Great Toy for your Junior Scientist!

The Primary Science Kit by Learning Resources is a great toy for a young scientist! Its a science kit geared for kids aged 4 and up. Its a very complete kit that includes a beaker, eyedropper, flask, funnel, magnifying glass, test tubes, tweezers and of course goggles. In our house, when you dress the part, its always more fun........

All the pieces included in the kit are made very well out of a hard plastic which seem perfectly safe and durable for small kids. The test tubes include a stand which helps to avoid messes and makes it easier to see your scientific discoveries! I really liked the size of all the instruments. They are very chunky which makes it easy for little hands to use, but they still work very well.

The 10 activity cards are large, plastic coated, colorful cards. Some of the activities include mixing primary food colors, cleaning pennies with lemon juice acid, sink vs. float, even a mini-volcano! The cards show a clear picture of the tools that will be necessary as well as specific directions for the activity. A non-reader could easily use the cards to gather all the necessary items, while an adult or older child reads the directions. Its actually a great toy to enlist the help of an older child with your toddler. The directions are easy to follow and some of the activities would be fun for older kids, too. My daughter had a couple of "helpers" in her experiments:

The Primary Science Kit is a fun learning toy that should definitely keep your child's interest! Many "younger" versions of toys end up being difficult to use or break very quickly. That is definitely not the case with this set. Its very usable for younger kids, yet includes everything you would need to conduct an actual experiment and learn about science. You can use the included activity cards or just play around with the kit to make your own discoveries and concoctions!

You can find lots of other fun activities for your kids on the Kidwinks Winter Fun Guide!

Penbo the Lovable Penguin

Penbo is an adorable bright pink penguin that my daughter has been carrying around for the last week. Penbo is the Third Toy of Christmas on the Kidwinks 12 Toys of Christmas list. She is an interactive toy, so she reacts to movement and voice. Although she is sitting right next to me as I type this and is slightly creeping me out because she is staring at me, my daughter (5 years old) loves her. She has a big round belly that opens up to store her egg, which holds a cute little fuzzy blue baby penguin, Bebe.

Penbo reacts to your child's voice and touch by blinking her eyes, moving her arms & legs, and speaking "penguish" back to your child. There are no real words spoken back, just "penguish". You might think that would be a negative, but I actually don't think it is. Any words would be limited by what is recorded within the toy, you would get the same responses over and over. With "penguish", your child can user her imagination to determine what Penbo is saying. Your questions can be endless!

The legs are a kind of rolling wheel so Penbo can move backwards and forwards. She can even do a little cha-cha! There are 5 different games you can play with Penbo & Bebe. You start the games and interaction with different combinations of pressing their hands, forehead and heart on Penbo's belly. The interaction you see from just rubbing Penbo's head or talking to her is exciting for a 5-year old. In order to start the games however, there are specific steps to follow that seem a little complicated for a child to execute. We went through the games once, but my daughter prefers to just rub her head or talk to her to get her to respond. Getting her to open her belly and release the egg & baby penguin seems to be a popular activity for my daughter also. The enclosed play guide describe Penbo's delivery of her egg as a magical moment! I'm not sure its magical, but it is fun!

It definitely seems to have more potential than just a regular stuffed animal, but I'm wondering if the electronics piece would lose interest after a while. After a few days, my daughter was putting barrettes and headbands on her and just dressing her up. Penbo is such an incredibly cute-looking toy, regardless of whether you enjoy all her neat features. Kids who love electronic toys will really enjoy the games and interactions that Penbo makes. You can find lots of other ideas for great toys on the shopping section of www.kidwinks.com. You can also find tons of ideas for fun ways to spend your holiday break on the Kidwinks events section.

Chocolate Without Guilt

I love chocolate. Love, love, love it. So when I was offered some sweetriot chocolate to try, of course I said yes! I'll get to the chocolate in a minute, but the company story is interesting, so you should hear about it too.

sweetriot believes in creating products that are good for the world: healthy, natural, fairly traded and ethically sourced. Their mission is: "To create a more just and celebrated multicultural world for our next generation." Wow! A chocolate company that truly believes they can change the world and make it better. I salute them!

Okay, now to the chocolate. It is absolutely delicious! I tried these little squares shown.  They're vegan, kosher, gluten-free, dairy-free and only 25 calories each.  This dark chocolate beats anything else I've tasted. And the best thing is, it is not super sweet, so just a little satisfies your chocolate quest. Anyone who's read anything about sugar knows that eating sweets makes your body want more. Well, not with this chocolate. Really. It's smooth and silky and does not kickstart the never-ending sweet craving that continually feeds on itself.  You can enjoy a square (or even 2) without guilt.

