With cold and snow in many parts of the country, and along with the NHL news, it’s a great time to play a fun game of hockey!

Here at Growing Tree Toys, one of our favorite ways to shoot for a goal is with the Mini Hockey Goal, Stick & Ball Set from Franklin Toys. Adorned in NHL logos, this set is made by the same company a lot of the pros use! You can read a real review by blogger Susan Heim who enjoyed this set along with her hockey-loving husband and sons!

There’s also a fun way to play a hockey-inspired game with a friend – Air Hockey! The Tabletop Air Hockey Game is a house-friendly version of the arcade staple, this set includes 3 pucks, 2 paddles, and manual scorekeeper.

Want to know more about how kids can have fun with hockey? Check out Hockey is for Everyone, the NHL’s initiative to promote the sport to kids in North America. There you will find more resources and information from USA Hockey, OneGoal, and more.

Game on….it’s time to hit the ice!

Nanoblocks are similar to other snap together blocks – with one major change: they are the smallest blocks you have ever seen! With the littlest piece measuring about 4mm x 4mm x 5mm, it takes precision to make these mini-masterpieces.

The Nanoblock Sights to See collection lets young and old recreate historic sites like the iconic statues of Easter Island and the one and only Eiffel Tower. And would you believe there are several hundred pieces in each set?

Go even smaller with cute Nanoblock animals, part of the Nanoblock Mini Series. At around 100 pieces per pack, these little animals are less than $10 per set. Canine lovers will enjoy the darling White Terrier (complete with a water bowl!). Other animal friends include a dolphin, a parakeet, and a pig!

Our selection will continue to grow – so start your Nanoblock collection today!

Lights for Life was founded four years ago by John Worthington. After learning his cousin had Leukemia, he searched for a way to help his cousin and other children with cancer. He had the novel idea to recover the Copper and PVC from broken holiday lights and sell them back to the manufacturing industry. Now, many Ace Hardware locations are taking strands of lights to help the cause. (Click here to see more information about collection and to find out if your local Ace is participating.)

Other ways to help Lights for Life include donating a vehicle or cash, as well as volunteering. You can also refer a child to be considered as a recipient family of Lights for Life funds.

We appreciate Lights for Life’s mission to help kids and the environment. Thank you for all that you do!

We have ten recipes on our list this year, and thought we should share a few with you! We’d love it if you shared yours, too!

Mini-Mini M&M cookies
This recipe was spotted over the summer when we wanted a small mini-M&M cookie to use for homemade ice cream sandwiches. This one is perfect, and the almond extract adds a nice touch!

Careys Lemon Drop Cookies
Christmas (and really, most holidays!) tend to say, “Chocolate!” but these lemon cookies have a bright flavor and look great on a cookie plate.

Snickerdoodle Cookies (Dairy, Egg & Nut Free)
This thoughtful recipe is allergy-friendly but ready to be enjoyed by anyone! Check out Allergy Mom’s site for many more tried and true recipes sans dairy, eggs, and nuts.

Peanut Butter Blossoms
Remember to unwrap the Hershey Kisses while these cookie favorites are in the oven, because as soon as they come out it’s time to stick a kiss on top! Add some colored sugar when rolling the peanut butter balls for some extra color.

Holiday Rum Balls #1
Here is a treat just for the adults. It’s easy to mix all the ingredients in a food processor, though the extra tool is not necessary. They taste better after a couple days in the refrigerator!

Water Symphony Bath Toy
This fun toy for the tub is a perennial favorite of Growing Tree Toys’ shoppers. The eight colorful dolphins can be attached in a ring shape or taken apart to float individually. And each makes a different sound when the top of its head is tapped! (18 months to 4 years, $24.95)

Tolo Stacking Activity Shapes Toy
Four fun little toys with sensory features, from rattles to squeaks and mirrored surfaces, can be played with individually or stacked into a colorful tower. This is one of many neat toddler toys from Tolo Toys! (6 months and up, $23.95)

Talking Tubes Toy
This unique set from Alex Toys lets toddlers (and older!) unplug and still have a chat. Three meters of tubing have familiar phone handsets on the ends, allowing for a conversation from afar. It’s a new look at “long distance” for kids! (3 years and up, $29.95)

Pony Jack in the Box Toy
The jack in the box is probably one of the more iconic toys. This one is just like toys past – an upbeat song when you crank the handle, then a friendly animal to welcome as he pops out of the box. Here you’ll hear “Home on the Range” and say hello to a fancy plush horse! (18 months and up, $24.95)

Playmobil 123 Interactive Play Farm
Toddlers do not have to wait to get their hands on Playmobil! Part of the tot-friendly Playmobil 123 collection, this fun farm offers several ways to play. It makes sounds, like animal noises and the numbers 1-6 in eight different languages! The barn itself is even a shape sorter. Then, the farmer and his animals can join in on the pretend play fun. (18 months and up, $54.99)

