The Waggy Garden Sorter by Wonderworld

It’s so hard to find quality made toys that you know will last for generations. However, one look at the Wonderworld Waggy Garden Sorter and I knew we had a winner.

Wonderworld is a manufacturer of wooden toys. Our expert toy designers have created a line of over 200 toys in the last 25 years of business. We pride ourselves in the fact that each toy is uniquely designed for a specific aged child, with both an educational value and play value. Wonderwold’s mission is to create environmentally friendly, creative, educational and most importantly fun toys for kids.

courtesy of Wonderworld

My kids have had all kinds of shape-sorting toys over the years but the Waggy Garden Sorter is different from any that I’ve seen before. First of all, it’s made from an environmentally friendly rubberwood with non-toxic paints, dyes and lacquers. All the edges are smooth and round so you know it’s safe for your child. The circular shape makes the Waggy Garden Sorter perfect for rolling around while making fun sounds.

There are 4 fun shapes disguised as bugs – caterpillar, ladybug, bumble bee, snail – which are brightly colored and have smiley faces. They’re so happy looking that you just can’t help but want to play with them just as they are.

However, if you do place them in the sorter, you’ll find that they fit perfecting into their matching slots.

There are also two ladybugs on the side of the sorter that you can move up and down.

The Waggy Garden Sorter’s top is slanted at a forward angle which makes it easier for kids to place the shapes. I know that for Kiana she likes that she’s able to see the holes in it’s entirety. This makes it easier for her to place the correct shape into the correct hole.

Kaila loves her new Waggy Garden Sorter and she’s been playing with it every day. She’s not sorting as much as I thought she would be but she loves playing with the little bug shapes as well as rolling it along the floor. I love the way this sorter looks and you can tell that’s it made with quality materials. I have a feeling that the Waggy Garden Sorter will be a part of our family for a very long time.

Connect with Wonderworld:

• Website
• Facebook

The Original Lincoln Logs

Lincoln Logs. Boy, that sure brings back memories.

For over nine decades, Lincoln Logs has maintained its rustic look and reputation for quality and durability.

Every box of Lincoln Logs contains the raw materials for a new journey. As one generation after another has been touched by its enduring appeal, Lincoln Logs has become more than just a toy it has become an authentic piece of Americana. The product is named after Abraham Lincoln, the President who began his celebrated life in a log cabin in Kentucky.

courtesy of K’NEX

For my family, Lincoln Logs represents true America. Each log is made with real wood and fits perfectly into each other. The smooth and splinter-free finish makes them comfortable to play with and

We received the White River Ranch which contains 90 pieces and an instruction sheet.

The pictures in the step-by-step diagram makes it easy to build your ranch correctly. I really like how they have the already built sections shown in a faded tone so that you can tell the difference between the former step and the new one.

The set also includes play figurines – cowboy, dog, cow, horse, bale of hay, and water bin as well as plastic roofs, a flag, and a movable front door. These colorful pieces put a nice touch to the overall look of the ranch.

What I really like about Lincoln Logs is that it promotes cognitive thinking. It may seem simple to adults but kids have to figure out the correct way to place the logs in alternating positions so that the grooves fit. And because each log fits into any other log, your child can build as high as their imagination will take them.

As you can see, the girls had a lot of fun playing with the White River Ranch. The only thing is that we had to be careful that the kids didn’t accidentally knock the ranch down. Because even though the logs fit into each other they don’t snap in place. This caused a little bit of frustration for Kaila but luckily it was easy to build everything up again.

Lincoln Logs is a great way to stimulate your child’s imagination and they’ll have fun following the easy directions or coming up with creations of their own!

This post was written of K’NEX who provided the complimentary item in exchange for my honest review.

K’NEX Mario vs. Piranha Plant Building Set

If there’s one thing better than a building set it’s one that kids can interact with. That’s why we always enjoy the various kits from K’NEX. We recently received the Maria vs. Piranha Plant Building Set and the kids couldn’t wait to put it together.

Bring Mario Kart Wii to life! Build Mario in his Sprinter Kart and race past the Piranha Plant from the Mario Circuit Track. The set includes the parts to build Mario, a Sprinter Kart with a superfast, batterypowered motor, a Piranha Plant obstacle and 2 collectible items from the game a Mushroom and a Green Turtle Shell!

courtesy of K’NEX

This 126 piece building set contains Mario, Piranha Plant, Mushroom, and Green Turtle Shell as well as the pieces to construct a portion of an overall complete track. At first, I was a bit overwhelmed by all the pieces but once I took a look at the colored step-by-step diagram it seemed more manageable. What worked for me was to separate all the pieces that I needed in each step to ensure that I wouldn’t make any mistakes and find myself short in the end.

I liked that the pieces fit well together. In some cases you can even hear them snap into place. And once they’re in place they stay in place.

This building set only took us about 15 minutes to construct and in no time we had Mario racing across the track. The only thing is that since this is just a portion of an overall complete track so there was no way to stop Mario when he reached the end of the course. However, the kids didn’t mind and they actually thought it was fun to chase Mario across the floor. Boy, is he fast! His car runs on 2 AAA batteries (not included).

They also liked playing with Piranha Plant as he tried to catch Mario. Using a rubber-band technique, the kids just had to press down on a lever and Piranha’s big jaws came crashing down. And even though the kids got a little rough on the lever it still held up great.

K’NEX Mario vs. Piranha Plant Building Set is a big hit in our home and the kids are asking for the rest of the sections so they can make a complete track. They also want to see what other interactive ideas are a part of this Mario world. To be honest, so do I. I like that it teaches my kids a simple lesson in movement as well as cause and effect. I also like that since all the pieces fit into each other, when a section doesn’t work the way they planned they can use some creative thinking to come up with alternatives.

Fun and educational . . . you can’t beat that!

Connect with K’NEX:

• Website
• Facebook
• YouTube

This post was written for K’NEX who provided the complimentary item in exchange for my honest review.

 

Hasbro Star Wars Fighter Pods

Even though I only have daughters, that doesn’t mean that they don’t love Star Wars. I think it’s because Hubby is a big fan and is always watching re-runs of this classic movie series. So when they found out that we were receiving a Hasbro Star Wars Fighter Pods to review, they were very excited!

Our amazing set came with 16 figures (3 of which are a surprise), 6 pods, and 2 vehicles. Each figure is approximately 1 inch tall and made from a soft rubber material. I like that it’s not a solid piece of plastic because it’s much easier for the kids to play with if it’s softer to the touch. We also like that the tiny details are very well done . . . especially the faces. Normally, on figurines this small you’ll find the eyes painted on kind of crooked but these are perfectly done.

On the bottom of each figure is a small hole that allows you to connect them to one of the pods.

The pods are approximately 1.5″ and can easily be opened by just twisting the halves apart. There are 3 clear pods and 3 black pods and each one can hold one figurine.

The object of the game is to roll the pods and knock down your opponent’s figures. You can also connect the pods together to create one massive attack.

The pods can also be placed into the vehicles for more creative play.

The girls have been having so much fun playing with this set but I have to say that they haven’t been using the “rolling attack” as much as just playing out scenarios with the figures. Instead, they prefer to use the pods in the vehicles and make them spin over and over again.

The Star Wars Fighter Pods have been providing my girls with hours of creative play and I’ve really enjoyed watching their scenes being played out. I didn’t realize that they knew so much about the movie and characters. It would make my husband proud.

This post was written for Hasbro who provided the complimentary products in exchange for my honest review.

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