Unplug with The Manhattan Toy Company 'Imagine I Can' Notes N’ Stuff Activity Set

Thank you to The Manhattan Toy Company for providing a sample Imagine I Can toy for us to base this review upon and for providing a second product for our reader giveaway prize.  All opinions expressed are my own.

Keeping children entertained while out of the house is a hard thing to do sometimes. Manhattan Toy Company is always looking for innovative ways to foster children’s imaginations, so their Notes N’ Stuff set is a great way to keep your child entertained without the use of electronics. Manhattan Toy Company is dedicated to quality, safety, and creativity and that commitment shows in all their products.

The Notes N’ Stuff set contains a spiral notebook with wood cover, a pencil sharpener, 6 small colored pencils with a plastic holder, a pencil topper, an oversized paper clip, a magnetic clip, and 2 self-inking stamps, all stored in a sturdy tin case with handle. The “Stuff” is cute, well-made, and really fun.

My 7 year old son, Quinn, loves anything to do with art, and he’s loved this set since we first opened it. It has gone with us to church, doctor’s appointments, grandma’s house, the car, and more. He loves writing or drawing in the notebook and thinks the stamps and clips are adorable and fun. I love that this set gets him to practice writing, drawing, and using his imagination. He rarely asks to play video games when we are out now because he loves using his Notes N’ Stuff so much. As a parent, I love that it’s sturdy and sure to hold up and when the supplies are used up, as happens with art stuff, we can just refill the tin case and he can continue to use the clips with his new art and writing supplies.

Manhattan Toy Company has tons of products that are sure to delight any child. Notes N’ Stuff can be purchased on their website, www.manhattantoycompany.com for $20.

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Good luck in the drawing!

This giveaway is open to U.S. entries only. You do not need to be a blogger to enter, but you must have a valid email address and be age 18 years or older. A random drawing will be held shortly after the contest closing. The winner will be announced here and will be contacted via email. If the winner does not respond within 48 hours, a new winner will be drawn.

The eKids' Disney Creativity Studio Stylus & App for the iPad is Our Son's Favorite Birthday Gift This Year!

Thank you to eKids for providing a complimentary Disney Creativity Stylus sample for us to base this review upon. All opinions expressed are my own.

My son, Quinn, is very artsy. He loves anything crafty and can literally spend hours drawing, coloring, cutting, pasting, and creating. For his 7th birthday (on January 22), his dad and I were looking for something fun, different, and creative that we could get him, so when we were offered the Disney Creativity Studio Stylus, I knew it was the perfect present for him.

With the Disney Creativity Stylus, real Disney artists help turn your child’s iPad into an art studio. The app is free to to download via the code included with the stylus. The app itself is really easy to use and the instructions are very clear and the stylus comes out of the box ready-to-use and is also pretty simple and straightforward - just turn it on and it’s ready.

This app has a handy up/down button that you can use to change the width of your pen strokes and it even has a “magic mode” effect when you shake the stylus 3 times.   Doing so transforms your writing into a rainbow. The app has a free writing mode, learn to draw your favorite Disney characters section, and activities such as connect the dots. Plus, it has a whole array of “utensils” to choose from such as paintbrush, spray paint, markers, calligraphy pens, chalk, and more.

When Quinn saw his Creativity Studio Stylus, he was really excited. As soon as his party was over, he downloaded the app and started drawing. At first, his drawings were almost unrecognizable, but after just a few days they were much better, and now they are pretty good. He loves that he can save his work to go back and look at over and over. He also loves trying out the pens, stamps, and other fun things and is so glad he got it. He says it’s his favorite birthday gift this year. Since we homeschool, we have also used the Disney Creativity Stylus in our homeschool as art class.

We are very happy with the Disney Creativity Studio Stylus and how it’s easy to use, well made, stores away easily in it’s protective case, and is really fun. It certainly suits my little artist and I’m glad he has it. You can learn more about the Disney Creativity Stylus and purchase it from eKids, Toys"R"Us, and Amazon.com for $49.99.

Finding Balance With Asperger's: 'Color Pegs, Color Pictures' is a Fun & Creative Fine Motor Skills Toy

Thank you to Fun and Function for providing a complimentary product sample for us to base this review upon. All opinions expressed are my own.

