Why We Love It

No better time than the hottest weeks of summer so far to test the 6-in-1 Educational Solar Kit! One of our more popular gifts this summer, I’ve had my eye on it for a while.

Just like all Elenco Toys, the kit has everything you need for many hours of learning and fun. The directions are very clear of which parts you need for each of the six different solar models: Windmill, Revolving Plane, Airboat, Plane, Car and even a Puppy! Make on at a time; all are powered by the same solar module.

Let me frankly say that the module is a little tricky to put together! I’ll blame our adult-sized hands and guess that kids 10 and up would have an easier time inserting the white and green wires where they needed to go. You get the hang of it though.

As it says on the package, the parts all snap together and you don’t necessarily need any tools. They suggest using a diagonal cutter and we found one helpful for the initial removal of the plastic pieces out of the box.

You and your kids can decide what your favorite of the six is; ours was a tie between the Car and Revolving Plane. On a sunny day you really have to keep an eye on the car, because it moves quickly! Here too is a video of the Revolving Plane – you can see how fast it gets going in the sun!

No sun? No problem, really. While perhaps not quite as fun, you can put the solar panel near a halogen light bulb to get the motors moving. Note it only works for halogen lights, not fluorescent!

One more note, this kit proves that good things DO come in small packages! It’s all packed into a box that’s just 8″ x 7″ x 2″. But at just $24.99, the 6-in-1 Educational Solar Kit is a perfect multi-purpose kit for older kids. All will be amazed that the light we’re surrounded by every day can power these toys!

No surprise – we love playing with toys around here. See more staff toy reviews!

Here is the friendly reminder that Father’s Day is less than 2 weeks away (June 20). Do you and your kids need some new ideas for recognizing Dad on this special day?

Our number one choice is a one-of-a-kind craft project. Here at Growing Tree Toys, one of our most popular Father’s Day items year after year is the Enchanted Garden Stones Kit. This neat project includes “magic stone mix” and all of the embellishments to make it your own.

(Are you near our State College store? Join us for our Kidtivity™ of this project on Saturday, June 19, just in time for Father’s Day the next day! Call 814-237-3655 or stop by to reserve a spot for your kid or kids.)

Here are some more favorite giftable, DIY projects:

• Design Your Own Soccer Ball Kit
• Build a Birdhouse Kit
• Illustory Kit

Another fun way to thank Dad is with a festive Father’s Day meal. Our recent featured blog, Our Family Treat, is a great place to stop for kid-friendly recipes, like Black Bean Burgers and Chocolate Chip Vanilla Pudding Cookies.

One more awesome source for ideas to get kids in the kitchen is the Disney Family Fun Recipes section. They have a festive collection of Father’s Day recipes, from the Tee Time Cake to the super-cute Pop’s Personalized Pretzels, pictured!

You can also skip the kitchen prep by planning a fun picnic! Get together cold cuts, condiments and rolls, or simply get some subs to go and spend the afternoon at a favorite park or other outdoor spot. Don’t forget your camera!

But hey, what about the Dad who’s really just a big kid? We have several toys that not only he, but the whole family will find fun!

• Automoblox Red C9 Sportscar Racer
• Ultra Stomp Rocket Toy
• Marshmallow Shooter
• Top Toss Game
• Doinkit Magnetic Darts

We extend the happiest Father’s Day wishes to all the great Dads out there!

With nationwide initiatives from the White House to the NFL that are pushing kids to get outside playing and exercising, it is no wonder that we search for a wonderful array of outdoor toys for kids of all ages. But as a buyer, I find outdoor active toys to be one of the hardest categories for which to buy. Sadly, there just aren’t as many outdoor toy companies as there are companies in some of our other categories, which makes the selection small, and the amount of toys that we love even smaller.

But, “flying” in to fill that hole with a wonderful selection of outdoor toys that are super-fun is Zing Toys! While we have seen them for a few years now, we have finally added Zing Toys to our product mix. Was it the wonderfully fun booth at Toy Fair that sealed the deal? Perhaps, but we are happy to finally have them in stock just in time for warmer temperatures.

First and foremost, their toys are just FUN! While this may seem like a simple prerequisite for outdoor toys, we search high and low for toys that fit the bill – and Zing Toys goes above and beyond in the fun department. Not only do they offer simple, inexpensive toys – like the Zeebeez Toy that can jump with simple action – but they also offer an array of flying toys, throwing toys, and other products that are sure to get kids running, jumping, and playing the day away.

