First, I found squirty toys to be a must.  So when I walk around the bathroom she can squirt me *eye roll*.  Good job mom!  Buuuut it makes her happy so I put up with it.  My favorite squirty bath toys found are from Elegant Baby.  There were so many to chose from, I had a difficult time picking.  Everything from animals to transportation squirties are available.  I decided the Garden set was my favorite, featuring a mushroom, bumblebee, flower, caterpillar, ladybug, and butterfly.  My daughter LOVES these toys.  They are brightly colored and high quality.

Buy your own set straight from Elegant Baby for $15.00

The Hoppers come in two different variations and ages.  The more stable animal hoppers can for for kids ages 3 and up, like this bunny and reindeer here.  How insanely cute are they?  And both would be great toys for Christmas and Easter holidays!

The next generation of hoppers are the balls with handles.  These require a little more skill, balance, and thought.  The recommended age for these hoppers is 6 and up.  Kids/adults up 220 lbs.  Here we have the classic Dippy Dop Hopper and the Oobi Baby Super 70′s Space Hopper.  Both come in a wide variety of colors. Blow them up big or small.  We received the new ALIEN hopper that appears to not be for sale yet, so look forward to that release!

Purchase your own Hoppers from Cute-ture.com

Special Thanks to Dippy Dop for supplying sample hoppers for review.

A really exciting side effect of the movie is an extreme glee for the upcoming Halloween season.  My daughter will not stop talking about what she wants to dress up as (Kobe Bryant, then mermaid, then witch)… yes I said Kobe Bryant.  She likes the Lakers, what can I say?  So as a mom who really likes to get into holidays and seasonal changes, slight as they are in Palm Springs, I’m thrilled that she is pumped up.

So my recommendation to all parents of preschoolers is to purchase this DVD for just $12.99.  All new, never seen before episodes of all of their favorites.  Over two hours of educational entertainment.  Show them now to get them amped up for the upcoming holiday, or keep it for a Halloween treat!  This DVD is a new release available for purchase tomorrow, 8/24/10.

My daughter watching her favorite Halloween DVD for the 7th time:

Special thanks to Nickelodeon for providing a sample DVD for review.

Welcome to the adorable world of Tynies, tiny glass figurines.  These highly collectible little animals are super adorable.  Way classier than that Beanie Baby craze.  These cute little guys are small enough to grow a large collection and not overrun your house.  They are so tiny, in fact, that these collectibles are for ages 8 and up.  Please keep these toys away from your younger tots.

Each figurine is handmade so the colors and shape may vary.  They started out with 40 different styles in 2008, and since then have added more 3 times a year.  See some of the newest editions for fall 2010 up top.  Each character comes with a 3 letter name.  How they’ve managed to come up with so many 3 letter names is beyond me.  These make great gifts for older children who love animals and love to collect.  And how easy to pick out presents on the next upcoming holidays… simply grow their current collection!

Create your own world with Tynies! To find a retailer near you, click on over to here.

Special thanks to Tynies for providing samples for review purposes.

One of my favorite plush companies, miYim, has launched my favorite collection ever.  This organic company released a trio of plushes in honor of Jane Goodall.  Unless you’ve been living under a rock for your entire life, you already know about Jane Goodall’s contributions and sacrifices for the animal kingdom, specifically primates.  Visit the Jane Goodall Institute online.

“People, animals and the environment are all connected.  The Jane Goodall Wild Animal Collection was created with this core value in mind.  These thoughtful and realistic looking animals are made from natural cotton that has been untreated, unprocessed, and unbleached and colored with miYim’s PureWaterWash^TM process using only plants and minerals, making this toy a safe alternative to toys made with environmentally damaging processes.  A part of the proceeds from each toy will go to the Jane Goodall Institute, founded by renowned primatologist Jane Goodall.  The Jane Goodall Institute is a global nonprofit that empowers people to make a difference for all living things.”

The plushes, a hippo, a gorilla, and a lion, are all incredibly soft organic plushes.  My daughter fell instantly in love with them and likes to use them as mini pillows… that’s how soft they are!  I love the details in the animals, from the hippo’s nose (snout?) to the gorilla’s face and chest.  And since they are made with the environment in mind, you can feel good about purchasing these eco-friendly friends. Purchase your own plushes from miYim.

