Best Pretend Play
When you adopt this special elf and name him, he receives his Christmas magic and can fly to the North Pole—but only when all girls and boys are sound asleep. At the start of each holiday season, the elf returns to his family’s house to be Santa’s eyes and ears, and every night he travels back to the North Pole to report in. While some like to hide in the freezer (probably because it reminds them of the North Pole) and others prefer to sit on the fireplace mantle or hang from the chandelier, these elves love to play hide-and-seek with their families. At the start of each Christmas season, the elf appears to serve as Santa's eyes and ears, traveling back to the North Pole each and every night to make a detailed report of the day’s activities. This keepsake gift set includes a light skin, blue eyed boy North Pole pixie scout elf and a hardbound watercolor picture book. HIDE AND SEEK - One of the best parts of getting an elf is waking up each morning and trying to spy where they’re hanging out for the day. SANTA’S LITTLE HELPER - Every night this Scout Elf will return to the North Pole to say whether your family has been naughty or nice.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Yes, I spend about 20 minutes a day every other day or so making the elf do the silly things but I laugh hysterically the entire and my child thinks it's magically so I've had 2 of the best Christmas's ever so far..."
"This was our first year doing Elf with our 4 year old."
"The book explains that Santa has sent an elf to watch over the children and the elf reports back to Santa each night. Rules: * The children cannot touch the elf or he will lose his magic. * The elf can listen to what the children tell him, but cannot talk back, that's Santa's law. * The elf flies back to the North Pole each night and tells Santa what he has seen - when he comes back he goes to a new spot in the house."
"He comes with a book and you can go online and register your elf and get a birth certificate and a letter from santa."
"The book the elf comes with is a plus and has a page to further personalize the book and the elf."
"The Elf on the Shelf very awesome item!!"
"I'm a blogger and online influencer and it worked great for the posts that I used it for."
"Exactly as pictured."
It's never too early to start developing kids creativity at a young age, Picasso Tiles inspire youngsters learning by playing, children will acquire a strong sense of colors, geometrical shapes including 3D forms, number counts, magnetic polars, as well as the creativity which is the key factor to success in today's ever changing environment. Children can acquire strong sense of color, geometrical shapes including 3D forms numbers counts, magnetic polarities & architectural design at early age. CREATIVITY BEYOND IMAGINATION - Magnet Building Tiles Clear 3D color Magnetic Building Blocks Playboards for preschool, pretend play and more.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"The colors are beautiful and the magnets work well enough to hold most structures together."
"My granddaughter received her first magnetic building set (the Magna-Tiles brand) a few months ago and she enjoyed building with them so much that I bought an additional set."
"He’s learning his shapes, he gets to make garages for his cars, they keep him entertained for about an hour at a time."
"I bought a small dry erase board for both of them so they could build easily while they were in the car, and it has been marvelous."
"I purchased a set of these tiles for my grandson as a Christmas gift."
"We've played with this literally every single day since it was purchased."
"We had another set, I can't remember the brand - I can see they are slightly different but they work just fine together."
"We have magna tiles and decided to buy these to build on our set."
Sized just for kids and built to last, the broom, mop, duster, dust pan, and hand brush are comfortable to use and easy to store--just hang them from the sturdy cords onto the included stand for neat, compact storage. Includes broom, mop, duster, dust pan, brush, and storage stand.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"When my sister-in-law told me to buy my nephew cleaning supplies, I thought we may have a potential child labor crime happening but she said he likes to help clean the house. Guys, I felt like I was walking into the lion's den where tons of judgey parents would see that I bought my nephew a mop, broom and duster. Not going to lie, I can't believe this is a thing or that kids want to play with it but my nephew seemed ecstatic and that's all I was going for so 5 stars!"
"Perhaps with a little more self control it would be fine but until then it will remain unplayed with or else we'd be cleaning up little yellow yarn bits off of the floor eventually leading to just a wooden rod for a toy."
"My grandson (almost 2) loved this and started to use it right away."
"My preschooler and toddler are no longer interested in my real broom, which is great (I can finally sweep without them helping aka stepping in and tracking pile of dirt everywhere)."
"My kids actually fight over who gets to use this."
"This toy is a lot better than the plastic stuff we bought first."
"She loves to steal my swifter or broom when I’m in the middle of cleaning!"
"Typically I’m a big fan of Melissa & Doug toys, they withstand the hard play from kids."
Best Toy Construction Tools
They're made with superior quality materials and are rigorously tested for quality, leading to a toy unmatched in quality and durability. Kidzlane toys are fully tested and certified according to the highest international standards for toy safety. 19 PIECE TOY TOOL SET (+Case) Our toy tool set for children includes everything he or she needs to channel his or her inner mechanic, contractor or handyman. GREAT GIFT IDEA FOR KIDS: This toy tool set for kids makes a fantastic gift idea for toddlers ages 2-5!
