Momessentials

stacrobats by Kushies

  It always amazes me when I find a really cool toy with a lot of functions, bells and whistles, that I just can’t wait to get home to my kids….and then they push a few buttons and walk away. I try to re-capture their interest and show them all the fancy features but they keep walking away. When you boil it down, many do the same thing; sing the alphabet, recite colors, numbers, shapes, and hum a song or two.  Do we really need to stock one in every corner of every room? How easily I forget about the most entertaining function of all: Imagination. It can entertain a child for hours, and so can the eye-cathching stacrobats by Kushies. These are 5 magnetic figures and 3 magnetic balls designed in a bright and colorful circus theme that can stack, arrange, or anything your imagination comes up with on their performing platform.

The first thing I noticed when I looked at the zippered storage case is the “1-100 years” age recommendation. I can report that the 1-67 year olds that played with it in my test lab..er…home…love it. It is one of my 16 month old’s top 5 right now. It is portable, lightweight, and she loves nesting the toys into the bag. She loves simply holding the perfectly sized figures, shaking, rolling and throwing the balls, and setting the figures in handstands on the balls. She loves nesting everything inside the bottom of the platform. She loves sticking them all together and pulling them all apart. It really is amazing to watch her practice her new skills with the stacrobats. My 6 year old instantly ignores his video games for hours whenever we pull these out. He built things with the stacrobats – he stacked them in the shape of a house, the letters of the alphabets, towers, bowling pins, and so much more. He puts on a show for his sister with them. He sets them up as soccer players and refs their soccer match. Wow! What an imagination!

Miss Gigi-Mae Tether System

Tethers seem to have hit the baby market heavily in the past few years. I've noticed several different brands and styles. Although the functionality a tether has in keeping toys off the ground has always appealed to me, I'm not a big fan of the many fabric tethers that look homemade. They just don't fit my style, and I knew someone could do it better. Kudos to Stacy LeFevre, a mom with a doctorate in psychology. Her creation, the Miss Gigi-Mae tether, surpasses all other tethers on the market. This cute ladybug has three velcro strips (two on the bottom and one on the back) that make it easy to attach to almost anything. I've tried it on a big stroller system, smaller travel stroller, highchair, exersaucer, shopping cart, a convertible car seat, the Learning Tower, my diaper bag and my own backpack - it fit easily on all. The ladybug has four retractable tether clips. This means that you can avoid buying a stroller toy bar and can instead attach four or more toys to Miss Gigi-Mae. The tether system comes with a "Learns to read" book with the same loveable ladybug character. In fact, the very best part about this particular tether system is that the cute and colorful ladybug character put a smile on my son's face! He didn't really need anything attached to enjoy pulling the retractable clips. If you're looking for a tether that also acts like a leash, this is not a good fit for you. If your goal is keeping toys or books off the floor (and not pulling out your hair when your little one goes through the cause and effect stage), you will not find a better tether.

Learn & Groove® Musical Table

The Leapfrog Learn & Groove® Musical Table is great toy for children 5 months - 36 months.   All of my kids loved playing with it early on and continued as they got older.

The table has so many wonderful features including: over 40 songs in English and Spanish, lights, colors, nursery rhymes, letters, and more.   The table can be adjusted with it's removable legs, so that crawling babies can access the tabletop just as easily as walking toddlers, making it easy for pushing buttons, playing songs and more. The detachable legs also allow for easy travel and storage.

The Leapfrog Learn & Groove® Musical Table is a perfect gift for a 1st birthday or for the holidays

The Learning Tower

For a child, the world around them is a magical and curious place. They learn by mirroring Mommy and Daddy with the ultimate goal being "to do it myself" and feel like an active member of the family. That's why Little Partners created the Learning Tower: a sturdy, non-tip structure that welcomes the child to safely participate with parents, caregivers, and siblings by raising them to countertop height. Brand new to the market, the Art Easel accessory set attaches easily to The Learning Tower, and features a dry-erase board on one side with a chalkboard on the other for twice the artistic fun. There also is a Playhouse Kit which includes an easily-attachable roof, red curtains, and 4 theme signs to create a puppet theatre, doll house, drive-thru or lemonade stand.

I bought my Learning Tower when Alexander was 1. It is so well made, that he and Andrew still both use it years later. It is a lifesaver when I am making dinner at night. They both climb in the tower and "help" mix ingredients at the counter. My alternative would be to hold Andrew and cook with one hand. . . Making them a part of the meal-making process has an added bonus: they are more willing to try new foods. The Learning Tower also is great for making and decorating cookies - it is offers a safe way to raise your child to the countertop and you won't have to worry about a stool or chair tipping over. 

City view (by Risa): I have limited space in my apartment and have to be picky with large toys. The Learning Tower is great because it serves 3 functions: it is a playhouse, an art easel, and also a sturdy stand.

Suburban angle (by Tina): We take the Learning Tower and the Playhouse Kit out in our backyard when the weather is nice. It is a portable playhouse!