(eeBoo $14.99) For children who are learning the alphabet, illustrator, Melissa Sweet has created a bright and playful set of letters and animals that you’ll want to discuss before they begin. Use the illustration on the box to "name and know" the animals pictured. The artist has chosen some creatures that are not exactly well known, so use the opportunity to expand their knowing and naming with creatures like the ibex, the salamander and others. The big puzzle pieces are sca

(eeBoo $14.99) With names of states, their capitols, and iconic images of their products, this giant floor puzzle will be 24 by 36 inches when put together. There’s lots to know and name, look at, and talk about. This is colorful and a great way to get kids started on map skills. The shapes of the states are actually die cut, so that children are getting a sense of the relative sizes and shapes of the states as compared to each other. This is marked for 3 and up, but we think

(eeBoo $5.99) Packed in a little box with a handle, like your old animal cracker box, this 20-piece puzzle actually has big pieces. Put together it's a city street scene with lots of traffic. There's a dog walker jogger, a man with twins in a stroller, a bike rider and many other vehicles that all center on a firetruck with two firefighters and a dog coming around a corner. Amazingly detailed picture to talk about when the pieces are put together. Marked 3 & up. Ages: Prescho

(eeBoo $17.99) How’s that title for an oxymoron? It’s the name of a funny game that requires some reading and plenty of action. Players take a WHO card—it might be a knight, a monster, an inchworm or any number of choices. Then they pull a WHAT card that tells them what they are doing—climbing a steep cliff, under a leaking ceiling, or among others—skating for the first time. Now they spin the HOW spinner and have to do the WHO, and WHAT with the HOW, such as in the wind, on

(eeBoo $11.99) Not a toy, but a set of 25 postcards to get tweens and teens a voice in voicing their opinion! Getting older children involved, to see their part in civic affairs begins at home. The postcards are printed on one side with messages such as Vote Yes!, I Support Your Position, Vote No!, and Thank You! Printed in red white and blue. Encourage kids to use them locally or send them to Washington. Considering that 18 year olds get to vote, we really love the idea o

(eeBoo $9.99) These picture dominoes are small in scale, in fact small enough to fit in a travel bag with a rubber band around them. Slip them in your handbag and pull them out on a long flight or in a restaurant while waiting for dinner. A good game for stretching vocabulary. The images by illustrator, Monika Forsberg are playful rather than photographic. A fun way to grow their matching and knowing and naming skills. 3 & up. Ages: Preschoolers Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Gold S

(eeBoo $9.99) Dinosaur lovers will like playing a concentration matching game with the 18 pairs of dinos in this game. The playing pieces are small enough to fit in a baggie and carry along on a flight or take out in a restaurant while you are waiting for food. These kinds of games develop beginning matching and memory, basic skills needed for beginning reading. Aside from the name labels, that kids often love to repeat, this is a good game for talking about the differences b

(eeBoo $24.99) A jolly six-legged bug in multiple bright colors with crinkle, jingle and squeaky sounds. Made of extra soft velour plush, it has a tiny mirror on both sides and an easy to grab fabric handle on top. You can use this for tracking games with a newborn or hang it on the stroller for gazing. Eventually, the best fun will be when baby can handle this cute bug for two handed explorations. Newborns and up Ages: Infants Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Platinum Award 2018 Clic

(Janod $16.00) Going to a birthday party? Here’s a gift any birthday girl or boy will relish. It’s a giant 36-piece puzzle featuring a birthday party with cake, balloons, and kids having a celebration. The finished puzzle is a almost 20” x 16” and the cardboard pieces are big and easier for little hands to fit together. What’s new here is a paper mat that is a replica of the puzzle, so for starters, kids can match the puzzle pieces to the mat. Since the puzzle is shaped like

Are you kids suffering from a post-holiday slump now that they're back in school? Here are some games to freshen up some of those school skills with fun games for family time. Here are a few fun ways to connect: PlayMonster Qwitch Playmonster $12 An updated version of a popular card game that calls for quick thinking with both numbers and alphabet. Players race to be the first to play a matching card or a letter or number that is more or less that the one on the top of the pi