Kettler HKS Kettrike Happy Air Navigator
The innovative Kettrike is “built like a tank” and perfect for parents to push or for children to pedal on their own. It is packed with Kettler’s unique features like its 3-in-1 Auto-Freewheel™ Coasting Pedal System and Quick-Adjust™ Frame with five available frame adjustments. Able to be enjoyed by little ones ages 1 all the way until 5, this high-quality trike is great for toddlers and beyond. (12 months to 5 years, $229.00)

Lil Shopper Play Set
Your tot will now be ready to shop for some healthy foods! A quintet of colorful, multi-sensory food items pack into their own brown grocery bag. You read more about various ways to play with this set in a previous blog post. (6 months and up, $24.95)

Calin Laughing Flowers Play Doll
One of the beautiful Corolle Dolls we carry, Calin is a sweet new friend. She has a soft body so she can be a bedtime buddy as well. Her clothing is cute and coordinated from her striped hat to her pink pants. (18 months and up, $39.95)

SmartMax 42 Piece Basic Set
SmartMax building toys are among the hottest toys this holiday season! Perfectly designed for little hands, strong magnets allow the rods and large balls to “stick” together. Start with the basic set or see other SmartMax sets for larger creations! These are great gifts for families with multiple young kids, and lets little ones get in on the fun as well. (12 months and up, $79.95)

4 in 1 Drum Set
Can you keep the beat? It’s a whole lot easier with this drum set from Kidoozie! The “4″ is a quartet of noise-making toys – a shaker, a mallet, a rattle, and a clacker attachment. They can all be played on their own, or attached to the drum. Get ready for some one-of-a-kind music! (2 years and up, $15.95)

Don’t forget to check out our whole selection of toddler toys!

Roll and Play Game: Tots as young as 18 months can enjoy the multi-faceted fun of the Roll and Play Game from ThinkFun! Roll the colored cube to see what color of card to draw. Then perform the action on the card, from roaring like a lion to spinning in a circle! ($19.95, 18 months to 3 years)

Pengoloo Game: Cold-weather creatures are the feature in the Pengoloo Game! Race to match colors and collect six penguins. This well-loved toy is an award-winner as well, holding the honors of the National Parenting Center Seal Of Approval, Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Gold, and Parents Choice Silver. ($23.95, 4 years and up)

I Spy Ready to Read Game: Preschoolers learning to read will love to play this game! A fun take on the “I Spy” game, you match words up to corresponding images, and punch out tokens when you spot what you are looking for. Fun for up to six players, it can be played solo as well! ($17.95, 4 years and up)

Equilibloc Color Block Game: This colorful stacking game is a challenge for all! First, build the sturdy tower, then see how much you can remove before the remaining tower pieces topple over! Play on your own or in a group. ($14.95, 3 years and up)

Elephant’s Trunk Game: Emmet the Elephant is heading on a trip but he needs your help packing! The first player to pack their suitcase wins, but watch out, as a pesky mouse is ready to undo your hard work! ($15.95, 4 years and up)

Imaginets Set: Mindware’s Imaginets Set makes the wonderful world of magnets fun for preschoolers. Choose a challenge card, then use some of the fifty colorful magnets to replicate the design on the card. Or, use your imagination to make a creature of your very own! ($29.95, 3 years and up)

That is just a taste of our selection of Preschool Games; hop on over to our site to see more!

An even better way to decorate is to DIY! We found some fun ideas and pinned them here. We especially like all the ways to reuse and repurpose, like with wine bottles or buttons, as well as “all-natural” decorations using greenery and even oranges!

We especially want to highlight this neat find, a “tree” perfect for apartments and smaller homes that may not have room for a traditional tree. Take a blank wall and pin up special memories, from pictures to cards and anything, really. This unique wall collage is in the shape of a tree – making for one unique and truly memorable Christmas tree!

It’s fun to add a little pizazz to the holiday decorating. Are you trying anything new this year?

From Cloud B, makers of the favorite Twilight Turtle toys, comes the plush Gentle Giraffe, a cute animal and sound machine in one!

From his early days we learned that M needed sound to fall asleep. We first achieved this by none other than the Oball Rattle Toy, used in a pinch when we were out of the house with an overtired newborn. But soon we learned that a sound machine was the answer and the Gentle Giraffe was perfect!

Its portability was just what we needed, so no matter where we were we could create a similar sleep environment. We use the “Victoria Falls” setting for sleep. For us, the other sounds seemed too “stimulating” for sleep, but we used them (especially “Safari Groove”) during playtime or as a distraction in the car! Speaking of in the car. the toy has a sturdy velcro strap at its neck so it can be attached to a car seat. Of course do this before baby goes to sleep, you know how loud velcro can be!

