Days and Knights!

Okay, this is mostly for the boys out there. We have an amazing collection of knights and soldiers at our store. Our own children have spent hours and hours in medieval battles. These figures are made by Schleich, the same company that makes our animal figures. They are very durable and hand painted so they look fantastic.

One of our boys chose the "lion" soldiers as his favorite. The other chose the "fleur" soldiers. Now they can plan their epic battles, picking swordmen and archers from each team. No medieval adventure would be complete without a dragon. And, of course, each boy had to have one, so there are always a couple of dragons hanging around the house, now.

Check out our entire collection of knights and other medieval characters here!

Move Over Floam!

Floam! Here is a toy that my kids have begged and begged for, and the TV commercials make it look so fun. Our neighbor friend brought some over a few weeks ago, and it was not all that we had hoped.

1)It smells, really bad.
2)It gets all over your hands and requires alot of soap to get off.
3)It was pretty fun to build things with, but the gross factor outweighed the fun- and that is my kids' evaluation.

So I was at market the other day and found a great alternative. It is called Play Foam and it is distributed by Educational Insights and also Faber Castell. It is the same sticky bead concept, but without the smell, and without the mess. I got a couple of samples to bring home and the kids are completely obsessed. They have been playing with it for a couple of hours now, making all kinds of things. OK, one of the kids left the PlayFoam out - on the carpeted floor! Yikes! Amazingly enough, I picked it right up, there is nothing stuck to the carpet, and the playfoam is not dried out! This stuff is brilliant!

Summertime Fun

Summertime fun is all about getting active and we've got the perfect outdoor toys and gear! From bubbles and balls to rockets and marshmallow shooters we've got you covered in our Active Toys category. If outside activity is your goal, then your free summer fun pack will include toys like jump ropes, bubbles, splat balls, water balloons, buckets or bike horns. We will customize your summer fun pack to fit the types of toys you order. It will include active toys, rainy day toys or a nice combination of both depending on the items you order. You do not need to do anything to receive your active toy summer fun pack, we will just include it at the time of shipping. Every order will include free toys! The bigger the order, the more free stuff you get, so get carried away. You know - in the spirit of summer. Have fun shopping!

Back to the Basics

When someone says "classic wooden toys" what comes to mind? For me it's tool benches with little wooden hammers and screws, shape sorters and the rainbow stacker. These are all great toys! The rainbow stacker in particular is so classic. It's bright colored rings and wooden post were always under my feet when my kids were babies. They love to take it apart and put it back together. The first 500 times, of course, it was out of order with one of the bigger rings above the smaller and all wrong. The cool part is they keep trying until eventually they get it and all the rings go on in the right order. Usually by this point, they are saying the colors with you as you work with them. The first 499 times are finally sinking in! It's a great feeling and a great toy. These great toys are still being made and this one is only $4.99 brand new from a very reliable manufacturer. For more info, click here!

Ugly Dolls - Just Ugly Enough to Love

When I first saw Ugly Dolls, I thought they were the ugliest thing I'd ever seen. I guess they named them right! At Toy Fair, there was a huge Ugly guy walking around "greeting" the shoppers. We thought he was weird and went on our merry way. We picked up the Ugly Doll info not thinking much of it. Then we found out how they got started. You cannot hear the story and not want one. At least the 2 of us - gotta love a good love story - sappy female toy buyers couldn't. We were hooked. It's so sweet, long distance love. He misses her. She misses him. She makes a doll. He loves the doll. She makes more dolls. He sells them - you gotta love that part. And the rest is history. We were history. We are now carrying the whole line and have fallen in love with them. How long has it been since you bought into an idea and not just a toy of the moment? These toys have real people behind them who had a dream and are making it happen. Buy one for the story. Buy one for the creators. Buy one cause they're ugly! If you want to read the real story or see the ugly guys - click here!

Alphabet ABC Train Floor Puzzle...

We carry this puzzle because it works. My 2 oldest children, both boys, LITERALLY learned the ABC's by working this puzzle. They absolutely loved it. This is by far the best alphabet puzzle ever made!!! I am a teacher and I was actually looking forward to teaching my kids the alphabet. I didn't get the chance because of this puzzle. The bottom line is, if you have or know a child who needs to learn the alphabet, you have to buy this puzzle.

Organza, Tulle or Not? That is the question...

I have a little girl and she is a princess. Of course she is, is there any other kind of little girl? She loves princess dresses! The princess dresses that we carry have no tulle or organza on them and we love that because it often rips, falls off or scratches the wearer. The manufacturer that makes them has just let us know that they are making a new style with organza. They are beautiful, no doubt about that! But are they comfortable? We love the durability, sizing and washability of the current style. Will this new style still have all those great things? Only time will tell. The little princess will try them out and we will let everyone know. (They don't come out until August.) Until then, let me know your thoughts on princesses dresses - organza, tulle or NOT?

New Style Princess Dress

Current Style Princess Dress

Marshmallow Shooters

The first time I saw a marshmallow shooter was at an arts and crafts fair about 8 years ago. It was made of PVC pipe and allowed the user to "shoot" marshmallows out by blowing into the hole at the top. We found new fangled marshmallow shooters at Toy Fair this year and ordered them up. As hard as you might try to keep boys from guns, it's in their DNA and they will find a way. At about 3 years old, a friend's son, who was never allowed to play with guns, bit a chicken nugget into the shape of a gun and began "firing" at the playland. Boys will find a way. That being said, why not let them shoot something harmless like marshmallows? The new generation doesn't require blowing and comes in cool choices like camo and blaster. Check them out here:
http://www.townsquaretoys.com/category_s/116.htm

Let's Talk About Toys....

Being a toy store owner, I have searched the web for blogs about toys. The selection is less than plentiful. I'm sure I'm not alone in my search for a good toy blog! When you can't find it done well, then do it yourself, right? So here we go. Please let us know what you think.