Another cool thing about this chocolate is that the packaging is beautiful and designed by up and coming artists. Artwork in a wrapper - who'd've thunk?

sweetriot chocolate would make a great gift or stocking stuffer for the chocoholic in your life -- even if it's you!

Click here for more info and a DISCOUNT code for sweetriot.

Hoot Owl Hoot!

We've been playing with the Kidwinks 7th Toy of Christmas these days. It's Hoot Owl Hoot! and my 5 year old and I love this game!

This a cooperative game by Peaceable Kingdom. I'll have to admit, considering I love to drive my older boys into bankruptcy in a hard core game of Monopoly, I really didn't have high expectations of a "cooperative" game. I was wrong!

The game works like Candyland, where you pick color coded cards ..... no reading necessary. Each players has 3 cards at a time. They can either be color cards or sun cards. The sun cards move the sun across the board, from sunset to sunrise. When you pull a sun card, you must play that first. The object of the game is to work together and move through the board, getting all your owls back to the nest before the sun rises. Since you are working together you either win together or lose together.

You strategize together to figure out how to best utilize your cards with the other players. Not only does the cooperative effort take the pressure off the idea of winning and losing, but I could see my daughter putting a lot of thought into how to use our cards together in order to get the owls as close as possible to their nest. The only "bad" thing that can happen to you in the game is to pull a sun card. We ended up cheering for each other and crossing fingers when the other was drawing a card, hoping not to draw a sun. Lots of high fives as we got our owls closer to their nest!

Depending upon how many owls you choose to play (anywhere up to 6), you are still able to lose. Its pretty hard to lose with only 3 owls, but it could be a nail-bighter with 6. You can have the lesson of sometimes losing in a game, but no one is singled out for losing. You all lose together.

The box cover includes several games made by the same company. I think any of these games would be a great gift!

You can now see all the great toys that have been picked for the Kidwinks 12 Toys of Christmas. If you are looking for fun things to do with your kids, check out Kidwinks Christmas Events listings!

Here We Go! Time to Exercise the Imagination

Here I am just two weeks before Christmas and I'm still just making lists and checking them twice. Not enough shopping, baking and general merriment going on yet. So, I got busy this week and began to check out potential gifts for my friends and family. First up, I sat down to read Here We Go!, Around-the-World Adventure, part of a multi-media creation of GrandCamp Adventures, a relatively new Atlanta-based company.

Cute story, but my first reaction was "huh?" My boys are going to wonder why their very own grandma and papa aren't taking them on extravagant trips to the Congo, New Zealand and China, among other foreign places, not that they want them to. My guys are all pretty happy exploring the hills and waterways that surround their grandparents' farm.

Then I slept on it. I re-read the book, listened to the accompanying music CD and checked out the Grandcamp Advenstures' website.

And I "got" it. I must've been sleep deprived the first time I read the book, because the whole concept behind Grandcamp Adventures is to foster imaginative play and storytelling between grandparent and grandchild. The organization's first story, Here We Go, takes readers (and listeners) around the world looking for their families' lost treasures -- photos, travel journals and other memory-jogging riches.

As part of the adventure, tech-savvy grandparents can navigate the online activities on their next visit with their grandkids. A CD of music (the Nobody Loves me Like My Grandma, lullaby version, had me grabbing the hanky), and various accouterments can also be purchased to complete the experience. These additional items seemed a bit pricey for my tight wallet, but the book and CD are reasonable and will find their way under my in-law's tree this holiday.

Sssshhhh. Don't tell them!

For more gift ideas, check out Kidwinks' 12 Toys of Christmas at Kidwinks. 

Kidwinks is your online resource for everything kid-related in the Chicagoland area. 

Enter to Win Kidwinks' 11th Toy of Christmas - Richard Scarry's Busy, Busy Airport Game

ZOOB Building System

The 5th Toy of Christmas is ZAC, The Zoob Alien Creature.

ZAC is part of a building system that is made up of ball & socket type connectors. Those connectors allow you to move the pieces once they are snapped in place. The pieces are all the same length but come in a variety of colors. The ZAC kit comes with some special pieces that not all the kits include.

My 9 year old son played with this kit and built the space station.

When we first took a look at it, we thought it would be a cross between Legos and K'Nect. It really is totally different, however. The fact that the pieces can move independently once they are connected is really great. You can have a moving hand or foot, or even individual toes and fingers, like ZAC does. The pieces are a good size & shape for building larger structures and adding stability to structures. The connections are very tight, so once you put something together it is not going to break apart, which can be both good & bad. The age range for the toy is 6 & up. A 6 year old would definitely be able to imagine a fantastic creature to build with the pieces, but he might have a difficult time snapping them together or taking them apart to rebuild. Our set is new, however, and we thought that over time the connections may become easier as they loosen.