Color Pegs, Color Pictures from Fun and Function help children unleash their creative sides with this fun, wooden toy. This set contains 100 wooden pegs (25 each in red, yellow, blue, and green) and a wooden board to put the pegs into. They are thick, sturdy wood and are sure to last a long time. However, because of the size of the pegs, this is not recommended for children under 3 or any others to whom they would present a choking hazard.

When we opened this toy, my kids were both pretty excited to play with it. I have found that peg boards are usually a favorite of most children, and mine are included in that. They’ve had fun making letters, words, bugs, Pokemon creatures, Christmas images, and more. When they are done, they put all the pegs into the box along with the board and close it up, so it’s a really simple clean up job too.

We are really happy with our Color Pegs, Color Pictures toy. It is also great for fine motor skills and makes for a good, quiet activity for them to do when I have a meeting or other (as they say) “grown up stuff” to do.

You can purchase Color Pegs, Color Pictures on Fun and Function’s website, www.funandfunction.com. This toy retails for $20.99.

Blingles and New Blingles Glimmer Craft Kits!

Thank you to Moose Toys for providing complimentary Blingles and Blingles Glimmer product samples for us to base this review upon and for providing additional products for our contest prize.  All opinions expressed are my own.

Approximately one year ago, our daughter was introduced to Blingles gem craft kits.  This year, right in time for the Holidays, Moose Toys has introduced Blingles Glimmer kits, which combines the familiar Blingles gems with glitter art to create fun and sparkly stickers.

Making the Blingles Glimmer stickers were fairly easy with the help of the Blingles Glimmer Glam Styler, even for our 6-1/2 year old daughter.  You start off by choosing a sticker and deciding which glitter colors should go on each part of the sticker.  For example, our daughter decided that the cat's eyes should be yellow.  So, we peeled the protective paper off the eyes so she could roll yellow glitter over it.  All the other parts of the sticker either are already covered in glitter or still has protective paper over it.

Then all she had to do was take the included brush and sweep the excess glitter into the strategically positioned tray.  I then helped her put the glitter from the tray back into the proper well.

After all the glitter was applied, our daughter just had to peel off the protective paper that had a picture of a gem on it.  Then she placed a gem right on the self-adhesive spot and pressed it into place.

You can learn more about how the original Blingles kits work here.  We used both Blingles and Blingles Glimmer stickers to decorate the beauty case that came in the Blingles Beauty Accessory Pack.  Something new that came with this accessory pack was a template for creating Blingles letters.

Although it took awhile, our daughter was able to make the Blingles lipstick design.  I helped her apply it to the interior of the beauty case.  Because the Blingles gem crafts require quite a lot of patience and manual dexterity, I would recommend the Blingles Glimmer kits for younger children who are between 6 and 8 years old.  Both types of Blingles kits would be perfect for anyone 8 years old and up.

As you can see, there is plenty of space to add more Blingles and Blingles Glimmer designs to our daughter's beauty case.  I think she will enjoy adding one or two new designs at a time.  Both the gem and glitter stickers can be applied to most smooth services, such as phone and tablet cases, mirrors, bangle bracelets, notebooks, diaries, and more.

I also would like to add that our daughter just loves the beauty case because it comes with a key and really locks.  Also, she now has somewhere to store the few pieces of makeup she owns.

Be sure to look for this and other fun gift ideas in our 2013 Holiday Toy Gift Guide!  You can learn more about Blingles kits by visiting MyBlingles.com.  These kits and themed packs start at just $9.99 and would make fun gifts for the creative and expressive little girl, tween, or teen in your life.

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Good luck in the drawing!

This giveaway is open to U.S. entries only. You do not need to be a blogger to enter, but you must have a valid email address and be age 18 years or older. A random drawing will be held shortly after the contest closing. The winner will be announced here and will be contacted via email. If the winner does not respond within 48 hours, a new winner will be drawn.

Timeless Toys for Children

This post has been brought to you by Jennifer Viloria.

Choosing toys for you children can seem a daunting task especially with the range of options on the market. Toys go in and out of fashion every year, but there are some staple toy and game designs that have stood the test of time. Let’s take a look at some of the toy classics that seem to stay at the top of the charts, year in and year out.


The world of Lego . . .

Lego has come a long way since the company was first created in 1932 in Denmark. The brightly colored interlocking bricks are a firm favorite with children of all ages. Lego sets inspire and encourage children to use their imagination, developing their artistic creativity.

