We’ve spent most days outdoors or traveling this summer. So most of our entertainment has come from the water table, swing set and endless hunts for bugs. As much as we enjoy the summer for outdoor fun, there’s always rainy days and the hot afternoons that pregnant mom wants to sit next to the air conditioner. Over the past few months, we’ve discovered a couple toys that have entertained us indoors and outdoors. I’d recommend all of the toys below for children 3+ (with supervision). These toys are great for birthdays or to start thinking about for the holidays!
1. The Happy’s
If your kids are begging for a pet, The Happy’s is a great solution. Your kids can chase around after these little critters, teach them to fetch, pet them, etc. The best part about these pets: you don’t have to worry about house training them (Lord knows we all have enough potty training to do)! Maggie has been beyond thrilled to have a “new puppy”. Her new puppy chases a yellow ball around and will “come” when she presses a button on the dog’s red dog bone. This puppy cruises around the house and comes outside to play too. It’s easy to use and starts “running” around as soon as you push a button on it’s back. The Happy’s are the newest sensation from Cepia, the makers of ZhuZhu Pets. They are an adorable and very “real” new line of interactive motorized plush pets! There are cats and dogs and you can even train them to do more tricks with the different “treats” available for purchase. We are very pleased with our new “no maintenance” pet! You can find them at Toys R Us or on Amazon.
2. Cabbage Patch Kids Twinkle Toes
My first doll was a Cabbage Patch doll. I can remember quite a few that I had and loved over the years. It’s delightful to see them still on store shelves. Alex loves dolls and I wanted to get a special doll for her when she went a week straight on the potty, with no accidents. I knew she’s love a Cabbage Patch doll and one with Twinkle Toes shoes was sure to be a hit. She was so excited when she got her Cabbage Patch Kid. Right away she said “She has pig tails and green eyes like me”. This doll hasn’t left her side since she got it! You can find Cabbage Patch Twinkle Toes at Toys R Us or on Amazon.
My girls dress up everyday. They like to mix and match costumes, add any accessories they can find and don’t hesitate to wear their dress up clothes outside too. Twice now I’ve gotten some great deals on dress up clothes from Storybook Wishes when they were on Zulily (they are back on Zulily right now). I recently saw some great deals on Amazon too. These dress up clothes are fun, imaginative and well made. Our newest addition to the dress up bin: a ride on horse costume.
4. The Sneaky Snacky Squirrel Game
My girls are big board game enthusiasts. Our games usually end up with Alex hoarding and bending all the cards and Maggie using the game board to set up a “stage” for her princess figurines. Although, they LOVE The Sneaky Snacky Squirrel Game. I think it’s the giant
“squirrel tweezers” that got them hooked. This game has provided hours of rainy day entertainment. It’s made by Educational Insights and you can find it on their page or on Amazon.
There’s a few projects I want to do with the girls before the new baby arrives. They both love building, painting and exploring. I know that come October, things are going to get a little hectic around the house and my time to sit and “do projects” will certainly be more limited. One thing I’ve been wanting to do with them is build a dollhouse together. I have so many memories of sitting with my mom, decorating my dollhouse, and setting up all the details of every room. I can still picture what each room looked like. When I was introduced to the Swedish brand, Lundby, and started to browse their site, I knew this would be a fun house for us to construct. The company has been around since 1945 and specialize in designing beautiful dollhouse furniture and houses. Putting together the actual house was a lot easier than I expected. Then came the fun part: decorating. Maggie and Alex could’t get over how tiny all the furniture was, but that it looked “just like our furniture!”. They loved all of the rugs, and hanging pictures on the walls. We’ve even starting making some of our own pictures to hang on the doll’s walls. The details of all of the little furniture sets are amazing. There are even little rubber ducks and shampoo for the tub! Another fun aspect of the house: the decorating tips and wallpaper on their website! You can get ideas on new things for the house and even print wallpaper for the rooms. The girls and I have spent hours decorating, rearranging rooms and playing with this dollhouse. It’s been a special part of our summer and they are already talking about how we are going to “build the dolls a pool for their yard”. The Lundby dollhouses and furniture would make a wonderful holiday gift for children of all ages. You can find Lundby on Amazon.
We were not compensated for this post. We did receive some of the items for review. We participated in a review opportunity from Mom Select with Cepia, and received The Happy’s dog as part of this program. As always, all opinions are our own.
I love that Dollhouse!!! Pinning that for Christmas. We have the squirrel game too and love it!!
I've heard great things about the sneaky squirrel game! I definitely need to order that for my Abigail!