Basically, We love these toys...

Toys, toys toys! I have to admit I get just as excited about new toys as my kids (sometimes more so… shhhh….) Bells and whistles can entice me sometimes, but what I really love are bright colors, remarkable workmanship and new things to imagine and play. I can look at play sets and dollhouses, fire trucks and baby toys for way too long online. Having a daughter and two sons just opens up the toy horizon even more. We pretty much drool over toys around here (and not just the baby!)

But, when it comes down to it, when you really analyze what my kids play with? The fancy toys don’t really add up to much playtime. And what they play with, oddly mirrors what I remember playing with when I was a kid.

I’m going back to the basics with this review – Blocks and play "silks."

Blocks from Palumba:

When I was a little girl I had a box of colorful wooden blocks. I used to love flipping over the box, and building a little apartment with my blocks. I would make a dining room table and chairs, a couch, a bed. I have my old blocks to this day, and my kids do love to play with them. However, when we get out the blocks, they gravitate towards the cubes and sticks they got from Palumba. (Well, from Santa a couple years ago, but I have it on good authority that Santa got in touch with the folks at Palumba.)

My kids absolutely adore their Cubes and Cherry Building Sticks. They build towers, and bury treasure, and create little houses for their little gnomes.

Both the cubes and sticks work well for loading up a truck:

As a teacher, I have to admit, that one thing I love is toys that teach through imaginative play. The last time we played with the cubes and sticks, we played around with balance, and counting.

My 4 year old is currently very interested in letters, and cubes and sticks really do make great letters!

Speaking of imaginative play, Those sticks make excellent microphones:

Also, if you need to look at something "Way far away," they are just the telescope you've been looking for!

I would love to show you more pictures of the awesome things my kids do with these blocks, but the baby kept knocking them over… then picking one up that is to his liking, and chewing on it for a bit. Sometimes he does change it up a bit by banging them together to make a beautiful song.

They are really the perfect little blocks, in my mind. They aren’t too heavy, but they aren’t too light. They are made from real wood, and are actually quite beautiful! We have the set of 40 sticks (they also come in sets of 20 or 80) and the set of 25 cubes (they also come in a set of 50). Each set comes in a little drawstring cotton bag, which I always intend to use… but somehow clean up time doesn’t work like that around here!

Etsy Play Silks:

Looking at the pictures, you may notice some play "silks." in the background. I have wanted play silks for my kids for awhile, but I didn't want to get real silk, since we try to stay on the vegan side of things around here. I have some cotton rainbow cloths, but was looking for something silkier, when I stumbled upon etsy seller, DreamSpunKids. Their chiffon play silks are light, flowing, and come in a great variety of colors. For the first set we bought (they come in sets of 6, 8 or 12), I picked a handful of bright spring colors, and most recently, I chose colors that reminded me of the fall:

Good thing. Otherwise, how would my children pretend they are autumn trees? Or volcanoes?
These play silks can really be anything. The kids dress up in them, tie them to chairs to make forts: whatever the kids can imagine. My favorite thing to do with them is to help the kids create play-scapes. Here is our lake under construction (See the spot of yellow and orange? That's the "burning hot sun!"):

Playsilks also make a fabulous back drop for plays, puppet shows, or concerts:

I may or may not have even convinced my husband to wear one as a cape at our son's Super Hero birthday party!

(I wore a blue one!)

We love having a bin of play silks in our playroom, and I highly recommend them as a must-have toy!

They aren't just toys though, my new absolute favorite use for them is as present wrapping:If you want to add some pretty special "basic" toys to your child's play room, I say give Palumba's cubes and sticks and the play silk from etsy seller: DreamSpunKids a try.
The imagination and creativity of your child will shine through.

Happy Playing!

Our new kitchen

The time had come. The play kitchen was falling apart and playing "Mommy in the kitchen" is one of Arielle and Linnea's very favorite games. We needed to replace it.

So, the old kitchen went on Craig's List and Mommy priced new kitchens. It was a pretty easy choice. I was in love with the Camden Rose Simple Hearth ($349.99) from Palumba.

Why is this kitchen so great? Let me count the ways.

1. It arrived quickly. Two days after I ordered the kitchen the FedEx man brought three big boxes to the door. The girls were very excited, but I sent them next door for their regularly scheduled play date, anyway. I'm mean.

2. It was easy for a small mommy working alone to set up. Tools needed were a Phillips head screw driver and a box cutter. Seriously, the hardest part was getting it out of the box. Then you attach the handles and the faucet, add the hutch (slides on and the tighten the screws), slide in the shelves and you are done.

I bet you're thinking "Sara, show me pictures already!"

3. It is beautiful. The kitchen is made of solid wood - sustainably harvested cherry, ash and walnut.

4. Look at all this storage space.


I like the cute shelves and that they finally have a separate cabinet for pots and pans. But what I really love is...

5. ...the wire rack in the oven. Don't ask why. It just appeals to me.

6. It has an oven! Our old kitchen did not.



7. The matching refrigerator ($299.99). It is so big. There is room for ALL the play food. Actually, when Linnea first looked inside she said "It's not full. I need to put more stuffs in there."



8. More wire racks...



9. And cool on-the-door shelves for jars and eggs.


How did the girls like it?

First, they danced on the bubble wrap.



Then Linnea went to find more stuff to put in the refrigerator. "How about the toaster?"



