Great Travel Puzzle

Recently we went on a ten day road trip. It was a lot of fun, but obviously we needed to take along some toys to keep an active 2.5 year old busy.

*Full disclosure, I own Creative Harbor Toys and Mark is my resident Toy Tester.

Two things that were absolute lifesavers were the Melissa and Doug Vehicles Mini Puzzle Pack and the Melissa and Doug Animals Mini Puzzle Pack.



Each set of puzzle packs consists of 4 puzzles. They all slide nicely into the case, making clean up and storage easy. So it was easy to use them in the car and the hotels.

The pieces themselves are die-cut and raised a bit so it's easy for little ones to figure out where each piece goes. What is even better is that the puzzle pieces can either be used as a puzzle or they can be played with on their own. Mark told us many stories as he played with the pieces, it was awesome to hear him telling us a story about farm animals when he was playing with the farm pieces. He also loved identifying animals we saw along our trip with the animals in his puzzles. Overall I'd highly recommend either one or both of these mini puzzle packs for your next adventure.

Oh, they DO make doll strollers in blue!

We often host play dates at our house. Frequently one of the questions I get asked is "Where did you find that doll stroller? It's so hard to find a BLUE one for boys".




Well, actually we found ours at our favorite local consignment store, Belles And Beaus. But I did a little digging around online and found out it originally came from Build-A-Bear.

It is a great stroller, perfect for a little boy who wants to push around a doll, stuffed animal or even a cat (yes, the cat has gone for a ride in it). It is so rare to find a blue stroller as most tend to be pink. At $12.50 at the store it's fairly comparable to all other doll strollers on the market.

And this thing has gone through a LOT. As I mentioned before, we do host play dates frequently. This stroller gets lots of use and lots of love. It's worth every penny. So if you are looking for a stroller for a boy, look no further! This one gets an A+.

Hey, What's The Big Idea?

If you want music that doesn't drive you batty and a show that keeps your toddler (and you) entertained than check out the Imagination Movers.



They are a band as well as a show on the Disney Channel (as part of their Playhouse Disney block.) They even go on tour periodically. Mark LOVES both show and the music. And to tell the truth, both Mike and I are fans of their Facebook page and have all their music on our iPhones and iPods. The nice thing about them is that they don't play your standard kid music. So if you are looking for something that is tolerable for everyone in the family then check them out.

Their television shows are fun for the whole family to watch together. It's a standard format (someone needs help, the movers solve the "idea emergency"), but is oh so much more than that. There are little influences and things in there that parents will recognize (like when Joey Fatone was the main character who needed a problem solved and the band did a dance from his N Sync days) that make it very enjoyable.

I'll say that their music makes road trips (heck, even trips around town in the car) very enjoyable and tolerable for all. Mark will often request a song. When he was sick we used the "Take Your Medicine" song to encourage him to take his medicine. It worked ;)

They go on tour periodically. We haven't been to a show yet (though I know several folks who have). they do quite the concert from what I understand. We plan to go the next time they come to town.

A funny story, this happened just tonight. We were watching Imagination Movers on our DVR and discussing that their newest album will be available late Sept. I mentioned that would be a good gift for Mark to give me for my birthday (since it'll probably be out around that time) and he turned to Mike and said "Can I borrow some money?

When it comes out we'll get it for sure. And all three of us will enjoy it.

All Aboard the ABC Train

It's no secret that I have a train obsessed toddler, and he is learning his ABCs. Oh, and did I mention that he loves animals too? So when I found this Melissa and Doug Alphabet Express Floor Puzzle at TJMaxx I realized it would be perfect for our playroom.



I went ahead and put it on the wall in our playroom. Mark likes to look at it and point out the different letters and animals.

It's designed to be a floor puzzle, but it is great as decoration on the wall as well. It's made of a heavy cardboard and made to last- exactly as you expect a Melissa & Doug product to be.



You can find it for about $13 or so at most places that sell Melissa & Doug toys. We bought ours at TJMaxx, but I know they have them other places as well including most toy stores and teacher supply stores.

Overall I'd say it's a great product. Both educational and decorative at the same time. Mark loves his train on the wall.

A Playground for All Ages

As most know, Mark's Birthday is on Christmas Day. This means double the presents and fun. But it also means that we need to pick out presents that he can grow with the whole year, as he doesn't have a birthday mid-year where such gifts could be given/purchased.

My mom found the BEST ball pit/gym combo for Mark's first birthday. It's the 3-in-1 Activity Gym from One Step Ahead.




This toy is awesome. And a year and a half later Mark still plays with it daily. It's a hit for sure! Whenever Mark's cousins and playgroup friends come over they all tend to gravitate toward it. Living in Texas where it gets HOT in the summer we decided to keep it indoors.



The three parts consist of a ball pit, slide and swing. It didn't take that long to put together. One thing we eventually did was to remove the swing part (I guess making it more of a two in one activity gym) because we had a swing already.

The swing wasn't the easiest and would have been outgrown pretty quickly. Our (at the time) two year old niece got stuck in there once or twice as she climbed into it but couldn't climb out. But it works GREAT as a ball pit and slide combo.

Mark sometimes even just likes hanging out on the slide.




We did need to purchase extra balls for the ball pit as the fifty or so it came with didn't but barely cover the ball pit. By adding more balls (found just about anywhere) the kids have a lot more fun with the ball pit.

A True "Grow With Me" Walker Wagon

We tried several different types of "walker" toys as Mark showed interest in walking. Many were too flimsy for our taste, or didn't hold Mark's attention as he wanted to walk. Then, when shopping at Belles and Beaus Boutique we stumbled upon the Radio Flyer Classic Walker Wagon.



From the first time Mark saw it he was in love. Because it is so steady he was able to push it as a walker. He could collect his toys or other goodies in the wagon and continue on walking. It made those first walking steps a lot of fun, and is the perfect height for a new walker. We even took it to his first trip to the pumpkin patch (he was nine months old) and he loved pushing his pumpkin in his wagon.





The wagon is big enough that a toddler can sit in it too. That makes it double the fun as two can play with it. Many times Mark and his playgroup pals have pushed each other in that wagon, giggling the whole time.



An added bonus, it is so nice looking that it makes a great prop for pictures. My sister, a photographer (Holly Anderson Photography) took many a picture of Mark in his favorite wagon.






You can purchase it many places including Amazon, Diapers.com, Target, Walmart, and Toys R Us.

Potty Training Seat

We tried all sorts of potty seats for Mark while potty training. We tried the self-standing toddler potty seats, the ones that fit over the toilet, you name it. But you know what? The one that is working best for us is the Nuby Safety Training Seat.



It's fairly inexpensive (we paid $5.99 for a new one at Kid to Kid Consignment), but I have seen them online for $4.99 at Amazon (eligible for free Super Saver Shipping and free returns) and NetKidsWear for $4.97. They actually are a little bit pricier on eBay.

This seat does get mixed reviews on Amazon, but I tell you we highly recommend it around here. This simple seat fits under the regular seat on the big toilet. It is as easy as that. Now, depending on your toilet it may fit differently. We have used the one we have while traveling and it did fit more snugly on different toilets. But it still works the same and serves its purpose.

What is awesome is that it is good for both boys and girls. It has a built in splash guard, but it's not so obtrusive that it's uncomfortable for girls. The design and height make it easy for toddlers to get on and off the toilet by themselves. And there is plenty of room for them to wipe themselves or have you help them. It's all around a great seat for a potty training toddler.