Holiday Toy Guide 2008: Preschoolers

1. American Girl’s Bitty Twins Dolls: Little girls (or boys) ages 3 and up will love playing with these adorable dolls that come dressed in plaid and denim outfits. There are many top doll brands out there to choose from (several of which you have seen/will see on this site) but this is my doll pick for 2008. I like the quality construction of the dolls; that the buyers have a lot of choice (skin tone, hair color and gender) and that you get two dolls for the price of one!
Price: $95 (two dolls with outfits and a book)

2. Cranium’s Hullabaloo: Kids ages 4 and up (and their parents!) will love this high energy game. There are so many games out there that are fun for the family, but this my 2008 game pick. (You can read Mom in the City reviewer Lesley Thompson’s thoughts on this game here.)
Price: $24.99

3. Fisher Price’s Computer Cool School™ : Kids ages 3 to 6 years will learn so much with this computer keyboard that features five learning centers. They use it along with your computer to learn a variety of skills (reading, writing, math, science, art and music). It really does help to make learning fun. The thing that I especially like about this product is that (unlike many other computer styled programs) it helps kids with their writing skills by including a writing and drawing tablet for right or left-handed kids (which is great for my little lefty!). On a computer safety note, the system has password-protected controls that blocks access to parents’ computer desktop and websites. Note: This computer works with Microsoft® Windows Vista™ or Windows XP operating systems. It’s not Mac-compatible.
Price: $60.00

4. Hasbro’s The Incredible Hulk - Hulk Smash Hands : Little boys (or girls) age 3 and up will love punching things (and people!) with these talking Hulk mitts. Don’t worry though…they’re plush/soft to the touch. As I have written before, my four years old son Michael was jumping up and down yelling “Hulk Smash!” while Sean (who’s 1) kept saying “Wow” even before I finished opening the box holding the hands. They both then proceeded to try to “Hulk Smash”/attack me with the hands. Very cute! Their friends enjoy playing with the hands and I’ve also heard from other Mom in the City moms that their kids love them too. My favorite fist line (that I’ve borrowed in other scenarios) is “You’re making me angry! You won’t like me when I’m angry!” Note: This toy uses 3 AAA batteries.
Price: $19.99

5. LeapFrog® Tag Reading System : Kids ages 4 to 8 will learn that reading can be fun with this web-connected system. I’m a big fan of educational toys (obviously) and this is one of the more exciting ones out there. With this touch reading system (a small infrared camera at the tip of the reader “reads” letters, words and
symbols) words talk, pictures sing and much more. The reader only works with the 20 books and activity sets in the system library. Parents download each book’s audio, then drag and drop content onto the reader (like digital camera or MP3 files). That can be a bit of a hassle for non-techy parents (like me!) but on the positive side, each time that parents connect the reader to their Mac or PC, they can view their child’s progress and get more content to keep their child’s interest.
Price: $49.99

6. Little Tikes My Real Digital Video Camera : Kids ages 3 years and up will have fun recording video and taking pictures of their activities with this video camera. I especially like that the video camera is both sturdy and waterproof so that kids can film underwater (or simply just so that the camera doesn’t get ruined when it gets exposed to water – which most electronic items “happen to” in the hands of young kids). What’s also fun for the kids (and parents) is that there are movie making editing features as well as the ability to add graphics and sounds to both videos and pictures. Note: This camera requires 2 “AA” batteries.
Price: $99.99

7. Mattel’s Matchbox® Power Scouts™ Vehicles & Playsets : Kids ages 3+ will enjoy playing with these track systems and line of 4 x 4s that are designed with smaller hands in mind. These battery-powered vehicles really are tough (they’ve been riding over and under all types of things in my house!) and kids love them. They work either by the kids pushing them manually or in the battery-powered all-wheel drive mode. I prefer the manual use, because the noise from the battery-powered mode gives me a headache after a long while. (Of course my kids have the opposite preference, so I sometimes have to “hide” the cars or slip out the batteries to get a brief break!) In any event, you simply press down on the back of the trucks to activate the motor. If your kids want or need something special to test our their new 4 x 4s, they can try one the three new Power Scouts™ Playset and Challenge track system assortments. (We have the “Skull’s Challenge” one which both boys enjoy.)
Vehicles Price: $6.99+; Adventure Playsets Price: $16.88+

8. Vtech’s KidiJamz Studio™ : Kids ages 4 years to 7years will love recording and listening to their own songs and music with this interactive music station. This is Michael’s #1 Christmas wish item - it knocked another toy off his list. (He’ll be getting his wish, but don’t tell him!) After recording, kids will be able to play their pieces back on a detachable music player. Kids can also mix their music with a variety of kid friendly tunes. They can also choose from 10 different musical instrument sounds and several other stylistic options. A microphone and digital voice effects are also included for your little singers. Lastly, there is a musical scratching disc (Michael’s favorite – he wants to scratch like a DJ) and a light-up keyboard. I’m already thinking about which earplugs I’ll need….Note: This studio requires 4 AA batteries.
Price: $59.99

AND ONE STOCKING STUFFER…
-eeBoo’s Tell Me a Story / Creative Story Cards: eeBoo is such a smart company, that I just had to include these cards as a “stocking stuffer” idea for kids ages 3 years and up. Kids (and parents!) will enjoy using their imaginations to combine the 36 different images on the cards in order to play a variety of games and activities
Price: $9.95