There are literally thousands of different sets of Lego toys available with a variety of themes including robots, outer space, the Wild West, towns, and cities, but you can still purchase a basic set for under $20. The company has also branched out with its range of video games, which can be enjoyed by children of all ages and can be played by the entire family.


Board Games to keep everyone happy . . .

Board games have always been a great choice to help children engage with others, learn skills such as letter recognition and reading, as well as helping to improve manual dexterity and eye-hand coordination. One of the main attractions is that these games promote a fun way of interacting together as a family, no matter the age range.

The good news is that despite the apparent technological takeover in terms of mobile interactivity and video gaming, favorites like Monopoly, Scrabble, and Hungry Hungry Hippos are still up there as some of the most popular pastimes available for families. It’s not hard to see why: these games provide lasting entertainment, even as your family grows and changes, providing plenty of value for your money at the same time.


Pocket money toys . . .

All toy shops carry what is known as pocket money toys. These are individual toys or toys that are part of a collection; think magic kits, Barbie toys, sticker sets, painting packs, and Play-Doh.  The list is virtually endless. These toys are not only fun for kids to collect but are cheap enough to be bought with your child’s allowance, meaning kids learn the value of money and saving from an early age.

Sometimes even the simplest toys are the best way to challenge a child, feed their curiosity, and boost their practical and mental skills. From building blocks to prompt a toddler’s hand-eye coordination to the most complex doll houses and space stations to fire up the imagination, these timeless toys are much more than easy entertainment.

Decorate Pencil Boxes, Lockers, and More with Gelarti Paint & Decorate Stickers

Thank you to Gelarti for providing complimentary product samples for us to base this review upon and for providing additional products for our contest prize.  All opinions expressed are my own.

For many families, back-to-school is an exciting time for buying new clothes, gear, and supplies for school.  To add to that excitement, children can personalize their school supplies with Gelarti stickers.  No two Gelarti stickers are exactly alike because children paint and decorate the stickers themselves.

We received the Gelarti Designer Studio, the Gelarti Activity Pack, the Gelarti Enchanted Forest Glow-in-the-Dark Designer Series, the Gelarti Fashion Puppies Glitter Designer Series, and the Gelarti Rock/Funky Fun Scene Pack to try our hand at decorating our children's pencil boxes for school . . .

The Designer Studio comes with everything you need to get started, including the Designer Studio, 6 sheets of stickers, 4 paint pens, 12 gems and 6 embellishments, and 1 marbling tool.  The Designer Studio itself is a handy thing to have because it holds and rotates your sticker sheet and stores your embellisments, but it is not a necessity.  You can buy any of the Gelarti sets and use only the paint pens and stickers to start creating.  The marbling tool does come in handy for more than just marbling though and it seems to only come with the Designer Studio and the Activity Packs.

Gelarti Designer Studio

The Activity Pack is a fun set to own because it comes with themed stickers for a variety of seasons and holidays in addition to 2 sun catcher ornaments, 5 paint pens, a greeting card to decorate, and a marbling tool.

Gelarti Activity Pack

Gelarti products are recommended for users age 5 and up.  Our daughter is 6 and quite artistic, so I was not surprised that she found the Gelarti sets so easy to use.  There is a very small learning curve because the different types of paint (original, glow-in-the-dark, glitter, etc . . . ) each have a different consistency.  Some you will need to squeeze the bottle hard to get the paint out and some will just drip out on their own.  On the same note, some paints will generally stay were you put it, while others will spread out without your help.  I highly suggest you place a folded piece of paper towel next to your work space so that you can test out each paint for color and consistency.  It's also helpful to squeeze out any air bubbles that may be in each paint pen before applying paint to your sticker.

Using Gelarti is as easy as 1, 2, 3 . . . 

1.  Fill the white spaces within the black outlines on your sticker with the paints of your choice.

2.  Use the marbling tool to drag or swirl your paint, if desired.  You can also add gemstones or embellishments if you like.

3.  Here comes the hard part . . . let your freshly painted sticker dry for at least 6 hours.

Our 6 year old daughter's first creation using Gelarti.

I must say that Gelarti is a little addictive.  When you think you're done decorating your project with Gelarti stickers, you will likely decide that you could probably fit one or two more.

