Archive for the ‘Toys’ Category

My two year old son Owen, is a huge Thomas the Tank Engine Fan! Last year we started collecting the Thomas & Friends Wooden Railway trains and have been thrilled with the selection, high quality, and durability. When my son saw the  Hero of the Rails Thomas movie a bit ago introducing the train Hiro, we knew that this train would soon enter his growing collection.

Thomas & Friends Wooden Railway – Fisher Price Battery-Operated Hiro has been much loved by my son. This train is the first battery operated in our collection and certainly wont be the last. It’s quite a strong engine easily with the magnet connectors connected to my son’s other wooden railroad Thomas trains. He often had 8-10 trains and carts linked up and were pulled across the floor with ease by Hiro!

We’ve been using chargeable double A batteries and note that the train does not include batteries so you’ll need to have at least one if you plan on giving this as a gift! And make sure to have a small screwdriver handy to remove the screw on the bottom of train to get to the battery compartment.The battery I use to keep the train running last a good 2-3 days before needing charged. Keep in mind this is with hours upon hours of play. I was quite impressed!

Now I will point out the train we received looks different from the one pictured on this listing. I posted a photo collage to show how the train looks. Basically, Hiro is made out of metal and his cart is wooden and not at all distressed in design. He has different wheels than pictured and note he won’t move like other non-battery operated engines because his wheels have rubber traction. On top of the train is a off/on button which can easily be switched by a child at play.

I have IKEA tracks for my son’s train and unfortunately Hiro doesn’t run on them. But from other reviewers I hear this engine works great on actual Thomas and Friends Wooden Railway set tracks. My son doesn’t seem to mind too much because Hiro runs very well off track whether on our laminate floor and even on the carpet.

Overall, the train is a winner in our home. My son often talks about Hiro and is one of the first engines he looks for when playing trains! Durability, consistency, fine detail, well thought out design, and decent price has us recommending this fun Thomas and Friends character to add to your train collection too!

You can purchase Thomas & Friends Wooden Railway – Battery-Operated Hiro for $22.66 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25 at Amazon.com!

Disclosure: I received the above mentioned products in exchange for my opinion of them. This review is 100% my opinion and has not been edited or reviewed by anyone. I was not compensated in any other way for this product review.

Do you have a little one in your home that loves to pretend to fix things or likes to take things apart? If so, they’d probably love the environmentally friendly Green Toys Tool Set that comes in boy and girl friendly colors! My children both a son and daughter, ages 4 and nearly two years year have been quite taken and play with this set daily. A huge continual playability factor for any toy is always win and a by a company we already love makes that even better!

If you haven’t heard about Green Toys, you should know they are doing wonders in reducing their carbon footprint. They offer a great collection of products made in the USA that are created from food-safe recycled milk jugs that save energy and reduce greenhouse gas emissions!

No more worries about what your little one touches or puts in their mouth with these toys as they contain no BPA, PVC, phthalates, or external coatings. Green Toys is doing every thing they can to save energy by focusing on transportation cost even when it comes down to packaging!

Let’s talk more about the toolset! This set is made up of 15 pieces which includes a tool box, phillips screwdriver, flat screwdriver, hammer, saw, wrench, pliers, 2 two-hole connectors, 2 nails, 2 bolts, and 2 nuts. The names of each of the tools are on the tools themselves which is great for word recognition for early readers! The toolbox has premade holes that the screws and nails are designed to go into which is great for practicing those fine motor skills!

My kids have been having so much fun with this set. They even had some friends over that are the same age and all the kids were pretty much glued to playing with the tool set. I will say that the set is a bit limited. If your child likes to build a lot you want to look for something else. This set is great though for children who want to practice their hammering and screwdriver skills or just for using it for imaginative play.

The pieces in this set are very durable! I can’t see these pieces breaking easily at all. There’s no rough edges and the set looks as new today as it did two weeks ago when I presented it to my children. The set is recommend for children ages two and up.

I really like this set and it’s perfect for my little boy (turns 2 in January). The only thing I hope for is to be able to buy more nail and screw pieces because they sometimes can get misplaced!

Buy it: You can purchase the Green Toys Tool Set in Blue on Amazon.com for 21.56 or on the Green Toys Website.

 Disclosure: I received the above mentioned products in exchange for my opinion of them. This review is 100% my opinion and has not been edited or reviewed by anyone. I was not compensated in any other way for this product review.

 

If you are looking for well made toys for children that have a huge continual play-ability factor , I’d like to recommend those by the company of Green Toys! We support this company 100% because they are doing wonders in reducing their carbon footprint. They offer a great collection of products made in the USA that are created from food-safe recycled milk jugs that save energy and reduce greenhouse gas emissions! No more worries about what your little one touches or puts in their mouth with these toys as they contain no BPA, PVC, phthalates, or external coatings. Green Toys is doing every thing they can to save energy by focusing on transportation cost even when it comes down to packaging!

This season, my son age 2 and daughter age 4 have been enjoying the Green Toys Pizza Parlor set. Imaginative play ensues every time my kids pop open the included mini size pizza box to reveal slice after slice of fun! My kids have taken turns taking orders, playing chef, deliverer, and have had great practice learning how to serve others well!

There are 27 pieces total that make up this colorfully fun set. Kids can make four individual pizza slices when playing and customize them with all sorts of toppings! Some of the toppings include red and green tomatoes, green and red peppers, cheese, pepperoni, mushrooms, and onions. Pretty much everything you need to make a really good slice of pie and there’s even a handy pizza cutter to top it off!

What’s so neat about this set has to be hands down the vast variety of stack-able toppings and the fact it comes with a menu sheet for taking orders ( if your little chefs in the making run out of the order sheets, there’s a link to print out more on the Green Toys website). The pieces in this set stack meaning you can put them in whatever order you so choose and easily swap them out. They don’t per-say lock together. Locking pieces can be good and bad sometimes and with a pizza, I think it’s great that Green Toys made them just the way they did! And an added bonus is that these pieces are compatible with all other kitchen play food sets by Green Toys.

Never have a I come across a pizza set as fun, creative, or as durable! The entire set is made out of recycled plastic making it easy to clean. It’s even dishwasher safe. I’m thrilled not to have to deal with chipping paint, wood that might get old and warped after awhile, or cheap plastic. This set is recommended for children ages 24 months – 6 years. I had a play date with a few other kids to see the reactions of the children playing with the set together and it was a hit!

Green Toys offers many other wonderful products as well that are all durable, educational, engaging, interactive, and lots of fun! I encourage everyone to check them out!

Buy it: You can find the Green Toys Pizza Parlor on Amazon.com right now for $22.74 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. This set would be wonderful well loved gift for any child. I give it 5 out of 5 stars!

Disclaimer: I was sent this set from Green Toys to review. This review is 100% my opinion and has not been edited or reviewed by anyone. I was not compensated in any other way for this product review.