This set also comes with a couple of light up balls. You can see in the picture that they are attached to long wires and they bob up and down. Those were a big hit!

Visual instructions were included which show how to make several different designs with this set. I think after the initial build, most kids would love to build something unique with them. Z.A.C, The Zoob Alien Creature is a great set for kids who build with legos, tinkertoys, etc. It has unique pieces that would spark their curiosity and get them building something new and different.

This was a good choice for the 5th toy of Christmas! You can check out all the 12 toys of Christmas as they are revealed by clicking here.

Enter to Win the 10th Toy of Christmas

My Daughters the Designers

My daughters received two design toys from Fashion Angels last week and happily got to work testing them out.  The first course of action was to determine who would get which toy first.  Thankfully, it was a peaceful negotiation that was resolved quickly and without parental intervention.  Good to know that's still possible!

The creative process.

The Interior Design Light-Box Lap Desk  is a back-lit lap desk that comes with graph paper, templates of various furniture pieces, crayons and texture plates.  The templates look like overhead projector slides.  They're placed on the desk, over the graph paper, and then traced.  Kids can choose fun, funky furniture and fixtures to design the room of their dreams and then color it.  The day after they got this toy, the girls each had a friend sleep over, and everyone had to have a turn with the lap desk, designing their own room.  All four girls really enjoyed it.  We also discovered the desk is great fun to take along in the car during these short winter days.  Running errands after dinner becomes fun time when they can draw in the dark, thanks to the back-lit screen.    

The finished products:

Project Runway Sticker Stylist is a book with drawings of model figures, and many stickers of various clothing pieces and accessories.  The girls can use the stickers to dress and accessorize the drawings.  Kind of like paper dolls but without having to do all that tedious cutting and trying to get the paper clothes to stay on.  Another very fun project to occupy the kids and bring out their creative side.  Of course, the sleep over pals all had to try the Sticker Stylist too!    


These toys are part of kidwinks' 12 Toys of Christmas series.  Check it out for some great ideas for Christmas gifts, and a chance to win some cool toys.  You can also click through the kidwinks Shopping Section if you're looking for kids gift ideas - you'll find some unique online boutiques and can narrow your search using the categories along the left side of the screen.

SciTech Hands On Museum

My husband took our girls to the SciTech Hands On Museum for the first time two years ago.  I'll admit (sheepishly) that at the time I was sort of relieved I couldn't go with them, because science really isn't my thing.  And the drive to Aurora from Park Ridge is not a short one, so I was happy to let them have a daddy-daughter day.  Well, they all came back raving about it, and my DH was so impressed he wrote a review on it.  The first and only review he's ever written on kidwinks.  We've been to a lot of places with our kids, and it speaks volumes to me that this is the only place he's ever taken the time to review.

I got my chance to see it the following year, when I chaperoned my daughter's 3rd grade class field trip to the museum.  I was interested to see if the third graders might think the museum was boring or too young for them.  NO WAY!  The kids LOVED it!  I was really struck by how engaged the kids were with the exhibits, and how friendly and knowledgable the staff was.  They did a great job interacting with the kids to periodically teach them the science behind the cool things the kids were "playing" with.  When it came time to leave, the class was genuinely disappointed, and had a hard time leaving the exhibit area.  There were many calls of "Wait!  Just let me try this one more time!"

I've taken a personal interest in this museum since our visits, and have been impressed with the cool special events and programs they offer:  Drop and Shop Days, SlumberTech Family Overnight, Family Friendly New Year's Eve Party and Winter Break Camps to name just a few.  When I learned they were opening a preschool and cafe, I jumped at the chance to tour them.

SciTech Discovery Preschool offers STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) programming.  WOW!  For a preschool!  The physical space is within the museum but with a separate, touch screen entrance, so it's very secure.  The preschool is bright and cheery and made me wish I lived nearby and had younger kids so they could attend.

 

I chatted with the Executive Director of the museum a bit, and learned that they will be offering a theater camp for the first time, and have a small theater group on staff.  No wonder I was so impressed with how animated and engaging they were!  It's in their blood! 

The cafe is a great addition, and offers cold and hot drinks along with a few snack options.  I had the gingerbread coffee -- YUM!  Parents can take a break here and sit at the tables while the kids (the older ones, anyway) explore the exhibits. 

All in all, this is one of my favorite places in the Chicago area to take kids, and I highly recommend you check it out.  It's an especially great place for kids who still want and need hands-on interaction but have outgrown other Chicago area children's museums.  SciTech is more sophisticated for older kids, and also offers a separate area for the younger ones. 

Oh, and bring quarters for the parking meters. One quarter gives you one hour.

