Fairy houses

Have you read Fairy Houses by Tracy Kane ($15.95)? The beautifully illustrated book is about a girl named Kristen who vacations in Maine. Her parents show her a village of little houses that people have made for the fairies. Kristen makes her own house and every day she checks it for fairies. At the last minute, magic happens.

The end of the book has a section about making your own fairy houses using only natural materials. Today was a gorgeous day and Ari went outside to build her own fairy house.

She gathered up sticks and bark and other natural treasure,


and with Linnea's help, she carefully arroanged them under the tree.

A broken eggshell makes a perfect vase on a dandelion carpet.


And a tulip that the rain knocked over decorates the roof. Only dandelions were picked.


Flowers and leaves make nice, soft beds.


And here is the final product. Will a fairy move in?



There is also a video ($19.95). Are there fairies in your backyard?

A Toy Garden - summer fun, coupon code and giveaway

Our friends at A Toy Garden have given us a new coupon code. The code "stbsummer09" is good for 10% off any order over $30.00 from today through June 15, 2009. Even better, if you use the code, you are entered into a giveaway. One lucky reader will win a Fabulous Sun Hat. These one-size-fits-all hats adjust to fit everyone. The hats have a big brim to protect face and neck, are SPF 45, and have a secret pocket. They come in four colors, and the winner gets to choose from


Fabulous Sun Hat ($21.95)


A Toy Garden is a great source for all sorts of toys and treasures. Right now, I need to go get my big kid who is coming home from college. But, I wanted to get this post up as soon as possible for those who are looking for a coupon code. I'll write more about the great playthings at A Toy Garden soon.

Jumble Balls - reviewed by our very cute friend Lucy

Jumble Ball ($15.00)



Jumble Balls are soft fabric balls made by Jennifer of Wood Pond Designs. She started making the balls about five years ago after being inspired by a ball that her mother had made. At first, she made them for her own children and for friends having babies. Soon more and more people wanted Jumble Balls, and Jennifer started an Etsy shop.



The balls are lightweight, squashy and easy to grasp. Each square is individually stuffed leaving a hollow center that makes the ball squishable and easy for little hands to hang on to. The balls are made of 100% cotton fabric that is safe and machine washable on the gentle cycle. So, these balls can be chewed on and drooled on and dragged on the floor.



Jennifer describes herself as a "fabric junky". She has lots and lots of colors and fabrics and never makes more than a few balls that are the same. The ribbons and rickrack are a new addition to the balls, and customers can choose to have either a rattle or jingle bells sewn securely inside. Jennifer now offers Bamboo fiberfill, and she will soon have organic cotton fabric available. If you have a specific color scheme in mind, she welcomes custom orders and would be very happy to create a ball using specific colors/fabrics/patterns.



The balls are great for tummy time for tiny ones, and for rolling and tossing as the baby grows older. Jennifer's children are now 4 and 6 and she says "they still love throwing the jumble balls around and they are light enough that I don't worry about things breaking".

I'm sure that Arielle and Linnea would have had fun with the ball, but I wanted to get a real baby reaction. So, we hired a consultant. Our eight-month-old friend Lucy (and her two-year-old big sister Tess) volunteered to help us out. They loved it.



Here's what mom Sarah had to say, "That is the ball! It is so great! Totally squishable so Lucy can tumble on top of it and it smooshes flat, then pops back up. The colors are great, the ribbons are perfect and it jingles just enough to keep the kid interested, not enough to annoy the mama. We seriously love this ball! Tess and Lucy both have so much fun playing with it and it's just as great for playing catch with Tess as it is for tumble time with Lucy."



Thank you Jennifer and thank you Lucy and Tess.

Stamping and Painting

It's raining. It seems to do that a lot lately. We've been doing lots of art projects to keep busy.

I've been wanting to do a deeper review of some of our favorite products from Stubby Pencil Studio that only got a quick mention before, and this seems to be a good time.



Watercolor Paint Set from Faber-Castell ($9.95)



Art was my favorite thing to do when I was a child, but I never thought I liked watercolors because they were always so wet and anemic. They were frustrating. The colors blurred and looked muddy and the paper always crinkled up from the water. When I finally got to try the real stuff in college, I was surprised by how much fun watercolors are and how easy to use.

I bet these would have provided a better experience. The Faber-Castell water colors are strong and bright and also easy to use.



Even two year old Linnea is getting strong colors and clear lines. A good paintbrush helps. We like Faber-Castell triangular brushes ($7.95).



