A collection of cute tea sets and dishes that are fit for any Alice in Wonderland.

(Via Schmancy.Com)

   

TinyTotBoutique.Com has this Three Little Ziglets Making Tracks table with a set of built in trundle storage drawers for all of the kids toys and bits. It’s a nice little design for rooms with limited storage.

(Via TinyTotBoutique.Com)

   

Looking for some refreshingly guilt-free toy shopping? Consider Plan Toys (Palo Alto, California), the next time your looking for a gift for the little one.

Their manufacturing process has a very refreshing transparency to it. Meaning, it is clearly stated what they use when assembling this simple but beautiful toys -

• Organic Rubberwood,
• E-Zero (Non-Formaldehyde Glue),
• Water Based Dye, Recycle
• Recyclable Material, and
• Soy Ink & Water based Ink

They are available at a number of online outlets, but you should really check out their site, it is very informative and has their entire catalog of stuff - really nice stuff at that. The different places to buy their good is listed under FAQ’s (oddly enough).

Sit Walk Pup Pull Toy (pictured above) listed for $18.99

(Plan Toys Vis a Vis Moolka.Com)

   

My sister Cheryl is the best family baker, hands down. To this day I talk very excitedly about some of her specialties, her Whoopie Pies top the list. Like all old school deserts there is absolutely no redeeming nutritional value to them. They are made with buttermilk, chocolate, and lots of butter and sugar. Needless to say, they’re not low-calorie, high fiber or all-natural so if you’re looking for that perfect desert crammed with minced beets, flax seed or spinach - move on…

Unfortunately, I am not obliged to hand out family recipes (that would be blasphemy) but Jennifer Tolley at JustBaking.Com has served up a damn good recipe for these little handful of heaven. If you aren’t impressed or you happen to stumble upon another recipe, let me explain something - if it has a whip cream filling it is not a Whoopie Pie!

So to all the dads out there interested in building a little family tradition with the kids, grab a recipe you think you can handle and master it with the kids. Your building lasting memories for them and training an army to make your favorite desert - you win, they win.

(Photo Via JustBaking.Net)

   

Astrophysicist Stephen Hawking is about to release his first children’s book, George’s Secret Key to the Universe. The first book in a planned trilogy, explains the workings of the Solar System, asteroids, black holes – one of Hawking’s favourite topics – and other celestial bodies with the help of a set of young heroes.

(Via Cosmos.Com)

   

Move over Thomas the Train, here comes the real old school approach to toys. The Toy Makers of yester-year would appreciate these toys. The Chunky Train and Formula Race Car toys bear the Forest Stewardship Council seal of certification and are decorated by a unique wood-burning technique (read: no lead paint). Crafted from replenishable materials that are chemical-free (toxin fee)and eco-friendly our natural wood toys make for good, green fun and safe play. No batteries required.

Costing $10 bucks, you can consider this the best answer to the recent recalls of the Formula One Race Cars by OK Trading.as well as others in the recent past.

(True Natural Wood Toys Via Toys ‘R’ Us)

   

Blokus is an excellent spatial game for the whole family that has won awards around the world for Best Mind Game. In an effort to pull the kids (and maybe some of the adults) away from the different screens in the house (i.e. computer screen, television screen, et al.), my wife and I are constantly in search of different types of board games to bring the family together. Blokus falls into a nebulous board game genre of “abstract strategy” games since there are no soldiers or missiles to stockpile and attack with but there are plenty of “offenses” taking place as each player tries to command the board.

Each player begins the game with an assortment of geometric shapes. One player has all the red shapes, one has all the green shapes, etc. Players take turns deploying pieces to a grid-board in such a way that the piece touches a same-colored piece at one or more corners, but not along any edge. Once the board is mostly filled and no one can make a legal play, the game ends and the person whose remaining pieces have the smallest total area wins. Pretty simple, premise. Reminds me of a couple different ways you can play dominoes - which is another favorite game at our house.

In short, if your child understands what it means for two shapes to touch at a corner, and to touch along an edge, then your child will be able to grasp this game. Sure as the board shrinks you may need to help guide them as to what their options are - but I think it’s fair to say that happens with most board games (yeah, and before you know it they’re beating the pants of you!).

Games last about ten to fifteen minutes so even if you have young ones with limited attention spans you maybe able to go two out of three if they start beating the pants off you. This game offers ample opportunity for kids to learn and exercise strategic and tactical thinking skills. The game’s biggest drawback is that it plays best with four players, but you can play with two players by doubling up colors, or with three players by using a neutral color.

(Blokus Via FunAgainGames.Com)

   

Zid Zid Kids has delightful costumes will inspire flights of fancy and hours of fun!

Beautifully crafted and stitched, the capes themselves are a work of art - abstracted forms and the fantastic zid zid palette create a peacock and giraffe. don a printed paper mask for full effect!

(ZidZidKids Vis A Vis Romp.Com)

   

Consider this the latest in ethical and politically-correct products; these sports products are green (either made from sustained resources or recycled) and are manufactured by adult union workers as stipulated by the rules of the Fair Labor Organization (FLO). As an example these soccer balls are eco-certified (certified Fair Trade), union-made and vegan.

The folks at Fair Trade Sports have a number of athletic equipment in their catalog. Their catalog includes rugby, soccer, football, basketball and volleyball equipment as well as apparel and accessories.

(Via FairTradeSports.Com)

   

Hey Dad, trying to figure out what to do with that stack of priceless but aging vinyl in your attic? Vinyl Killer is a portable record player made in Japan and licensed across the globe by BMW AG in Germany. You no longer have to spin the record, nor do you even need a turntable. You just need the smallest self-running record player in the world.

Instead of spinning your record, it coasts on the surface of the vinyl, gliding the needle over and into the grooves, churning out music from its own built-in speaker. If you have your own vehicle, you can take the music wherever and whenever you go.

(Via RazyWorks.Com)