Our 6 year daughter can pretty much use Gelarti independently.  Once in awhile, she will ask me to use a wet paper towel to wipe off some paint that has landed or spread onto a spot where it was not meant to be.  I have also helped her by using the marbling tool to push paint back into place or to remove paint that has accidentally covered the black outlines.

Although most of the Gelarti stickers seem to be geared towards girls, our two sons both found some stickers they wanted to paint.  In fact, our 9 year old son decided to decorate his pencil box too.

Here are a few of the other things we decorated . . .

Tree stumps, logs, mushrooms, green plants, a frog, a spider, bats, a moon, and stars on the outside of our hermit crab habitat.

A sun catcher using an owl sticker with gemstone eyes. We marbleized the owl's belly, but while the paint dried, the colors seemed to pull back together.  Also, a large bubble formed during the drying process.

Our 6 year old daughter painted this tree and added two 3-dimensional embellishments.  She used this to decorate her toy safe.

This owl is also on our daughter's toy safe. She inadvertently let two colors run together, but then decided that she liked the way it looked.

Gelarti stickers can stick to almost any clean flat smooth surface.  They are also removeable and reusable.  To learn more about Gelarti and to find some useful tips and tricks, visit GelartiStickers.com.


The prize pack for this contest includes the following items . . . 

• Gelarti Designer Studio (ARV $19.99)
• Gelarti Activity Pack (ARV $16.99)
• Gelarti Glitter Designer Series (ARV $12.99)
• Gelarti 3D Glow-in-the-Dark Designer Series (ARV $12.99)
• Gelarti 3D Butterfly World (ARV $16.99)

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Good luck in the drawing!

This giveaway is open to U.S. entries only. You do not need to be a blogger to enter, but you must have a valid email address and be age 18 years or older. A random number drawing will be held shortly after the contest closing. The winner will be announced here and will be contacted via email. If the winner does not respond within 48 hours, a new number will be drawn.

BENDASTIX . . . a New Arts & Crafts Construction Toy

Thank you to BENDASTIX for providing a complimentary product sample for us to base this review upon and for providing a second product for our contest prize. All opinions expressed are my own.

BENDASTIX are a brand new way for children ages 6 and up to unleash their creative sides with no restraints. BENDASTIX are like other construction toys in that you can build anything your imagination designs but they are different because there are no rules and the possibilities for building are endless.

BENDASTIX are soft, bendable craft pieces that can be shaped and molded into anything and they never break. They are able to be used to build creatures, decorate items, things to wear, and much, much more. We received the Big Box Kit to try out and it came with close to 100 pieces of bendable fun!

We have made dragons, aliens, glasses, snakes, flowers, and many other things with this fun and unique craft kit. It even comes with stickers you can use to give your designs some added flair and we’ve had a blast using them with the colorful stix. Both my kids and I really love playing with these and unleashing our creative sides.  They will certainly be much-loved over time. BENDASTIX are very sturdy too, so with proper use they should last a long time.

BENDASTIX can be purchased at www.getbendastix.com for $19.95 + $6.95 S&H.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Good luck in the drawing!

This giveaway is open to U.S. entries only. You do not need to be a blogger to enter, but you must have a valid email address and be age 18 years or older. A random number drawing will be held shortly after the contest closing. The winner will be announced here and will be contacted via email. If the winner does not respond within 48 hours, a number will drawn.

Giveaway: Manhattan Toy Company "Imagine I Can" Creative Toys [CLOSED]

So many toys now feature lights, sounds, and utilize technology and, being a techie myself, I love that. But, it is nice to have my kids unplug and use their imaginations or other skills to play sometimes, which is why I love Manhattan Toy Company’s new line of Imagine I Can toys and crafts for kids. This line was mentioned as one of the best at this years Toy Fair by The View and by Parenting magazine.  They were nice enough to send us three items from this new line and we fell in love with Manhattan Toy Company because of them.

Imagine I Can Cheese Chase is a simple yet fun strategic game where the sole motive is to get your wooden mouse to its cheese counterpart first. This comes in a small tin where its 6 pieces store very compactly so this game is great for playing on-the-go. It is very sturdy because all but the case is made of wood and very easy for kids to understand yet still very engaging. Plus, this awesome game retails for only $6, so it’s highly affordable.