Here's Arielle's masterpiece. Birds, of course.



The watercolors are certified safe for children and are made in Turkey. We used regular drawing paper this time, but Stubby Pencil also offers nice, thick, recycled watercolor paper ($9.95 and $12.95/20 sheets) that is perfect for making special gifts or Father's Day cards and doesn't pucker at all.

Animal Stamps (5 for $19.95)



These are so much fun, but messy. So we covered the table and put on our messy-shirts (recycled from Dad). Our ink pads are from Djeco ($12.99).



The stamps are nice and big and easy for a toddler to handle. They are also super cute and made in Thailand from rubber wood.



They do get messy. If you use washable ink, they clean up with soap and water. Otherwise, try a bit of rubbing alcohol to keep them clean and cute.



Lots of messy fun, but it all cleans up. And, the kids are so proud of their creations. We just stamp like crazy, but older children could make cards or decorate book covers and notebooks for themselves or for gifts.

Coming soon: Wonderworld Toys

Wonderworld Toys are made in Thailand out of eco-friendly rubber wood. The prices are comparable to Plan Toys. I haven't tried them yet, but we'll be reviewing some soon. You can check out Wonderworld and other toys at Toys & Games Online.

Pretty Piggy Paint

When we were children, my niece (who is now all grown up) was not allowed to drink milk. "Too many growth hormones," said her dad. But, she was allowed to wear nail polish to make up for the milk, and I was not. I was so jealous. Maybe that's why I like having painted toenails.

Now that its warming up and I'm wearing sandals, I really really really want to paint my toenails. But, it's not just the formaldehyde, toluene, phthalates, biphenyl A, ethyl acetate and acetone that is stopping me, it's also the knowledge that if I paint my toenails, two little girls (who drink hormone-free milk) will also want me to paint theirs.

While I don't know exactly how I feel about little girls and painted nails, I do know how I feel about unnecessary toxins. Putting all those chemicals on little girls, that's crazy! Yet I see Arielle enviously admiring her little friend Brianna's red nails, and I don't want her to feel left out like I did.

Being a mom sure is a tightrope walk sometimes, isn't it?

So.... I did a Google search on non-toxic nail polish. And... I found Piggy Paint. I know it isn't a toy, but I thought some of you might also be interested and I asked to do a review.

Piggy Paint is the invention of Melanie, a mom with girls just the same age as Arielle and Linnea. Like my girls, they love being fancy.

One day, they were painting their nails when a glob of nail polish fell on a foam plate. It started bubbling and eating through the plate. Eeewwwww! Eeeek! Yuck! So, Melanie decided to make something better.





Piggy Paint nail polish may not be quite as natural as mud, but it is made out of child-safe ingredients and colorings -- the same type of ingredients as in children's art supplies and in cosmetics. And, every ingredient in the polish is biodegradable with no traces or residues left behind -- no formaldehyde, toluene, phthalates, biphenyl A, ethyl acetate or acetone. It's available in 13 pretty colors ($9.99 each).



We tried Girls Rule! , a lovely pinkish purple with just a bit of sparkle.

Arielle and Linnea were thrilled. I told them it was a special thing, but since we were going to a Princess Party, we could do it.

We painted our nails after their bath and then blew them dry for one minute with the hair dryer. Here they are... clean little girls checking out their toes.



And, then dancing at our Princess Party with extra pretty piggies.



The polish wore well. It looked good for a full five days. And then I easily removed it with Piggy Paint's nail polish remover.



For us, this was a fun thing. But, Piggy Paint has some suggestions about how their polish can be used as a learning tool for improving fine motor skills, and learning about colors and patterns.

Sara's Toy Box readers can receive 20% off anything on the site wit the code "GIRLY20L". The code expires June 1, 2009

One more coupon code

From KangarooBoo, 5% off valid from now until June 30, 2009. The code is STB509.

Hartia Toys, only at Moolka

When I was in elementary school, there was one particular winter where we had a month of snow days. My very smart mother stocked up on paper toys - toys that required us to cut them out and assemble then before we could play. Just setting everything up could take all day.

I'd never seen anything like the things she found. I think she may have bought them in England. But, Hartia Toys Coupicoles ($15.99) are similar.

These award-winning paper toys keep children entertained and busy while they develop imagination, attention, concentration, the ability to follow directions, three-dimensional thinking skills, and fine motor skills.

Couplicoles (from the French verbs "couper" cut, "plie" fold, and "coller" paste) are made in Canada and, in the USA, are sold exclusively at Moolka.

