We've made the decision to work on stepping away from the electronics and purposefully interacting with our boys more often. We do try to spend a lot of time together as a family but we want to make sure that we are setting aside time specifically for them. They love to talk about what WE used to do as kids. You know, back in the olden days.
Ok so there was a bit of playing with the title there ;) My boys LOVE board games. My husband and I have found games that are good for game night and others that aren't our favorites (the ones that take FOREVER to finish).
Imagine Toys and I started chatting on Twitter and they asked us if we wanted to review a new game for them. We thought it would definitely be fun to try it out.
We got When Pigs Fly
You get little plastic pigs with velcro wrapped around them and a spinner with a rotating sky above. You spin the spinner to see whether you can launch your pig, take a pig from the sky, or give a pig to someone else. The goal is to have no pigs.
Of course launching the pigs is what everyone hopes for!
They can't stick to the clouds which makes it a little more challenging
It's fun when a lot of pigs get caught up there - makes it a lot harder to find a good spot!
Launching pigs is very serious (and very funny) business.
The adults can get into it too (we are a bit competitive) and we definitely had a few fun games going! When Pigs Fly has made the cut into our regular Family Game Night rotation!
About Imagine Toys: Imagine Toys is a specialty toy store guided by a mission of providing quality toys that encourage children to use their imaginations. We're picky about the toys we select and strive to offer unique toys and accessories that are fresh and different from what you might find at a mass-market toy store. Imagine Toys buyers are parents themselves and have taken the time to test products with children of appropriate age to make sure our products offer plenty of fun and educational play value.
well here's another great way to recyle objects you might already have laying around for a fun new (cheap) playset for the kids from Pi'ikea St.! I love seeing creative and inventive ways to play with everyday items.
Check out Pi'ikea St for the full directions to this fun playset and learn how to create your own. Then use yours (or your kids') imagination to create your spin on the project!
I love this DIY Indoor mini S'Mores grill from ManMade
Easy to make with a cedar plank, soufle cup, and a few nuts and bolts! Details at ManMade
Would be fun project for older kids to learn some new tools and fun for younger ones to roast their own marshmallows indoors!
If your kiddo likes camping my mom got my nephew this set for Christmas and all the kids were playing with it. It's REALLY cute - love the "fire" (the fan is a little loud but I didn't notice much with all the other noise going on lol!)
I've been meaning to share this awesome idea with you! The Brooding Hen posted a great tutorial on making bath toys out of hardware store supplies! My boys LOVED the bath as toddlers and this would have been SO awesome for them. It could be a fun gift too!
You could also set up a fun water station outside but since most of you are stuck inside because of the weather most of the day some bath fun might be just what you're looking for!
Made by Joel is one of my favorite (maybe my favorite) dad bloggers. He creates the best toys for his kiddos. His two most recent are definitely worth sharing!
We are so excited to have the opportunity to review VTech's Switch & Go Dinos. If you haven't seen them yet they are an electronic, animated, dinosaur and car all-in-one! It's my boys' dream to combine a dinosaur and car!
When we first got them in the mail I told the boys to wait for me to help them open the boxes, and they said "It's like Christmas, only I know what the present is. And I STILL can't open it!" They were pretty excited.
There are 7 dinos all together starting at $15.99. We got Horns the Triceratops, Sliver the T Rex, and Attila the Ankylosaurus. Attila is cool because as a car he can tow the other cars, and as the dino his tail flips around. The boys were actually pretty excited about them and finding out what they said (they have a talk button that plays fun phrases and dino facts).
The thing I though was really clever was that each one has a volume button! Thank you for that VTech!
We loved watching the LCD screens on each one. In car mode they have different drivers you can choose from, and when you switch it into dino mode the eyes change too! My boys always seem to notice eyes and facial expressions in illustrations in their books so they thought it was pretty funny that these dinos had animated eyes.
I wasn't sure what they'd think, but I think the fact that they were packed in a backpack for a trip to a friends' house says it all. They loved them! Dinos and cars all in one package? A pretty good idea if you ask me.
They actually got the boys talking about the types of dinosaurs, and they pulled out their books to find out more about the Ankylosaurus because they didn't recall reading about him before. I think the way they added the sound and high quality electronic components into these was really clever. It has the modern look of an electronic toy (that the kids like) but still allows for plenty of imagination. The package says ages 3-8 and I'd say that's right on.
Show - What does your child's Switch & Go Dino look like?
Let your child choose 1 of 3 ways to show-off their home-made Dino creation and record it on video:
Draw: They can use markers, crayons, paint or pen to sketch your creation on paper
Build: They can use foil, paper, cardboard, or any non-branded household items to build your Dino
Customize: They can update their own VTech Switch & Go Dino with accessories and fun props to give them a new image!
Tell - VTech wants to hear about the cool things your child's Dino does. What makes it large and in charge? Encourage your child to name it and share its roaring sound effects
From October 8 through October 19 cast your vote for the coolest, most creative and fiercest video.
One grand-prize winner will get a kid's lifetime supply of educational toys from VTech. And your video will air on a VTech commercial on Nickelodeon, which you can watch at your very own viewing party with your family and friends. And VTech will also transform your living room into the ultimate Dino den!
My little man made his own video to hopefully inspire your kids to make one (we'd LOVE to see an All for the Boys reader win!) So go make your own and share it on the VTech Facebook page!
You can check out other bloggers' videos and reviews on the VTech brand page on BlogHer.com.
Remember: It's EASY to enter! Simply DRAW or BUILD your own Dino for a chance to win! Purchase of a VTech Switch & Go Dino is NOT necessary to enter. Let their creativity come through by having them tell the world what their dino looks like, what it eats, what it sounds like, and more - it's THEIR VERY OWN DINO!
I'm over at Modern Parents Messy Kids today with a DIY boredom buster that costs pretty much nothing! It's definitely something you want to keep in your "back pocket" with kids around!
See all the awesome things you can do with a bag of stuff HERE
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