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I bought this tool set for my grandson for Christmas."
"The reason for 3 stars is in less than 6 months the drill stopped working; even after replacing the batteries it still wouldn't work (yes I had the batteries in correct)."
"This was a gift to my 3 yr old grandson and he LOVES it, especially the drill!"
"Super fun for pretend play and for my twins to be like Daddy."
"The tool set is durable and includes the right amount of tools and they're the right size for him to use."
"Loved seeing my great grandson's face when he opened it."
"I highly recommend this to go with the Black and Decker Junior Power Tool workshop; great set of additional tools and screws which works well with (and was generally missing from) the existing bench."
"My grandson loves his tool set."
Best Shopping Carts, Baskets & Cash Registers
Our mini grocery wagon is easy to maneuver, fun to fill, and built to last for years of pretend play! A folding seat for your childs' favorite shopping companion.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I returned home with the plastic grocery cart (and a boatload of other things) and proudly showed my wife what I had accomplished all by myself! As soon as I saw the M&D option, I realized how comprehensively I had failed my child, my wife, and probably everyone who had ever offered me a kind word or the time of day. But lo and behold, the grocery cart smugly emerged, fully assembled, and was of such high quality that I almost puked."
"The shopping cart is the best on the market as far as realism and function...the only flaw is the the handle slides back and forth and has pinched my daughters hand really bad a couple of times..I fixed it by putting a bead of 100% clear silicone on both ends all the way around..."
"Very nice the kid enjoyed it very much."
"It is VERY sturdy and made of metal like the real ones!"
"I wanted a realistic looking shopping cart because I thought it would be something she would easily understand because we go shopping all the time, and she does. She makes the shopping cart noise (vrrrrooom - we say this together when leaving a store) when she sees it so I know she comprehend what it is used for. I am hoping that she will grow into using this more and more and hopefully by the summer time be able to take this outside and walk around the block."
"This shopping cart is amazing."
"Yes, it will scratch up your walls and furniture if your brutal little monster powers it into things all day, but, really, a normal kid with even a little self control and parental discipline/supervision should do just fine with it."
"Now, she is not giving her cart up, she said she will use it until she is big enough to see over the regular carts, and that is ok with me, but beware that while the cart is durable, adorable, and well made, if your child is over the age of 4 it is most likely to small."
Best Toy Home Cleaning Products
This cute Dyson vacuum is a direct replica of the life size Dyson Ball Vacuum to help your little helper tidy in style! This Dyson Ball upright vacuum cleaner has been specially designed to be true to life, right down to the last detail so your little helper will really feel part of your world while developing essential life skills. Realistic role play for exploring imagination and developing social skills, Replica design with bright colours for visual stimulation, Play encourages the development of hand-to-eye co-ordination, Working suction and cyclone action for understanding cause and effect, Manoeuvrability of toy develops problem solving and motor skills, Independent play encourages exploration and discovery, true to life sounds for added realism and aural stimulation, Pre-schoolers learn by acting out and copying what their parents do, making the range of role-play toys from Casdon Toys ideal learning vehicles for youngsters wanting to emulate their parents. A direct replica of the latest Dyson “Ball” model, this creates realistic role play for exploring imagination and developing social skills.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Our son, 1 1/2-years-old, is OBSESSED with vacuums and carpet cleaners. He has nearly broken my vacuum a few times because it's a bit too large for him to maneuver."
"My 18m old loves to help me around the house, so this is perfect for him to vacuum while I am using my own vacuum."
"The first is a small red button on the front, that makes the little foam beads swirl around. Which doesn't bother me since it's a play vacuum, but they do advertise that it has a mild suction."
"We got this one so that we could have 2 vacuums, and now they fight over who gets the "yellow vacuum." As an adult, I would give it 4 stars, but I based my rating on what my boys think, because they are the target audience."
"This button does not work the suction and while using this mode, it won't pick anything up. Still haven't had to change the batteries after a month and a half (on the red button mode). The only problem we have had is that the screw holding the battery cover in place stripped the first time I put batteries in."
"You'll know what LOL really is when you see your little one searching for bits of anything on the floor just to vacuum up and empty the bin again, repeat, repeat..."
"You have to click it into position a certain way, otherwise the back wheels will pop up when you pull the vacuum backward."
"My one and half year old loves to clean but my stuff is still quite too big for him."