Imagine I Can Pet Rock Pals take all the fun of the pet rock craze but add some creativity and flair to it. Using air dry, rock-colored and textured clay, kids make their “rock” and then decorate it with pre-cut felt pieces, googly eyes, and pipe cleaners to create a completely one-of-a-kind pet rock that they can keep for a long time. We had so much fun using our imaginations and making cute little “friends”. This kit is fun for nearly all ages, is easy to use, and is again affordable at only $11.

Finally, everyone can have tons of fun creating their own erasers using Imagine I Can Crafty Eraser Creations. Simply open the package, knead the rubber clay pieces, and start designing! You can use the pre-shaped molds or create anything else you can come up with. Once the creations are done, simply boil them in water for 10 minutes and allow them to cool and you have custom erasers that really work! This was our favorite of the three (though we loved them all so much that it’s hard to pick a favorite) and we really love our unique, homemade erasers. This kit also retails for $11.

As you can see, the Imagine I Can line from Manhattan Toy Company is fun, imaginative, and affordable and there are many more kits to choose from on their website, www.manhattantoy.com.


Thank you to Manhattan Toy Company for providing complimentary product samples for us to base this review upon and for providing an additional product for our contest prize.  All opinions expressed are my own.
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Glow Crazy Glow-in-the-Dark Distance Doodler

If you’re looking for something fun and different to help curb winter boredom for your children, the Glow Crazy Distance Doodler might be just what you want. The Glow Crazy Distance Doodler, for ages 6 and up, uses safe laser-light technology and specialized repositionable glow canvases to let children’s imaginations run wild. Draw, write, play games, and more in the dark from up to 15 feet away and see your creations in a new and brilliant light.

We received the Glow Crazy Distance Doodler to try out and we absolutely love it! We’ve had a similar product in the past but it was a stationary variety; once it was hung it didn’t move. This one is awesome because the 4 cling canvases easily remove without damaging surfaces and can be placed again and again. The other difference with this one is that it doesn’t require complete darkness to work. It does work better in total darkness, but it still works very well when there is some light.


The doodle pen has two beams, one fine and one broader beam, and even has a fiber-optic type paint brush, which has some really neat effects. I have been pleasantly surprised by this toy and will admit that even my husband and I have been caught playing with it.

The Glow Crazy Distance Doodler comes with a duel beam distance doodler, 4 stencils, 2 sheets of jumbo canvas, 2 sheets of small colored canvas, and Glow Crazy light brush. This toy requires 4 AAA batteries, which are not included.  It can be purchased at www.glowcrazyfun.com, Toys"R"Us, Walmart, and Amazon.com for approximately $19.99.


Thank you to Techno Source for providing complimentary product samples for us to base this review upon and for providing a second product for our contest prize.

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Holiday Gift Idea: Magna Color 3D Magnetic Design Station

My kids love creative toys, so when we got offered a Magna Color 3D Art Board, I knew this would be right up their alley. Magna Color is a specially designed magnetic drawing studio that comes with metal dots, pens, stencils, a special “swiper”, 3D glasses, and the art board itself. Magna Color is unique, not just for its fun aspect, but because it is ingeniously designed to make cleanup and storage easy. After kids are done creating and admiring their 3D works-of-art, they “swipe” the dots into the trap door, which funnels them into a sorter compartment, where they are sorted and then shaken into the pens. It’s hard to describe, so I included a video to better explain. This process is easy and keeps parents from finding tiny dots all over the floor later.


My kids have had tons of fun creating endless 3-dimensional projects from writing their names to making their favorite characters. You can place the dots on the board one-by-one or put down a whole line by holding the pen down and running it across the screen. They love designing, but they also love the clean up. I have to love any product that makes cleaning up so much fun and so simple. It really is a clever design and I wish more products were made like this.

I was asked to mention that last summer a shipment of Magna Color was sent out with malfunctioning pens. The company, Tech 4 Kids, is committed to excellent customer service and high-quality products and they want to make this right. If you purchased this product and your pens did not function properly, they will happily replace them if they are contacted at toys@tech4kids.com.

Magna Color 3D Art Board is recommended for children ages 4 and up and it retails for $24.99. It can be purchased at Toys R Us, Walmart, Kohl’s, BJ’s Wholesale Club, Walgreens and several others. To see a complete list, visit www.tech4kids.com.


Thank you to Tech 4 Kids for providing a complimentary product sample for us to base this review upon.