But, in addition to these items, they offer the super-cool Zyclone Zing Ring Blaster, which is far and away our favorite toy from them. This unique toy features a launcher that sends a ring flying up to 100 feet – not only is it fun, but kids can turn it into a variety of challenging games that are sure to have them running and playing in no time. But in case me telling you how awesome this toy is does not win you over, check out the video that Zing put together showing the Zyclone in action, and I know you will rush to buy it:

Those kids are clearly more skilled than I was when I attempted playing with the Zyclone, but I thought it was fun regardless of my inability to send the ring where I wanted it to go. And, all of our compadres in ASTRA (the association that represents specialty toy stores) seemed to agree with us, as the Zyclone was voted one of the top toys that stores saw at Toy Fair this year.

So, when you are looking for fun items that will keep kids outside, active, and having fun, Zing Toys, might be just the brand of toys for which you are searching. These simple, yet super fun, toys will be entertaining for kids and have them racing to play outside. And, that’s why we love Zing Toys, and we hope you do too!

As a buyer of wonderful, creative toys for children, sometimes you have to search beyond the typical toy companies to find an ingenious plaything for children – and you never know where that might take you! We buy from a variety of “non-traditional” toy companies, and because of this, we are able to offer one of the coolest first microscopes around for kids – the My First Lab Duo-Scope Microscope! Let’s go “under the microscope” to see why …

Let me introduce you to a company called C & A Scientific Co., a manufacturer of medical/scientific supplies. This company makes advanced microscopes and serious science supplies, but they also – luckily for us – make science fun for kids with a small but wonderful line of microscopes and supplies, our favorite of which is the My First Lab Duo-Scope! This Duo-Scope is not only a great price for a piece of “real” science equipment, but it provides kids with an exciting investigative experience that will help foster a love for the sciences.

But, what exactly does this microscope do that is so special? Well, it offers children 2 ways to explore the world around them – a basic biological scope to view slides and a traditional dissecting scope to view specimens – with dual lighting to illuminate slides from below or shine on objects from above. This Duo-Scope also features wonderful magnification with a 10x eyepiece with 4x, 10x and 40x objectives, as well as 40x, 100x and 400x magnification with the real optical glass lenses. Just imagine how kids’ specimen must look to them using this microscope!

To help kids with their studies and collection of specimen, the My First Lab Duo-Scope Microscope comes with 5 blank slides, 4 prepared slides, 2 bottles of stain, forceps, scalpel, a plastic test tube, a plastic Petri dish and more. Kids will turn into little laboratory technicians in no time, using their advanced supplies to learn and explore. And nothing will be safe from their curious minds – bugs under rocks, pet hair, leaves, and more will find their way under the lights for further inspection by budding scientists.

So, while we are in the business of selling toys, we know that just because kids are younger, doesn’t mean that every item they want has to be a toy version of the real thing – it sometimes should be an age-appropriate version of the real thing! This notion is especially true with children’s science items – kids deserve a microscope that works just like a real one does, and parents should not have to pay real microscope prices to get a quality kids version.

And the My First Lab Duo-Scope Microscope fits the bill – it is a quality microscope made by a scientific company that includes all the wonderful features that kids will love, at a reasonable price point, which makes science come to life before kids’ eyes! And while you will find this Duo-Scope at our toy store, it is more than your average toy, providing great “real life” play value for young scientific minds.

And, that’s why we love the My First Lab Duo-Scope Microscope, and we hope you do too!

Toys are our thing. We search far and wide to find the best in wooden toys, baby toys, toddler toys, ride on toys, puzzles, games … you get the picture. And, as a toy store, we have always carried plush, or as some people call them, stuffed animals. Often they are just that – stuffed animals. But, in a sea of stuffed teddy bears, puppy dogs and furry monkeys arose something so unique, so cute, and yet SO UGLY, we just had to have them. And, we have forever remained enamored of our soft, plush friends – Uglydolls!

Believe it or not, Uglydolls have been around since 2002, but have seen a recent rise in popularity, mostly spurned by winning the Specialty Toy of the Year award from the Toy Industry Association in 2006 and by a certain Miss Sasha carrying one to her first day of school in Washington DC last year. I have to admit, these dolls won me over when I saw my first life-size Uglydoll walking around Toy Fair years ago, and I still love to see them staring at me with their goofy faces in our retail store or warehouse!