Best Toy Kitchen Products
KidKraft Uptown Espresso Kitchen. Refrigerator, freezer, microwave, oven and dishwasher doors all open and close.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"We made ours more realistic by adding battery operated led touch lights to the microwave, oven, refrigerator, freezer and above the range (see photos)."
"We teamed up with family to purchase several big "play" items for our daughter's birthday/Christmas in 2015, and this is without a doubt my favorite of everything she got! We ended up buying the Learning Resources basket meals to go with it because it had a nice variety and was fantastic quality."
"The kitchen was packaged and shipped very carefully. I will admit putting this kitchen together was a little overwhelming at first and it took several hours. No matter how frustrating it is believe me, it is worth it!.I really love how this kitchen doesn't have any stickers. The graphics on this kitchen are painted on which is awesome in my book! The counter height of the kitchen is 22 inches. The counter length is 32 inches. The inner width of the freezer and fridge is 10 inches. The overall height of the kitchen is approximately 40.5 inches. The play food and play pots and pans in the photos are by Learning Resources."
"The color of the screws does matter as there are brown ones for use on outside pieces and silver for inside pieces, so be aware of that!"
"It might be a bit more expensive than some of the others, but it's SOLID and wood, not plastic and cardboard like so many other products these days."
"The faucet has come out, but that might be due to our boys or our install."
Best Magnet & Felt Playboards
Children can acquire strong sense of color, geometrical shapes including 3D forms numbers counts, magnetic polarities & architectural design at early age. CREATIVITY BEYOND IMAGINATION - Magnet Building Tiles Clear 3D color Magnetic Building Blocks Playboards for preschool, pretend play and more.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"The colors are beautiful and the magnets work well enough to hold most structures together."
"My granddaughter received her first magnetic building set (the Magna-Tiles brand) a few months ago and she enjoyed building with them so much that I bought an additional set."
"He’s learning his shapes, he gets to make garages for his cars, they keep him entertained for about an hour at a time."
"I purchased a set of these tiles for my grandson as a Christmas gift."
"We've played with this literally every single day since it was purchased."
"We had another set, I can't remember the brand - I can see they are slightly different but they work just fine together."
"We especially love building castles with these and you can remove tiles to make "windows," which just tickles my son to pieces!"
"We have magna tiles and decided to buy these to build on our set."
Best Toy Medical Kits
Get your kids the Kidzlane Doctor Toy Kit, and relax while they keep entertained for hours. This toy makes a great tool for familiarizing kids with any medical procedures, and alleviating typical fears of the doctors office. 12 PIECE DOCTOR KIT: 💉 Help children learn about the human body and calm doctor-related fears as they engage in doctor/patient role play. The cell phone features a range of exciting tones, and the stethoscope produces an authentic real-life heartbeat and coughing sound.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I also purchased separately a pedi cuff and cheap stethoscope - the kids used these two items with the glasses and phone from this kit and they had an absolute blast playing doctor."
"I bought this for my granddaughter to help her with her anxiety with doctor's, she totally loses it. when she see the doctor with all their instruments."
"This was my son's favorite Christmas gift."
"My 4 year old loves this set."
"Nice teaching toy for my granddaughter who has had ongoing medical issues."
"This was a sturdy fun kit and the shot needle was the winning item."
"This is a cute set the blood pressure pump is kind of cheap and hard to work."
"She's played with the kit multiple times this week, using it with family members and doll babies."
Best Money & Banking Play Toys
73-piece set encourages children to learn basic math and money skills with this real-working cash register.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Great product."
"Bought this as a gag gift to wrap my 21 year old son's Christmas money in and I must say for the price, it was an excellent deal!"
"Lots of fun for playing store!"
"The first one we got that was a gift didn't work so that was pretty disappointing."
"Grandkids love to play store and use it with all kinds of other toys."
"Looks like it would be a good learning tool and recommended for this purpose by school."
"Purchased this item for my grand daughter who wanted a cash register (which I found a bit surprising)."
"Cash register is a great toy for young children."
Best Paper & Magnetic Dolls
From classic wooden toys to crafts, pretend play, and games, Melissa & Doug products provide a launch pad to ignite imagination and a sense of wonder in all children so they can discover themselves, their passions, and their purpose. Wooden magnetic doll to dress in eight different outfits.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Classic Melissa & Doug product made with care."
"Older kids can go the extra mile creating their own stories and imagining."
"This is a lovely toy for the grand daughter."
"I thought it was neat and would hold their attention more (3.5 yo boy and 20 month girl) but it went over so-so."
"A girl dress up doll with a chef, artist, fire fighter, doctor, and other awesome outfits."
"Great sub for paper dolls of the past."
"My granddaughter loves it."