April 2011 Notable Toys — Christmas

15" Julius. For the "collect them all" Julius Paul Frank fan. The modern design aesthetic of Paul Frank Industries.™ & © 2009 Paul Frank Industries LLC. All Rights Reserved. Used Under Authorization.

These holiday hats come in festive colors with a white faux-fur trim. Press the trim and the hat dances about while playing the classic tune "Jingle Bells." Requires 3AA batteries.

Flarble is The Smallest Flying Toy in the World. Flarble is safe to fly indoors and are decidedly low-tech, but requires no batteries, and no on-line or computer connections whatsoever. Newly patented and 100% made in the USA. "The single thing that sets our toy apart is that there ARE no other toys like ours, and it's absolute universal appeal," Gordon Bopp, President of Rock Creek Molding Inc, told TDmonthly. Launch date: February 2011.

Children can pretend to be Santa in his board game for 2 to 4 players. Players choose a sleigh and start at the North Pole. They race around Santa's Workshop trying to load their sleighs with 5 toys. Once a Santa has 5 toys, he flies off to the town to deliver the toys. Along the way, Santas encounter fun activities, such as belting out their best "HO HO HO" or Singing their favorite Christmas carols. The first Santa to deliver all of his toys wins the game. The game comes with board, four sleighs, four tokens, 20 toy cards, rule and die. Game play is approximately 30 minutes.
— This product won a Mom's Best Award in January 2011. mom's Best Award winning product evaluators are moms, dads, grandparents, childcare givers and teachers who use these products in real life situations and then offer valuable feedback on how these products performed in everyday living for families. 

"The Magical Tale of Santa Dust - A Christmas Tradition" is the Christmas book of 2011. It is the magical tale of two small children who, on Christmas Eve, sit by their window eagerly awaiting the arrival of Santa, only to be bypassed on his yearly journey. Save for the antics of a giggling, bungling Elf and some magical dust, their Christmas dreams come true. "There has never been a book written about the lure of magical Santa Dust. Each book will be packaged with one pouch of Santa Dust," Patricia Cardello, owner of Magic Dusts, told TDmonthly. Launch date: October 2011.
Awards: Santa Dust - 2008 National Stationery Show in New York City "Best New Product of the Year" Nominee; 2009 Seal of Excellence Award from Creative Child Magazine.