Archive for August, 2010

We thought it would be fun to share some of our childhood memories with readers of the blog. When you click over to the “contributors” sidebar on the right, you can read about how Dave Schramm idolized Bob Saget and would cry out for his protection in times of distress.

Or read about how Kristin Bushong was such a brilliant entrepreneur that she got the only investor in her business to buy back the entire inventory. You can read about my dear little sister or the time that Kim Emigh ironically stole from a TOY STORE (and now is an owning partner of one).

You can’t read about Jon Emigh’s childhood memories because he apparently doesn’t have any. (But you can check him out in his Midnight Cowboy costume.)

We all answered a few questions from the following list and now it’s your turn! In the comments section, share a short paragraph in response to one of our prompts for a chance to win a 5 dollar gift certificate to our online store! The contest will stay open until September 10th . We’ll notify the winner by email and make an announcement on September 13th.

• What is the coolest birthday party you had as a kid?
• What was your favorite book when you were 11½? Why?
• What was the coolest thing that ever happened while you were in elementary school?
• Tell us a little about your best friend when you were 8. What kinds of things did you do together?
• When you were little, what did you worry about at night while you trying to fall asleep?
• What was one of your strangest misconceptions about the world as a child?

This is the first contest that we’re trying on the blog and it should be a fun one. For extra entries after you answer a question, you can “like” us on facebook, subscribe for our email updates or follow us on twitter. Tell us which ones you are doing in the comments section. Keep reading for cooler and cooler prizes!
 

Today, Susan Heim returns for another Try the Toy guest post. For more from Susan, check out her review of the Monster Trucks Custom Shop Kit, her blogger of the week interview with us, or see this post on her blog.

Thanks to the wonderful people at Growing Tree Toys, my twin boys were given the opportunity to try out one of their fun and fantastic toys: a Mini Hockey Goal, Stick & Ball Set made by Franklin Sports. This official licensed product for the NHL comes with a mini hockey goal, two mini hockey sticks, and two soft mini hockey balls! Unfortunately, the pictures I took of the boys playing it seem to have been erased from my camera, so I’ll have to take more at a future date, but I wanted to share with you how this toy has provided my boys (and my husband, a huge hockey fan) with lots of enjoyment!

Ease of Use: Although assembly is required for the mini goal, it was super easy to put together. In fact, I didn’t even have to look at the directions as I was able to assemble it just by looking at the picture on the box. Just slide the plastic tubes through the netting and hook them together! It only took me a couple of minutes. I’m not the world’s handiest person, so if I can put it together, you can, too.

Educational Benefits:

With two sticks, kids can compete with each other and begin to learn the sport of hockey! My husband enjoyed teaching them the rules of the game and how to get the balls into the net. And kids will get lots of exercise with this toy. It’s small enough to play indoors if you have a big enough space to play (and the soft balls won’t break anything) yet sturdy enough to play outdoors.

Longevity: The Mini Hockey Goal, Stick & Ball Set is well made. The plastic tubing is designed to withstand some beating. And the netting on the goal is made of all-weather polyester. The sticks are made of a hard, high-impact plastic. This game should last until the kids grow out of it!

Fun: This is the biggest plus of all … this toy is a lot of fun! It inspires creativity because kids can dream up different contests for competing with each other. They can also practice shots on their own so they can improve their scoring. This is the perfect toy for little boys … and girls, too!

Thank you to Susan and your boys for reviewing the Mini Hockey Goal, Stick Set! See more toys in action in our other Try the Toy posts.

Thanks to the internet, we can share and find information faster and more efficiently than we ever thought possible. People with common interests from all over the world can collaborate and find new solutions and ideas. One of many subjects that has really benefited from being connected globally is homeschooling!

An awesome resource for parents that homeschool or for anyone that wants creative, budget-friendly, and most importantly, engaging and educational ideas for young children is the blog by The Activity Mom! Nicole made an appearance before as our Blogger of the Week and we’re happy to revisit her blog and share some more of her great ideas with our readers!

Reuse and Repurpose
For a new way to play with puzzles, she suggests hiding the pieces! Such a neat and totally simple way to breathe new life into a toy. See tons more budget friendly-solutions!

Printables
You have a computer and a printer – use them to literally make the supplies for hours of learning! One of my favorite printables on her site is the Candle Build-a-Shape Mat that lets kids match the sides of familiar shapes with none other than birthday candles! Make sure your printer is full of paper and check out her printables.

Holiday Fun
Nicole shares ways to make the holidays a learning experience as well! Get ready for upcoming celebrations with ideas for Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas!

