Piece-ful Farm from Magic Cabin

Pieceful-Farm ($34.98)




This sweet toy from Sevi is a 7 x 7 x 1.5 inch wooden box containing little wooden play figures. These include a little farm mill with water wheel, a barn or hen house, a tree, a duck, a chicken ,a rooster, a tub of water, a laundry line stretched between two poles that insert in the box, laundry that can hang on the line, and a pretty doll with long blond ponytails. And, playing with this can keep my girls busy for hours. Arielle particularly enjoys the farm birds and loves to have the "Princess" take care of them.






The game is suggested for ages three and up, but we've let Linnea play with it while supervised. The biggest problem has been that she wants to dress the doll in the clothes, but they are only meant to be used as laundry on the line. Linnea insists that the tub of water is a TV. She turns it on its side and lines up the farm animals so they can watch it -- so I guess, depending on the child's imagination and interpretation, there are many possibilities for play.



At clean up time, everything fits neatly back in - just like a puzzle with each piece in its specially marked spot.



Little, self-contained sets like these help to promote independent play. They are easy to transport and are perfect for airplane travel, going to grandma's house, restaurants, waiting rooms, etc. They are also a great new sibling gift, as they are a creative way for an older sibling to play quietly while Mom is nursing the new baby. The box makes the toy feel special, and clean-up is easy. I've been keeping ours on the dining room table to keep the girls occupied while I cook.

It could also be combined with blocks for more fun play options.



Also available are an eight piece transportation set (very cool with train, helicopter, construction vehicle, truck, taxi, garage and mechanic) and a bigger, nineteen piece city set ($69.98). The sets are mde of wood and colored with vegetable-based dyes. They are very high quality, but they are made in China. They are manufactured under the direct supervision of Sevi, an Italian company that has been making toys since 1831. Sevi products meet all U.S. and European safety standards.