November 2011 Notable Toys — All

When Garnet's mother decides it's time for a change, she drops off her daughter at her aunt June's house  in Black Rock, Virginia, while she goes to Florida to find a job. Garnet has never met her Aunt June, so she feels angry and abandoned. But Aunt June thinks Garnet is there for a reason. Each week, Garnet and June visit a different religious service as Aunt June, who has cancer, tries to find God. After a miraculous spiritual healing occurs and an unexpected visitor comes to town, Garnet learns the power of love and forgiveness, and what being a family truly means. Launch date: Fall 2011.

The new “Special CARES” has an additional 10 inches of webbing added to the straps so it can accommodate a flyer up to 6 ft. tall. The harness-type device works like the flight attendant and pilot restraints by safely securing and supporting the upper body, instead of relying solely on the lap belt. Special CARES is exactly like the original device, only with longer straps to accommodate taller travelers. The Special CARES aims to make flying a more viable travel option for those with special needs. Sometimes extra gear, braces, or special seats don’t fit onto an airplane seat. When that happens, passengers are forced to check those items until the end of the flight. Flying with a lap belt as the only restraint simply isn’t an option in most cases, so air travel isn’t an option, either. Special CARES provides much needed upper body support throughout the flight.

Just squeeze the belly to launch the soft foam flying balls. The harder its squeezed squeeze, the farther it shoots. Holiday Popper is air powered and safe for both indoor and outdoor play. Includes six soft foam balls and convenient carry net. Works with all Power Popper refills.

It's easy to turn old paper into custom-made new paper. Take any type of paper, add water, and grind away. Place pulp on the screen, press and let it dry. Easy, simple way to recycle paper while creating greeting cards, bookmarks, tags, announcement and more. Grinder, screen plus ribbons and jewels for decorating.
— In a November 2013 survey, Linda Graham, president and co-owner of Scheffel's Toys, Inc in Jacksonville, Ore., told TDmonthly that Small World science kits are among her store's best-selling educational products.

In this multiplayer game, players must unearth dinosaur bones by excavating the mountain. But watch out- If more than one boulder tumbles off, if Tim is hit, or the big dinosaur topples over the turn is over.

Kids can view more than 180 amazing, up-close images with the Talking Electron Microscope. They can view various zoomed versions of 60 images and hear 5 fun facts about each image in Learning Mode – then switch to Quiz Mode and test their knowledge. Images include the human body, viruses and bacteria, plants, animals, and other “stuff.”
Awards: National Parenting Center Seal of Approval

Preschoolers can put on a rockin' performance with the Let's Rock Elmo Guitar. Packed with fun features, the Guitar includes three preschool tunes, three modes of play, light-up keys and a fun whammy bar. For even more rockin' fun, the Let's Rock Elmo Guitar also interacts with the Let's Rock Elmo character, which is sold separately, who magically knows when you have the Let's Rock Elmo Guitar and plays along with you to the Elmo's World song. The guitar comes with instructions. It includes 3 AA batteries.

This Soft purse includes pretend accessories, such as a wallet, debit card, lipstick, keys, mirror and cell phone.

Kids undo a latch, swing open the numbered door, and see the picture beneath revealed on this wooden play board. Build fine motor skills while learning colors, numbers, animals and more. Measures 15.7" x 11.7" x 1.6".
— As of 10/26/2011 this product had 4.4 out of 5 stars from 130 reviews on Amazon.com. Pros: Helps develop manual dexterity; durable; pieces are attached and can't get lost. Cons: Sharp edges on latches; fingers can get pinched in the latches.

This toy laptop's nine colorful keys are easy to press, bringing learning to life on the animated screen so baby can learn numbers, shapes, colors, object names, initial letters, and more. Flip the lid open and closed, or bat and roll the mouse for alphabet fun. Plenty of sing-along songs, words, sounds and exciting activities, in both English and Spanish. Baby gets responses by tapping keys, rolling the mouse, or flipping the lid open and closed to discover A-B-C’s, counting and much more. Learn numbers, greetings and more in Spanish, too. 12+ sing-along songs and fun tunes, plus sounds and rewarding phrases.
— As of 10/26/2011 this product had 4.4 out of 5 stars from 15 reviews on Amazon.com. Pros: Lots of variety keeps it from becoming repetitive or boring. Cons: Can smash babies' fingers when closed.

