Yo-Yo" in 1962 with a series of television advertisements. The media blitz was met with unprecedented success; thanks in great part to the introduction of the Duncan Butterfly, the yo-yo was more accessible to the beginner than ever.
This success would be short-lived, however, and in a landmark trademark case in 1965, a federal court's appeals ruled in favor of the Royal Tops Company, determining that yo-yo had become a part of common speech and that Duncan no longer had exclusive rights to the term. As a result of the expenses incurred by this legal battle as well as other financial pressures, the Duncan family sold the company name and associated trademarks in 1968 to Flambeau, Inc, who had manufactured Duncan's plastic models since 1955. As of 2010, Flambeau Plastics continues to run the company."
Here are some awesome commercials from the 70s including an awesome one (the first one in the batch) with professional yo-yo masters!
I totally had a camera like that! Who else is with me?
If all this yo-yo talk has you hungering to take up your childhood passion once again, we have tons, in all colors, makes, and models, here for you to enjoy-- check them out!
Sometimes the simplest toys are the most popular...and, sometimes, they aren't really "toys" at all. Case in point: magnets. Magnets have been always been fun to play with but, this year, magnets seem to be making a comeback. For example, Buckyballs are small magnetic spheres which can be used to build various 3D shapes. Simple, yet highly addictive...and very popular. (We saw a few knockoffs of it at Toy Fair in New York this year.)
Another popular magnetic toy is Magna-Tiles. Magna-Tiles are multi-colored plastic tiles with magnetic edges that allow kids to build all kinds of structures. (It also comes in a both solid and translucent versions.) They can also be used to help kids understand shapes, basic geometry and basic physics as well.
There are lots of other magnetic toys out there (including puzzles, games, and more) at a variety of price points. But, the end result is the same -- magnetic toys will be "sticking around" for many years to come. -- E. Christian Moore
Invented in 1946, by the son of a "clairvoyant", today I found myself wondering how many bad decisions have been made on the recommendations of the Magic 8 Ball. Still made and sold by Mattel, the Magic 8 Ball is today's flash back Friday toy.
It is a hollow, plastic sphere resembling an oversized, black and white 8-ball. Inside is a cylindrical reservoir containing a white, plastic, icosahedral die floating in alcohol with dissolved dark blue dye. The die is hollow, with openings in each face, allowing the die to fill with fluid, giving the plastic die minimal buoyancy. Each of the 20 faces of the die has an affirmative, negative, or non-committal statement printed on it in raised letters. There is a transparent window on the bottom of the 8-ball through which these messages can be read.
To use the ball, it must be held with the window initially facing down. After "asking the ball" a yes-or-no question, the user then turns the ball so that the window faces up, setting in motion the liquid and die inside. When the die floats to the top and one of its faces is pressed against the window, the raised letters displace the blue liquid to reveal the message as white letters on a blue background. Contrary to popular belief, it is not necessary (or recommended) to shake or jostle the ball before turning it, as doing so can create air bubbles that may visually distort the answer.
What about a commercial? I couldn't find a commercial, but I did find a video (NSFW- Language) of some guys microwaving a Magic 8 Ball. And I found a clip from Scrubs, "The Human Magic 8 Ball"
I do like that show. I also found this commercial for All State Insurance with the President from 24.
I don't know what it is, but now I want to buy both a Magic 8 Ball, and some new car insurance.
So, 10 good replies, 5 either way, and 5 negatives. Interesting. Good to know if you are going to base some of your decision making on this tried and true method.
"Will my readers have a great weekend Magic 8 Ball?"
Announced last week at the New York Toy fair, here are the winners. There are some expected winners (Zhu Zhu Pets anyone?) and some trusted names (Tonka, Radio Flyer, Crayola) and some you might not have hear of, but really should take a look (University Games, Sprig Toys, Bakugan). Without further ado, here are your winners...
The book Knick Knack Paddywhack by Paul O. Zelinsky is often a favorite among small children and so this is quite an innovative and inventive theme for a birthday party. If you are thinking about it, here are some ideas to get you moving toward creating your party plan.
Given that the tiny old men pop up from one to ten throughout the book, you can send an invitation that has a number “3″ on it if your child is turning 3. You could use the part of the song, “This old man he played three” and use that as the rhyme on the invitation. It will weave the theme of the party into the invitation. Inside the number 3, provide all of the party details. This book uses beautiful primary colors; the reds, blues, yellows are wonderful. Decorate with balloons, streamers, and tableware that mix and match these various colors. When the guests arrive, have the rhyme continually playing in the background. Have the kids make a number badge based on their ages as well. If they are all three, then that will be easy, but given the book uses the numbers one to ten, numbers other than just three would be fine.
Given the book has the child on a walk, if it is a nice day take an adventure walk with the kids around your yard, the park (if you are having it there) or around your neighborhood. Definitely have a list of things for them to find. If it is a rock, have the kids find one rock each, then two leaves each, then three, then four… If this is in your yard you can plant things for the kids to find and have enough items.
Since the old men roll home, you could have a somersault contest and see how many the kids can do in a row.
The fact that the dogs chase bones, you can play “Dog, Dog, Bone” much like Duck, Duck Goose.
Host a relay race with a bone at the end of the race that has to be picked up and taken back to the next kid in line until one team wins.
Have the kids act out the rhyme themselves. They could put on a little play based on it and bring it to life. Since the paper pop-ups are magical in this book, you could also make some paper crafts. Have the kids make their own numbers, bones, or you could lead some paper origami tricks as well.
A copy of the book is a great favor. Attach a little brown bag full of candy bones to the book as an additional treat as well.