There are eight designs available: Polar Animals, Insects, Tropical Animals, Martial Arts, The Farm, The Ocean, Vegetables and Exotic Birds. Arielle and I tried out Exotic Birds - of course!

Arielle was very excited to see that the kit contained a cockatoo. A blue cockatoo! What a strange coincidence. She was telling me a few days earlier that she is a grown-up bird scientist, she is going to marry a blue cockatoo and have four chicks. Blue cockatoos are just as imaginary as rainbow ones.



Each box contains twelve sheets of figures to cut and assemble. The kit is rated for ages six and up because cutting the figures out does require at least intermediate scissor skills.



They are classified according to the degree of difficulty (on a scale of one to four). Younger children will need the help of an adult and will gain the skills to work independently as they work through the package.

Couplicoles require a ruler, scissors and glue. I found that tape, an exact-o knife, and paper clips were also helpful. I used the paper clips to hold parts in place while the glue dried.

I wasn't sure if Coupicoles would be too hard for Arielle, and, indeed, they were too complex for her pre-school scissor skills. Instead, we decided that I would cut and she would help with the gluing and, of course, the playing.

These do take time - about fifteen minutes each. The birds, because they are made of paper, are delicate; definitely not for toddler sisters. But, Arielle really enjoys them. I think that after she plays a while, they could also be strung up to make a nice mobile for her room. Of course, eventually, they can be recycled.




I'm saving blue cockatoo for last.


What an excellent and educational way to keep older children busy during school closings or summer vacations. Thanks Moolka!

Eco-friendly sand fun - Sprig Hollow from Sprig Toys

I first heard of Sprig Toys around Christmas when my crunchy friends were raving about the cool trucks they were buying for their little boys. At first I was confused by their excitement; these were cute, but looked like plastic. But, Sprig Toys are actually made of a unique material called Sprigwood - a biocomposite of recycled wood and recycled plastic. They are tough and waterproof like plastic, but have a fresh-cut wood smell. Mmmm.... And are completely child-safe as well as being eco-friendly. And cute! And affordable!

So that's what they were so excited about.

Sprig makes tough yellow construction trucks and kid-powered Adventure Rigs, and now they make sand toys that are fun for boys, but pretty enough for girly girls. We got to try Sprig's newest line, Sprig Hollow.

The line consists of three playsets.

Sprig Hollow DuneBug's Sand Truck ($16.99)



Sprig Hollow Bee and Butterfly's Farm Playset($26.95)





Sprig Hollow Dragonfly's Heliscoopter Playset($15.99)



Each playset contains parts which are snapped together to form trucks, a heliscooper, even a barn. And, each has parts that come off to be cool sand toys like a funnel, rake and scoop. But the best part -- the cute little bugs.

Coincidentally, the toys arrived on Earth Day. Linnea and I had just come home from taking Arielle to preschool, and we found a big box outside our door. I assembled everything quickly and lucky Linnea had everything to herself for a few hours. I love how serious she looks while she tucks the "Little Baby Bugs" into the truck.











When Arielle came home, she tried them out as well and pronounced them "Fun!" and "Pretty!" The little bug figures were very popular. That night, we tried them in the bath where the bugs were shampooed in bubbles and the funnel and leaf shaped scoop from the farm set were especially well-liked.

The big test came last weekend. It was a glorious, sunny weekend and we spent much of it enjoying being outdoors. They played with the toys quite a bit in the sandbox (while I built a composter), but then discovered that trucks and dry leaves are a fun combination.

Here are the pictures.











All Sprig Toys are battery-free, come in eco-friendly packaging, and are compatible with each other. They are available at a variety of toy stores, nationwide.

News and Discount Codes

I've posted a few new discount codes today.

"SARA4ME" is good for 10% off at Maukilo. Maukilo carries all the Haba available in the United States and other wonderful brands such as Kettler, Holztiger,Chelona, Heros, and many more. They currently have a sale on trucks and dinosaurs. We'll be posting some toy reviews in the near future.


"GIRLY20L" is good for 20% off anything on the Piggy Paint website, including sale items. Piggy Paint offers a non-toxic, child-safe nail polish. Arielle has been incredibly jealous of her preschool friends with painted nails, but her mean mommy cringes at the thought of all those chemicals. But, since warm weather and new sandals makes me want to paint mine, I thought we'd try this out. The review is coming soon. Spend $25 and shipping is free.

We're currently reviewing eco-friendly Sprig Toys, Green Toys and really cool paper birds. Those reviews will be posted soon.

Happy playing.