June 2009 New Specialty Toys — Plush

Designed to teach children about the names of food and dining utensils, these plush toys have a suction cap on the back and can be hung from smooth surfaces. Kids can choose which food they want to eat the next day, and place it on a window before they go to sleep. The colorful pieces may also serve as decoration in a baby's room. Size is 4" x 3". Launch date: 2009.

Designed to teach children about the names of animals, nature and wild living things, these plush toys have a suction cap on the back and can be hung from smooth surfaces. The animal figures might be used to tell stories or teach kids about the food chain. Size is 4" x 3". Babies can pick up, drop and bite these toys easily. Launch date: 2009.

Designed to teach children about numbers, mathematics and calculation, these plush toys have a suction cap on the back and may be hung from any smooth surface, including windows. There are 13 pieces in this series, including – 0-9, +, -, and =. Launch date: 2009.

This product is designed to teach children the English alphabet, spelling and pronunciation. It has a suction cap on the back and can hang from any smooth surface. The colorful product has a small size of 4" x 3". Launch date: 2009.

Folkmanis’ whimsical Frog in Spaceship puppet is designed to be easy to operate. Kids can simply insert their fingers like putting on a glove and wiggle them to make the frog steer his spaceship and flop his legs. Frog flies a one-of-a-kind spaceship created from soft, shiny silver fabric. Launch date: January 2, 2009.

The magician wearing this well-traveled top hat has a few tricks up his sleeve. When one pokes a hand up through the velvet hat, out pops a fluffy white bunny waving his paws and twitching his nose (with movement from the magician, of course). It "actually works well as a puppet but looks like a stuffed animal," Elaine Kollias, marketing director for Folkmanis, told TDmonthly. This product received Dr. Toy and Parents' Choice awards in 1999. Launch date: January 2, 1999.

Fiesta is all fun and games with its new Peek-A-Boo Plush, a plush toy and soft pillow in one. When one unzips the pillow, the animal peeks out. When turned inside out, the pillow becomes a stuffed animal. Each animal is about 18” tall. The pillow 14” by 11”. There are 12 animal styles in all. Launch date: 2009.

Billions of people a year catch the cold. Now you can get one too. Kids of all ages and degrees of health can learn about the Common Cold with this cuddly 5" to 7" companion (about a million times the actual size of the virus). Also available are three tiny Common Colds in a Petri dish for 12.95 and a Giant Common Cold (15" to 20") will be available starting April 10, 2009. Launch date: 2006.

This soft, plush puppy features an earthy color palette, is made with organic cotton, and has pure silk ribbons. Launch date: 2009.

Children and tweens will appreciate the soft and cuddly tails and fun, bright colors of the Fluffy Tails line (animals are 9" in size and the fluffy tail stretches even longer!).  The animals include Purrrfect (pink, cat), Fluffee (white, cat), Fancee (violet, fox), Prancee (turquoise, horse) and Merri (mint/lime, monkey). Launch date: 2009.

Quentin is part of line of colorful and quirky eco-friendly plush designed to encourage children toward environmentally friendly initiatives. The Eco Snoopers characters each have their own stories. Launch date: April 22, 2009.

This bright, cuddly butterfly measures 3" x 5".

These plush robots are available in 10 varieties. Each Bunk Bot has its own story and REAL ROBOT JOB printed on its hang tag. "In addition to industry-standard polyester fiber, each Bunk Bot is stuffed with a microscopic amount of AWESOME. This ingredient gives it an edge over most plush toys," Jason Hilbourne, general manager of Huge Factory, told TDmonthly. Launch date: November 15, 2008.

This colorful collection of fruits and vegetables from the HABA garden consists of a leek, a banana with a removable peel, two carrots and two tomatoes with rattles, all in a wooden basket. The fabric items are machine washable. Launch date: 2009.

Frederik has a removable saddle, bridle and magnetic clover leaf. The horse is machine washable and can be air dried. Launch date: June 2009.

Sweet soft Sissi pony is an accessory to the HABA 12” dolls. Sissi has a chenille mane and the entire pony is machine washable (gentle cycle, air dry). Launch date: June 2009.

This is a heat and cold therapy item that looks like a stuffed animal and is part of the Toasty Wild Animal Collection. It can be a calming, soothing aid for children, and also may comfort those with Alzheimer's, anxiety or sore muscles. The elephant can be warmed in the microwave to deliver heat therapy, or placed in the freezer to deliver cold therapy for up to two hours. Launch date: 2007.

From the Toasty Barnyard Collection, this plush pig has a herb and flaxseed filling and is designed to deliver heat and cold therapy by being warmed in the microwave or placed in the freezer. Launch date: 2007.

This soft, plush duck functions as a source of heat and cold therapy. It can be warmed in the microwave to deliver heat therapy, or frozen to provide cold therapy for up to 2 hours. Launch date: 2007.

Aurora is commemorating Lamb Chop’s 50th Anniversary with its special edition puppet (15” MSRP $13.99), closely fashioned after the original Lamb Chop that caught the eyes of millions of viewers. The larger brown eyelashes, more prominent nose, and ribbed white sweater with three red buttons are a reminder of the Lamb Chop who have kept us laughing for more than 50 years.

Aurora released an adorable Bush Baby that retailers couldn’t keep on shelves. Now there are four more styles available, in vivid colors, and each of them makes funny sounds when squeezed. The bean filled plush animals (8”, MSRP: $6.99) have big ears, long tails and wide eyes and colors include Violet, Hot Pink, Turquoise and Lime Green.

Eco-friendly plush is generally double or triple the cost of its non-green counterparts. However, Aurora’s soybean based eco-plush line, which won a BabyZone.com Amazing Toy Award, retains quality without compromising affordability. Varying from 7.5 to 12 inches, suggested retail prices range from $15.99 - $39.99, respectively. The line includes arctic and endangered animals like polar bears, penguins and pandas, as well as jungle animals such as gorillas, monkeys, elephants and hippos.

Jazzy, a cuddly lion featuring long curly locks of hair, is one of the most adored characters from Aurora’s line of Flopsies. Kids love hugging and squeezing this beautiful ten inch, free-standing plush lion. For 2009, three vivid and colorful additions — called Mop Tops — are joining Jazzy’s “den” -- also ten inches in size, the violet, turquoise and pink assortment make sound when squeezed. Kids and tweens will appreciate choosing from the colorful options to match their personal style.

For the award winning category, Baby Talk, Aurora has released two new items for 2009 including My First Pet and My First Tool Kit. The plush carriers (6 inches in size) are easy for children to carry with them. Included in each carrier are four related plush characters (two to four inches depending on the character). Each plays a sound and has its corresponding name embroidered on the side, which teaches learning and development by association of words, shapes and sounds.