Would you pay $30 for a car or truck?

I don't know how I feel about spending $30 for a toy car. The good news is that you can tell yourself that you saved almost $5 off of the original price. The picture above is one of the Automoblox line of toy cars. Cole and I have never played with them, so I can't give your firsthand knowledge of them, however they are highly reviewed on Amazon. Click on the picture or the link below and go take a look at the details.

Automoblox T9 Truck- Green

Remote Control Snake

I still remember when I was eight and I snuck up behind my mother with a toy snake. She turned around and running purely on instinct, grabbed it from my hands and flung it across the room. I don't know if she was trying to protect me or herself, but I never again doubted her reaction time or her ability to destroy my toys almost as well as I could. Now you can keep yourself out of range of your mother's unquenchable thirst for toy snake blood by using this remote control brown boa. It uses 4 AA batteries (2 in the snake and 2 in the remote) and can move in four directions using tiny wheels.


Remote Control Brown Boa at Hearthsong

Similar item at Amazon.com:
Remote Control - Green Mamba

Boccerball - whatever that means

It is a strange combination of soccer, marbles, and foosball. The best part is that it is 1/2 off at Amazon right now. Click on the link to see a video of a game being played to really understand.

Halex 60657 Boccerball Table Game

Young me - Now me

This has been popular on the web for the last day or so and I thought I'd share it in case there was anyone out there who doesn't spend most of their day fooling around on the web. These are public submitted photos recreating poses from childhood photos. Some of them are pretty funny.

link

How to Soundproof Your Teenager's Room

Wired.com has an in-depth how-to article about soundproofing a room without having to sell a kidney. I think they had garage band practice in mind, but it would work just as well with a teenager's room.

link

Does this Bilibo make me look like Mushmouth?

In 2005 the cardboard box was inducted into The National Toy Hall of Fame. That's right, a cardboard box. The cliche that kids prefer the box over the toy that came in it is quite possibly true. With this in mind, it is worth wondering if our children are not nearly as particular about their toys as give them credit for. Don't get me wrong, I have a lot of interest in cardboard boxes as raw material for play constructions (see here and here and here). The bigger question is that given the sheer number of toys out there and the specialization of many of the toys (example) is it possible that even today's techno savvy kids (even the little ones are surprisingly advanced compared to us when were kids) enjoy a return once in awhile to a simpler time when they could look at a cardboard box and see a castle, or at a bucket and see an astronaut's helmet. The bilibo (pictured above) is essentially a plastic bucket (it looks a bit like a washbasin) with two holes on one end. That's it. A plastic bucket that is flexible enough to be a space helmet (the eye holes help here), or a mountain with a tunnel to drive cars through, or a toy to sit and spin in, or a sled to go down a hill in, or a bucket to carry toys around the house in, or a shell for a turtle... I think you get the idea. They are made of sturdy polyurethane and come in a number of bright colors. Buy one for your kid and watch them enjoy the simplicity of design and creativity that it brings out.

Bilibo - Yellow
Bilibo - Red
Bilibo - Blue
Bilibo - Pink
Bilibo - Orange
Bilibo - Green


Note: for those of you who don't know who Mushmouth is, he was the kid on the old Fat Albert cartoon with the funny stocking cap.

Bug Rider

The Wheely Bug is a small ride on toy for 18 month to 3 year olds. The antennae bobble back and forth when in motion, and the seat (body) is thick sponge covered with pleather so it can be easily wiped clean. The wheels swivel so the vehicle can move in any direction. Not recommended for carpet, but moves smoothly on a hard floor. It can also be used as a push toy for early walkers.

Also available in a bee and cow design and in two sizes.

Prince Lionheart Wheely Bug - Bug - Small
Prince Lionheart Wheely Bug - Bug - Large

Prince Lionheart Wheely Bug - Bee - Small
Prince Lionheart Wheely Bug - Bee - Large

Prince Lionheart Wheely Bug - Cow - Small
Prince Lionheart Wheely Bug - Cow - Large

Wheely Bug at ebay.com

Kidsave - teaching your kids about money part4

Kidnexions has a cool program designed specifically for kids to help them manage their money and savings. The unique aspects of the software is that it motivates your kids by helping them establish a personal financial plan, include parental involvement, and explore various "what if?" scenarios. The demo is free to try, free free free.

link

(via theopinionatedparent.com)

related posts:
Teaching your kids about money part 3
Teaching your kids about money part 2
Teaching your kids about money part 1

Buying a digital camera for your kids

John Watson at photodoto.com has a colorful article about buying a digital camera for your kids.

"The bigger problem with the Fisher Price camera and all other “made for kids” cameras is that the actual camera is utter crap (”made for kids” really means “made for landfill”). 640×480 resolution interpolated to 1.3 megapixels gives you images that look vomited rather than photographed."

I have to admit that we bought the Fisher-Price Kids camera for Cole about a year and a half ago. We were interested in seeing things from his point of view. While he has fun taking pictures and having people pose for him from time to time, the actual pictures he takes are barely viewable and are not good enough resolution to print. The article has several affordable recommendations of a number of "real" digital cameras that are suitable for kids (here is the one he picks for his kids).

link

(via parenthacks.com)

Eight Questions About the Human Bodies the Kids Always Ask

A short interesting article with eight questions and answers about the human bodies that kids often ask, such as "why do men have nipples?" and "why is urine yellow?" Now you can answer them by going here.

If you are really interested, or if you kid is, there is a book out with even more questions and answers: Why Do Men Have Nipples? Hundreds of Questions You'd Only Ask a Doctor After Your Third Martini

(via digg)

Wooden you like some sushi?

This orderly looking wooden sushi toy from Melissa and Doug toys is more than just a novelty, your kids will have fun "cutting" through the velcro attached pieces with the wooden knife (included) and re-assembling them based on your order. Velcro chopsticks are included as well as wasabi sauce, ginger, soy sauce, and all come in a wooden bento box.

Melissa and Doug Wooden Sushi at amazon.com

Melissa and Doug Wooden Sushi at ebay.com


Also available at Cole's Amazon Store