Then Linnea discovered cool thing #10.

10. The pull-out shelf that adds space so two kids can cook at once.



11. It came with milk and eggs.



12. It's fun. It's been a few weeks, and the girls play with the kitchen constantly.

A shaky egg.... and other inexpensive Easter treasures

Are you looking for inexpensive natural toys and toys made in the USA to fill your Easter baskets? Check out Down to Earth Toys. They have a great selection of toys under $20.

We love:

Egg Shaker ($7.25)




When Linnea saw the shaker she said "OH!" in that sort of breathless way some of us might save for the perfect pair of eco-friendly shoes. I think the egg spoke to her.

When they were younger, the girls went to music lessons where the favorite activity for toddlers was shaking an egg to a song. We played a game where we sat and sang and passed eggs around the circle. Very relaxing. Or maybe she's thinking of the Laurie Berkner song, I know a chicken. Click the link to see the YouTube video :0)

The egg is made by Jam Town. They support the makers of fair trade musical instruments around the world. The egg helps employ someone in Bali. Check out Down to Earth's extensive selection of musical instruments.

Magic Fairy Wand ($2.95)



Ari preferred the magic wand. She says, "You can do anything with a magic wand because it's magic." All you need is imagination. What a deal! But, don't turn your sister into a toad.



Felt Chocolate Easter Bunny ($8.99)



I haven't seen this in person (in bunny?). But, I love Lilly Bean play food and I'm sure it is the same great quality. How cute it would look in an Easter basket!

Sara's Toy Box readers get free shipping on orders over $10 until 4/30/2010. Just use the code "SARA" at checkout. Happy Spring to all of you!

Blasting off..... in a rocket ship.

All my kids love space. I have great memories of when my big kids (now 18 and 20) were the same age as Arielle and Linnea. I took them on a geology field trip with me, and they spent the six hour drive playing spaceship and singing "we are aliums!"

Arielle went through a year when she always wanted stories about rocket ships and her friends Moonielle and Starielle who live in space. I had to make them up, and now she calls her Mommy-made-up bedtime story a "Moon Story".

Here's a true Moon Story.

One very exciting day, a rocket landed in the playroom. The FedEx man brought it.

It required a little assembly - cardboard tabs had to be pushed into cardboard holes. I needed help, just an extra hand to hold things, but it wasn't too hard.

Then... out popped a little alien.




"Hello," it said. "Do you have cookies on this planet?"

Once the alien confirmed that, yes, this is a planet with abundant cookies, she decided to visit awhile. Then I had no more cookies.



The rocket ship ($77.95) is made in the USA of recycled paper and is 100% recyclable. It is from Down to Earth Toys, which is just a great place for Toys Made in the USA. I recently saw the rocket ship listed as one of Kiwi Magazine's top eco-friendly toys of the year. Arielle and Linnea certainly thought it was a top toy!

It's just the right size (67"H x 27.5"W x 27.5"D) for two little aliens and a few treasures. With a little effort, I even fit myself in there. I don't suggest this unless you really like tight spaces.



For Arielle and Linnea packing up the spaceship for the journey was almost as much fun as actually visiting strange planets. They put in a whole collection of play food. Traveling is hungry work.



Happy face.


I just asked for comments from the aliens. Arielle said she wishes the rocket was really big because then it would be even better (where would be put it?). And, Linnea told be a very enthusiastic story about zoom zoom zooming to outer space and having a picnic of astronaut food and alien food on the moon.

And off they go again....

The spaceship would be fun to decorate... glow-in-the-dark paint and space stickers would be cool. Or glow-in-the-dark stars? Maybe a sticker from every planet visited? Because we are moving soon, I decided to hold off on decorating, so the paint doesn't get banged up.




This is a neat toy for encouraging imaginative play both indoors and outdoors. Boys and girls will love it and get great practice at counting down from 10 to 1 (a kindergarten skill). I can't imagine a child not loving it. And, when they outgrow it, it can be passed on or recycled.



And check out the Playhouse.

Thank you, Down to Earth Toys for this out-of-this-world play experience.

A bird tree!

Not a partridge in a pear tree, a sparrow in an apple tree! And, a blue jay and a robin and a titmouse and a flying yellow songbird.

Birdies in an Apple Tree ($79)


I've told you before about how much we love our Holztiger animals. These wooden animals from Germany are a favorite with my girls. Each year, I buy a few more at Christmas or on birthdays or for Easter, and the girls are getting a pretty nice collection. They are played with all the time. And, when they aren't being played with, they look very cute on a shelf or dresser.

Lately, Arielle's favorites have been birds. When ever she saves up enough money, she buys a bird... one at a time. When Arielle saw the bird tree, her eyes lit right up. And Rosie Hippo was so kind to let her review it.

The tree has a stand to help it stay up on carpet, but it can be used without the stand.

There are plenty of flat spots for the birds to perch. Hmmm... where will this bird go?

Some other animals heard about the juicy apples.

Yummy.



Like all Holztiger figures, the tree is beautifully made and finished with non-toxic colors. It's a great addition to a play story. And, it is available separately for $24.

There really is nothing like Holztiger for open-ended, imaginative play. And, there is nowhere like Rosie Hippo for Holztiger. They have the best selection.

Check out all the wonderful European and American toys at Rosie Hippo.