Quick Activities
So many of her ideas are even better because they can be put together and ready to play with right away! A fun example is entitled What’s Missing?. Simply draw pictures with something “missing” and let your child fill it in or say what’s not there!

Visit The Activity Mom and explore new ways to learn and play, and visit our blog again next week for more to celebrate Back to School!

Our home state of Pennsylvania is largely farmland, with agriculture being the number one industry here. Farms are spotlighted several times in August in our area alone, starting with the Central PA Local Foods Week and Farm Tour; a week of special events followed by a day of intimate tours of area farms. The state’s largest outdoor agricultural show, Ag Progress Days, is held yearly mid-month. Then, starting tomorrow is the Centre County Grange Encampment and Fair (or “Grange Fair“) includes livestock contests, animal shows, exhibits, and the wildly-popular on-site camping.

We celebrate fun on the farm year round at our website, with several different farm toys!

For Babies & Toddlers: Let little ones learn about our farm animal friends with Baby Farm Friends Bowling and Farm Sound Blocks.

Farm Art: We carry some neat options for farm-inspired creations, like the Little Hands My Collage Farm Kit and the Ready2Learn Giant Farm Animal Stamps (Read a fun parent review of the stamps here!)

Playmobil Farm: Just like the school, Playmobil has a large set of buildings, people, animals and accessories in the Playmobil Farm!

Farmhouse Decor: For those that want to bring the fun of the farm indoors, the Guidecraft Little Farmhouse furniture is a must-see. Decorate a whole room with coordinating chairs, a table, a stepstool, and a toy box.

Schleich: The hand-painted, true-to-life Schleich Farm Animal Figures would love to call the Big Red Barn Set home!

Though the growing season may be winding down, our farm toys make the farm fun anytime!

It’s a good time to connect with Growing Tree Toys! We have two special promotions running on Facebook and Twitter.

On Twitter, we are helping savor the last bit of summer with our Toys of Summer Giveaway! This unbelievably fun package of sunny favorites includes a Sand and Water Table, Beach Towel Set, Sidewalk Chalk Set and a lot more! Tweet your way to at least two entries per day through August 31 – see all the details and enter now!

We recently launched our new-look Facebook page and a highlight is an offer for $10 off your next order for simply “Liking” us! This is for a limited time so like us today; and get ready for special discounts and other exclusive Facebook content. Also check out the new In Focus tab where we highlight a brand or category. Featured now is the crafty Creativity for Kids!

What do you think? Comment here or on Facebook or Twitter.

I loved Ratatat Cat from Gamewright when I was in elementary school. It’s a game that combines memory and strategy with anthropomorphic rats and cats. If I couldn’t convince anyone to play it with me, sometimes I just looked at the illustrations on the cards and imagined things about the characters. Gamewright makes awesome kids’ games.

Do you know what else they do? Partner with parents and teachers to put on super fun fundraisers in schools. With the new school year approaching these Gamewright GameNights are a great way to meet other families, play together and raise money for your children’s school!

Here’s how it works: One evening, the school hosts a GameNight at which families can play a range of new and favorite games provided by Gamewright. During the evening, people can purchase games and half of the proceeds from the sales are donated to your school! (The games will range in price from around 5 dollars to 15 dollars).

Gamewright makes it very simple to hold one of these events. Here are the steps to making it happen:

Step 1: First coordinate a date and location. Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings sometime between 6 and 9 are usually ideal. A central location like a school gym or cafeteria works well and two hours is the perfect amount of time.

Step 2: Once all the details are set with the school, contact Gamewright to give them the information plus your school’s shipping address. Gamewright then sends promotional posters and flyers to distribute throughout classrooms. They’ll also send demo games 2 weeks before the event so that your volunteer staff can learn the rules.

Step 3: You’ll need 1 volunteer to staff the sales table, 1 to staff a demo games table and then a handful of “Game Gurus”—people that can teach the games. Enlisting older kids and teens as some of the Game Gurus will make the night special for younger kids and the more Game Gurus you have the better!

Step 4: To promote the GameNight, distribute the provided fliers around the community and send mini flyers home with kids. Use your school’s PTO or PTA email lists to send out an announcement to weeks prior to the event and then another email reminder a few days before the event. Announce the event at community gatherings and at a PTO meeting!

Gamewright GameNights are a nice way to fundraise because kids don’t have to peddle candies, wrapping paper or knickknacks to their grandparents and neighbors. They can volunteer and help out at the event or just come and play! It’s low stress and lots of fun! Learn more about Gamewright GameNights here! Contact them at gamenight@gamewright.com or call 1-800-638-7568 x221 for more information.