The Poppity Pop Dino is a Dinosaur character and 6 brightly colored balls. As baby bats at the roller ball, drops one of the balls down the dino's tail or onto his "back", the popping action and music begins. As the balls pop up, down and around, baby will be encouraged to grab them and start all over again. And when an occasional ball pops up and out, baby will be encouraged to crawl after it. As Baby plays, they are rewarded with over 8 fun tunes and silly sound effects.
— As of 10/26/2011 this product had 3.9 out of 5 stars from 18 reviews on Amazon.com. Pros: Interactive; entertaining; sturdy. Cons: The motor is a little loud; balls often shoot out of the bowl and have to be chased down.

These walkie-talkies with cool LEGO styling stay connected up to a mile away. They are easy to use - one channel, simple push-to-talk-button and volume control.
— As of 10/26/2011 this product had 3.9 out of 5 stars from 37 reviews on Amazon.com. Pros: Easy to use; fun design. Cons: Batteries run out quickly.

Space Exploration Mobile is a ceiling-mount mobile for kids intrigued by outer space and the history of space exploration. This fully motorized Space Exploration Mobile features rotating, realistic models of eight historic spacecraft: Sputnik, Mercury, Soyuz, Apollo, Skylab, Space Shuttle and Mir Space Station. The colorful Earth globe lights up, and the mobile includes an infrared remote and educational booklet. Space exploration mobile requires four AA and two AAA batteries (not included).

These playfully smart, multi-feature puzzles offer more than a standard shape puzzle. With surprise pictures under the pieces and pieces that can be mixed and matched, these playful puzzles fine-tune motor skills, entertain children longer and challenge creativity.

A cleverly cunning cubical conundrum. Individual cubes attached by twisting, turning joints. Flexible tetris-shapes are satisfying to flip and spin. Attempt to recreate the cubical configurations of emerald, ivory & black shown in the Tridio Puzzle Book. Scan the two-dimensional designs pictured, and set kids' minds & hands in motion. Modify the three tetris-shapes. Consider the color placement. Stack the Tetris pieces. Bring images to life in three-dimensional structures. 48 visual challenge puzzles.

MagnaMobiles are vehicles that feature an innovative, multi-faceted, connection feature called "rotating magnet technology." Put the pieces together and take them apart to create new and inventive vehicles. The blocks and pieces also make a clicking sound when joined together and rotated - adding another element of fun. These one-of-a kind vehicles are designed for kids to exercise their creativity.

The 150 piece set of Playstix allows kids to build a wide variety of models right out of the box, without the need for any additional or specialized parts. An Idea Booklet illustrates fun things to build, from a simple table and chairs to a two-story cabin. Each Playstix piece has grooves that interlock when one Playstix piece is placed across another. The different length Playstix pieces are color-coded, so it’s easy to see how each model is built.

This set of 9 pattern blocks can be twisted and turned in different shapes based on the guide provided.  Shapes can also be open-ended and based on the child's imagination. Start from Basic (4 blocks), Intermediate (6 blocks), to Advanced (9 blocks).

This 8 page picture features include a ladybug beeper, a foil mirror, a crunchy sounding wing, and a pop-up rainbow. Different textures are used for multi-sensory development. The fabric is washable and detachable.

Looking deceptively like a domestic cat, the bobcat remains wild at heart as it hunts through the night for prey. Bring the wonder of nature to kids' fingertips with this Bobcat Finger Puppet from Folkmanis. Launch date: July 2011.

There are as many ways to play with this house as there are families in the world.  Six rooms, movable stairs, and a reversible winter/summer-themed, solar-paneled roof inspire year-round activities.  Includes four room sets: Master Bedroom, Family Bathroom, Media Room and Kitchen.
— Isaac Judd from Magic Beans in Brookline, Mass., told TDmonthly in a June 2013 survey that they're best-selling furniture/play house item is the Hape All Seasons house.

The Hape e-copter is ready for take off. The e-copter takes to the skies in style with its bamboo body and vibrant graphics.

Gary Gouda is cheese hunting again and no piece is safe. But with every piece of cheese the risk of becoming stuck in the mouse holes increases. Only the one who can remember the sizes of the different holes and doesn't get caught by quick pet cat Kiki will reach the target. Who can help Gary memorize the best way and collect the most pieces of cheese? A light-fingered memory game for 2-4 players.

BunkiMunki™ Keys are collectible trend merchandise kids can wear in unique ways to express their own style. When kids see other kids wearing the iconic key, they will recognize fellow members of BunkiMunki, an innovative social network that provides tweens a unique online experience. Kids create their own alias in the likeness of BunkiMunki™, the brand character, their own home space with realistic decor, and choose activities like journal writing, music creation, earning badges, games and virtual shopping. Launch date: October 2011.