Created as drawings on correspondence between two artists, David Horvath and Sun-Min Kim, Uglydolls quickly grew into a whole line of adorably ugly creatures that are not only cuddly, but fast friends to children and adults alike. With bright colors, unique faces and equally unique names and personalities, Uglydolls have become a popular mainstay in specialty stores nationwide. But, why are they so popular? I have a few hunches why …

Uglydolls are the perfect gift for any age – young ones love that they are a fun doll with which to cuddle, older children appreciate their hip design and “room décor presence,” and adults are taken by their artistic appeal, quirky descriptions and “non-stuffed toy” look. It’s not very often that you find adults purchasing dolls for themselves – I know I normally wouldn’t consider it!

And, it’s the non-stuffed doll design of the Uglydolls that make them perfect for kids that normally shy away from the traditional stuffed toys and plush. But don’t think that those children that like classic stuffed toys will want to stay far away from Uglydolls – they love them just as much! And whether kids like them for their individual designs or their unique story lines and descriptions, we know they won’t be able to stop with just one Uglydoll – they will need to create a whole Uglydoll family!

With a variety of sizes, colors, shapes and goofy and ugly designs, there is an Uglydoll to please just about anyone. And with new characters introduced every year, the ugliness of the Uglydoll line just keeps on spreading. So come on – everyone needs a little ugly in their life, don’t you think?

And, that’s why we love Uglydoll, and we hope you do too!

Sure, building blocks have been around for ages, and they are available in every size, shape, form and design. So, why do we love the blocks from Uncle Goose Toys that are distributed from Lindenwood, Inc.? You can almost count the ways by stacking their cute and classic blocks!

Building blocks are the quintessential childhood toy, and for good reason. Not only do blocks serve as a way to introduce early building that helps kids develop both gross and fine motor skills, but they also encourage imaginative play that challenges kids to build and dream. In addition to the creativity that building blocks promote, these classic wooden toys, specifically the ABC’s and 123’s styles, feature educational qualities. These building blocks help introduce children to letters and numbers, as well as grouping and sequencing. And, don’t forget the spatial and reasoning skills that building with blocks helps develop!

And while all wooden building blocks help build these skills, which make them a staple in homes and preschools everywhere, the Alphabet blocks from Uncle Goose Toys seemed special to us as we searched for a great set of blocks. Why? First, Lindenwood, Inc. is based in the United States – Grand Rapids, Michigan to be exact. They are still building blocks based upon the direction established by the founder of Uncle Goose, William Bultman, back in 1983. Since his death in 1992, Lindenwood has made it their mission to “carry on the tradition of the Uncle Goose brand of Toys, to make only products that have enduring value, especially products that are unavailable elsewhere.”

Second, Lindenwood makes all of their blocks using basswood that is farmed, planted, and harvested around the Great Lakes area. And, due to their commitment to the environment, their manufacturing process minimizes waste in both production and packaging. In addition to using this renewable wood, they also utilize child-safe, non-toxic inks in the creation of their blocks, making this “Made in the USA” line of products a brand you can trust for quality and safety.

And while this commitment to quality and to the production of eco-friendly toys helped win us over, it’s the blocks that really sealed the deal, so to speak. Based on the turn-of-the-century design of the first patented ABC block, the Classic Alphabet Blocks from Uncle Goose Toys were born. A 28-block set, the Classic Alphabet Blocks feature beautiful classic styling and colors, as well as 4 complete alphabets and 3 sets of numerals. But what else make these blocks stand out amongst others?

In addition to the standard ABC blocks design, these blocks feature 2 embossed letters on each block, making for a unique, attractive appearance. These blocks also feature beveled edges on the top of the block to make the blocks more comfortable to hold by removing those sharp corners. But, in addition to the unique construction, these blocks also feature 27 cute animal pictures with the animal’s name written below, as well as the written name of each numeral – all of which build vocabulary and spelling skills.

And while the Classic Alphabet Blocks Set is the cornerstone of the line, we are sure that you will also like the other unique offerings of Uncle Goose Toys, including the starter set with a more modern design, the Uppercase and Lowercase Alphabet Blocks Set. Or, if you are looking for the perfect Alphabet blocks gift set for young ones, the ABC Flyer Wooden Blocks Wagon is the classic toy with such a lovely design that it is sure to please both children and parents!

So, while we are strong advocates of children playing with wooden blocks, whatever the brand, we want to make sure that we offer some of the best quality building blocks for children available. Which is why we offer Uncle Goose Toys – their Alphabet blocks are not only beautifully hand-crafted in the United States, but their commitment to quality and to offering an eco-friendly product is a mission we can stand behind and support. For us, the decision was as easy as ABC and 123! And, that’s why we love Uncle Goose, and we hope you do too!