Now I have read complaints about the timer, as it shuts the sounds off after 23 or 45 minutes. Using it two to three times a day, every day, for over a year, I can say we have only changed the batteries once. (That’s some great battery life!) But, if this were able to run all night… well, then you’d be changing batteries all of the time. We have a small, plug in sound machine for that purpose. I suppose we are lucky too that he doesn’t wake up as soon as the sound stops, as I see that would be quite frustrating!

The sound machine also has a handy volume control that is a dial, so you can easily and slowly adjust the level of the sound. We often start at the loudest setting and gradually work our way down till we turn it off (and most often before the timer automatically shuts it off!)

One more note, the sound machine box itself, where the batteries are located, is difficult to get inside of the velcroed pouch on the back of the giraffe! We found that you sort of angle it in from the top first and shimmy it in. It’s nice to know it is in there securely though.

Now despite the sound machine inside it is still a cuddly creature. M treats it like any other stuffed animal and likes his soft mane! The giraffe’s limbs are nice and long and fun to grab.

So after a year of use (and counting), I would say the Gentle Giraffe Toy is a well-made and useful item for at least the first two years of a baby’s life. And, paired with the Sophie the Giraffe Natural Rubber Teether Baby Toy, would make a great gift set for an expectant mother this holiday season or at a baby shower!

Also see the last “M Reviews” of the Lil Shopper Play Set!

Two of our newest toys are the Spooner Boards! These indestructible, unbreakable boards are made in San Diego and combine the fun of snowboarding, skateboarding and surfing. There are two options based on the size of the child. First, there is the Freestyle Spooner Board for children under four feet tall (and four years of age or older). Then older kids, taller than four feet, can give the Pro Spooner Board a try. At 28″ in length, four inches longer than the Freestyle, it is capable of more complex tricks.

The Light-Up Air Power Soccer Disk is not just for soccer! Similar to a large air hockey puck, this one-of-a-kind toy is the centerpiece for indoor soccer, hockey, AND bowling! Hovering on a cushion of air, it also has colored LEDs to add to the fun. Its outer rim protects furniture and walls (and feet!) making it safe to play with inside. See what kind of game your kids can come up with!

A pogo stick for indoors? Yes, please! The Hop and Squeak Pogo Jumper from Kidoozie is made of a unique foam attached to a bungee cord, rather than metal and springs, making it perfect for indoor play. But this jumping toy doesn’t have to be fun for just the kids – it can accommodate up to 250 pounds! What a fun way for the whole family to exercise inside!

Another newer toy, the YBike Pewi, is a great multi-purpose ride-on toy for tots. Little ones (as young as nine months!) can use the Pewi for stability as they hone their walking skills. As they grow, they can hop on for a ride. Thanks to non-marking, multi-directional wheels, they can ride around the house without messing up the floor. And the fun is long lasting, as the Oppenheim Toy Gold Award-winning Pewi can be used by children up to 44 pounds, and 43″ tall.

Finally, here is a classic toy back for the current generation. From Mary Meyer comes the favorite “stick horse,” including the Easy Ride ‘Um Black Stick Horse! Perfect for pretend play, it is just as the name implies (and as fun as you remember) a soft horse head on a stick, ready to “ride” around the house! This version has the added bonus of appropriate horse sounds.

We hope you enjoyed this list of ways to stay bouncing, busy and active indoors. Please share any ideas you have to be physically active inside when the conditions outside are not favorable!

Speed Stacks StackPack: Did you know that stacking cups is a popular activity all over the world? This complete Speed Stacks StackPack has all a super stacker needs to get started, including 12 cups, a timer, a StackMat, Stack Fast Training DVD, and an instruction booklet. ($34.95, ages 5+)

Cerebral Rings Brain Teaser Puzzle: Nine neat pieces make up the entirely tough Cerebral Rings Brain Teaser Puzzle. There are three black ring formations and six red plungers. There are hundreds of ways to put them together, but only eight ways to solve the puzzle! ($14,95, ages 8+)

Volcanoes and Earthquakes Science Kit: Thames and Kosmos is a premier source for high-quality, professional-level science kits. One of their latest doesn’t disappoint! Your young scientist will explore the natural phenomena that change the earth each and every day. Learn more with the Volcanoes and Earthquakes Science Kit! ($34.95, ages 10+)

Feather Fashion Accessory Kit: Many girls love to have the latest looks! They can be in style and play as well thanks to the Feather Fashion Accessory Kit. Like all of Fashion Angels‘ toys and kits, crafty girls can get creative with their jewelry, clothing and accessories. Here, feathers are center stage in the form of earrings, necklaces, trendy hair extensions and more. ($12.95, ages 8+)

Light Up Big Bang Rocket: Do you remember “bang caps”? Well, we bet your kids don’t, and the Light Up Big Bang Rocket lets kids have high-flying fun while recycling! Place a small piece of paper in the rocket, and watch as it “bangs” and flies into the sky. Bonus: it lights up with a rainbow of color! ($19.95, ages 7+)

You can also check out all of our new arrivals for little ones, big kids, and everyone in between!