If you're looking for kids activities in Chicago and the suburbs, check out the kidwinks Events Calendar or check out one of the online Guides - you'll find them all on the kidwinks homepage, including:

• Chicago With Kids: Indoor Play Areas
• Chicago With Kids: Birthday Party Places
• Chicago With Kids: Winter Family Fun
• Chicago With Kids: Christmas 
• Chicago With Kids: Family Friendly New Years Eve
• Chicago With Kids: Family Entertainment and Childrens Theater 

Pix Mix .... A Great Game!

So you are the kind of person who can't ever find the scissors in the junk drawer...... even if they are right in front of your face ....... regardless of how hard you try?? This is the game for you! Sharpen your visual skills with Pix Mix, The Super-Speedy Game of Scrutiny! What a fun game!

It comes with 80 transparent picture cards which include things like a bowling pin, anchor, pencil, palm tree, and so on and so on. Each player starts the game with 6 cards stacked on top of each other. You flip the timer and have 30 seconds to figure out how many objects you can decipher through your stack. The lines of all the cards blend together and it gets tough to tell what you are looking at! The game includes a scorecard where you write down the objects you see. When the timer runs out, you go through your cards one by one and see how may objects you guessed correctly.

Here's an example of what 6 stacked cards looks like in Pix Mix:

Can you figure out what you see??

I played the game with my 7 year old son, and we both scored almost the same! You turn the cards all directions to help you make sense of all the crazy shapes. We cheated a little bit and extended our time to help us figure out a few more pictures. Its great to play with your kids because you really don't have any advantage with age. Its easy for your kids to beat you in this one (without actually letting them win!) There are no complicated instructions to review and not much setup. Since each game is supposed to be 30 seconds long, you can play if you only have a few minutes or keep going if you have more time.

If you are looking for other great games or places to go this holiday season with your family, check out the shopping section and events section of the Kidwinks site for lots of great ideas.

Oh, by the way, if you're still stumped on what you were looking at in those six stacked pictures....... saw, airplane, butterfly, camel, anchor, Christmas tree. How many did you get?

Light Up your Creations!

My boys have been having a great time playing with Laser Pegs Lighted Construction Kits. We have three sets..... Tractor, Mini Monster Bug and Dune Buggy. What's great about them is that you are not limited to building just what the set is for. My kids enjoyed using their imagination and building a sword, a football goal post, and various other contraptions as well.

The Laser Peg kits each have approximately 30 pieces, which includes various shapes, a power cord and a power unit. Just like legos, the kits all work together, so you can combine them and make a much larger model. Once you make your design, you plug in the power cord (all pieces have a spot available for the power cord), then right into the power unit. The power unit is fully enclosed in plastic.... nothing dangerous. Once you plug it in, the whole design lights up! You can very quickly make an impressive project, which is nice for those of us with a little less patience!

We have three sets that are new, and one set that is over one year old. We've had no issues with any lights fading. There are a few pieces in the kit that intentionally do not light up (not sure why). This caused a little confusion for my kids but they eventually figured it out. The pieces need to be fitted together tightly in order to light up.

The toy is rated for ages 7+, which I think is very appropriate for following the instructions and building the models. If you want to just connect the pieces and watch them light up, a much younger child could play with it as well. My daughter liked to make a pattern with the pieces because of their different lighted colors.

If you are looking for other great gift ideas, don't forget to check out the 12 days of Christmas on www.kidwinks.com!

The Magical Shirt

Okay, it's not really magic, but it sure is cool.  My daughters each have a colorfusion t-shirt from Quagmire that changes color with change in temperature.  Really.  They sort of remind me of mood rings from my youth, but for clothing.

E's shirt is green when it's cool, yellow when it's warm.  A's shirt is pink or purple, depending on the temp.  The girls had a blast this summer, moving from the air conditioned comfort of home to the warmth of outdoors, and watching their shirts gradually change.  Then they'd go back inside and transform again.  It didn't take them long to realize that even the warmth of their hands could make the color change, so they started making handprints on their shirts, laughing all the while. 




Hmm..not warm enough to
change the color all the way.




So let's add heat
with the hair dryer!


I was a bit leery of these shirts, thinking the color changes would end as soon as I washed them.  Wrong!  These shirts have now been washed many, many times over the several months we've had them, and they still react to temperature changes unfailingly.  I'm impressed!

The shirts come in collared and uncollared versions, and also in adult sizes.  So if you're looking for a unique Christmas gift for a kid and hate to give another toy, consider one of these shirts.  Or if an adult on your list has everything and is tough to buy for, give them a conversation piece with one of these shirts.

If you need more ideas for Christmas or birthday gifts for kids, check out kidwinks' 12 Toys of Christmas or just click through the kidwinks Shopping Section.