Special thanks to miYim for providing samples plushes for review purposes.

When we teach our kids to surf, it is incredibly important that they respect the ocean, because the ocean can be a powerful and unpredictable place.  Before they put their toes to the nose, they need to stop and watch the ocean for at least 10 minutes.  Once the swells are assessed, and rip tides ruled out, it’s safe for the kiddos to attempt to catch a wave. Skateboarding can be just as dangerous if you do not take the right precautions.  Always, always wear a helmet and pads, no matter what anyone says.  Peer pressure can be tough for kids to handle!  These books are wonderful tools for parents, a bookshelf staple.

“We want kids to have fun, but most of all to be safe,” says auther, Diaz. “As a surfer and a parent, these are my biggest concerns.  I want my son to surf and to be safe.”

The books also teach our kids to protect our Earth by keeping our beaches, oceans, and parks litter free.  Proving their dedication, the books are printed on recycled paper using soy-based inks.

Portions of all proceeds  go to the Surfrider Foundation, a non-profit, environmental organization that works to protect our oceans, waves, and beaches.

Purchase your own Olas Books here

Thanks to Olas Books for providing samples for review.

We brought the game up to my parents place in northern Arizona, so it was fun to be in a different home and keep the TV off! We all sat around the kitchen table and our three year old was absolutely LOVING this game. Although, I swear she cheated a few times and said she rolled a yellow stick (the skinniest of all the sticks) when I thought I saw blue come up (the thickest). It was so much fun and she loved to play head-to-head with my hubby and I. Winner would get to play the person who sat out the game before. It never seemed to get old and the pieces are made of thick, durable wood. This game is guaranteed to last a lifetime. It’s the perfect game to leave in the game room for generations to come. You can purchase your own “Keep it steady!” game by Haba here.

Rolling her dice……..carefully concentrating while picking her stick…..OH NO, it fell!!!

Special thanks to Haba for providing a sample game for review.

Well lookie what this mom found: Ecotronic flashlights.  These flashlights require no batteries, they’re squeeze-powered.  Simply pump the side wing that pops out and the little guy will shine for hours on end.  I was so surprised at how long they actually stay lit up.  I turned them off before they quit, hours after the last pump!  And look how adorable they are, coming in a range of animals from farm to zoo.

My daughter is slightly afraid of the dark, but weren’t we all (and a little still)?  Her newest nighttime fear is the dragon.  I don’t have the heart to tell her yet that dragons don’t exist, so I figured out another plan. Her flashlight is dragon-proof !  Now she can sleep soundly again.  With a couple pumps of the flashlight, the dragon magically disappears… POOF! Even during the day she runs around with the flashlights, shining them on books, the walls, making games out of them. They come with little wrist straps, making it easy for them to tote them around.  Check out the Farm and Zoo editions.  Order your own awesome eco-friendly and monster-unfriendly flashlights here from International Playthings. This is the one “light up” toy that I don’t mind.

Erin: My daughter has gained courage and a new sense of adventure from her Ecotronic flashlight. She’s petrified of the dark, we have three nightlights in her room. Her latest thing is that “Randall” (from Monsters Inc.) hides in her closet and in the dark rooms of the house. So, she refuses to go anywhere unless we hit all the lights. With her flashlight she actually demanded that we turn off ALL the lights in the entire house and she roamed the house by herself watching the flashlight on the wall and to guide her around. If she has a bad dream, she’ll sneak over to our room in the middle of the night and this flashlight is perfect to help her find her way (and not trip over a cat). She was so cute, she wanted her bedtime story to be told to her using only her flashlight. You can see what a great amount of light it provides. Even the nose lights up so there are two light sources from the flashlight. LOVE!

Thank you to Ecotronic and International Playthings for providing samples to review.

First, my daughter just did some free playing, sorting the pieces by shape and color.  Then lining them up, stacking them, and making small “castles”.  She got a little frustrated when pieces started falling so I helped her make the flat house.  Haba gives you several ideas of what to make from animals to windmills.  It was fun to do it together, helping each other.  This game would be great for kids who have issues with “winning and losing”… or for only children.  As usual, Haba brings us another safe, quality game, made in Germany.  You can purchase your own “Eck an Eck” or Corner to Corner game here.

Special thanks to Haba for providing a sample game for review.