by Christina Refford | Toys + Playthings
Whether you are looking for a stunning first-birthday gift for a special child in your life, or your preschooler just loves to build, this beautifully designed set of colorful blocks is one toy they’ll treasure. Especially when they are building the Land of...
by Liz Gumbinner | Toys + Playthings
I still remember taking my girls to a friend’s house for a playdate, and realizing that my youngest daughter, then about two, could lose herself for an hour or more with the little girl’s dollhouse without making a peep. I knew from then on that...
by Stephanie Slate | Toys + Playthings
Growing up, I used to love spotting my name on keychains, toothbrushes, shoelaces, and whatever else happened to be hanging on those spinning racks by store cash registers. Kids today–well, my weirdly named kids, at least–don’t always have the same...
by Eva Glettner | Toys + Playthings
Monkeys are fun, no doubt about it. I will even go out on a limb (see what I just did?) and say that watching monkeys leap from branch to branch is one of my favorite stops at the zoo. Which is why the kid inside me–along with my actual kids–loves this...
by Christina Refford | Toys + Playthings
It only takes about 3/4″ of snow to get my kids begging to go to the sledding hill in town. They used to bang a big plastic sled up and down the hills, arguing over whose turn it is to lug the awkward thing back to the top, but this winter they have something...
by Kirsten | Toys + Playthings
One of my favorite pastimes with my kids has always been puzzles. I love the combination of relaxing and challenging. My son usually only lasts a quarter of the way through, but my daughter patiently works until the very last piece is placed. (I try to quit but she...
by Liz Gumbinner | Toys + Playthings
One of the neat things about sending the kids off to preschool is seeing all the fun developmental toys they get to play with. It’s also one of the mildly guilt-inducing things. Like, uh…was I supposed to be giving them all these fun developmental toys to...
by Liz Gumbinner | Toys + Playthings
I caved. After years of avoiding the store and hiding the catalog, I finally gave in and bought two American Girl Dolls for my daughters for Christmas. But in doing so, I swore that I’d support Etsy artists and crafters by buying as much handmade clothing for...
by Liz Gumbinner | Toys + Playthings
You have to love any DIY tutorial that includes among the instructions “print out Death Star from the Internet.” And I especially love it when it combines two of our favorite things–LEGO and Star Wars. I love this tutorial for a DIY Star Wars...
by Christina Refford | Toys + Playthings
In my part of the country, it is definitely more hot-cocoa time than ice-cream weather. But not according to my kids who know that any day is perfect for ice cream. Which is why this sweet-smelling six-pack of cones would be a welcome addition to their playtime, no...
by Christina Refford | Toys + Playthings
The siren song of electronics has a huge pull on my tweens this holiday, so if I’m going to ask Santa to bring them something that doesn’t begin with an “i” it’d better be something pretty cool. I found something pretty cool....
by Christina Refford | Toys + Playthings
When you consider that most nativity sets include a couple of sheep, some people, an angel, and a stable, is it any wonder that most kids can’t wait to get their hands on them? But after my three were finished playing with the set I had growing up, I understood...
