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Wooden Toys
Sugar Editorial Picks
Toy Box: Eco-Friendly Musical Toys
It's becoming easier than ever to turn your little drummer boy into an Eco-friendly musician with all of the wooden instruments currently on the market. Revving up to celebrate Earth Day, we noticed that there are several toy manufacturers taking the lead in creating products for a variety of skill levels. Plan Toys, the makers of this great percussion set that encourages lil ones to compare and differentiate sounds, specializes in brightly colored wooden toys for kids up through preschool age.
Toy Box: Automoblox
Encouraging your lil wrecking crew to have at a brand new toy may sound like a recipe for disaster, but that's just what the team behind Automoblox had in mind when they developed their line of vehicles. Each automobile comes with a wooden body and plastic wheels, windows and people that are interchangeable between vehicles. Using a color and shape coding system, the plastic pieces can be used to create new, modern designs each time.Ecotot: Wishbone Bike
Running bikes, long popular in Europe, have become all the rage on this side of the pond with their wooden frames, low seats and ability to instill balance in their users. One of the latest versions to hit the stores is the Wishbone Bike ($250), a three-in-one unit that converts from a scooter, to a first running bike and eventually to a full size running bike for older children. With its three positions, the bikes are designed to take kids from toddlers to kindergarten.
Toy Box: Damhorst Toys
I still have a soft spot for traditional presents when gifting a newborn. I look for classics that the parents will cherish now and the child will continue to enjoy.
The family-owned Damhorst Toys began making wooden puzzles and stools in 1971.
Haba Toys Show the Soft and Colorful Side of Hard Wood
The company that makes Haba toys was founded in the 1930s and you can tell — in a good way. The line of wooden playthings offers the simplicity of a low tech era coupled with bright and lively colors. There aren't any bells, whistles or knobs on them so your little one's imagination will have to do most of the work.
Lil Tip: Make Your Refrigerator a Classroom
Every evening when I come home, I am torn between rolling around on the ground with my toddler or getting her dinner on the stove. Now, I do both at once.
Melissa and Doug's magnetic letters ($10) allow her to learn her ABCs and colors while I start chopping.
Ecotot: Choppers Made for and Powered by the Friendly Skies
Young children always seem fascinated by objects flying in the air. You can fly a kite or craft a paper airplane, but wooden solar powered helicopters are hard to come by.
Give your tot a lesson in solar powered energy with a sun–powered chopper ($32) in your own backyard.
Toy Box: Vilac Balloon Powered Boat
The days of "Rubber Duckie, you're the one — you make bath time lots of fun" may have gone down the drain, but that doesn't mean your child's nautical entertainment needs have to end.
The Vilac Balloon Powered Boat ($9) offers a retro option for playtime in the bath, pool or pond. I'm no mechanic, but it appears the balloon lets out air through a little tube and propels the all-wooden boat for some simple, all natural fun.
Simple or Swank: Block Wagon
One of my earliest memories is stacking up buildings with wooden blocks. A cinch to construct and even easier to tear down, they were and still are some of the best entertainment for tots. The only thing that could improve them is a carry–all to store them in.
Toy Box: Uncle Goose Alphabet Blocks
If you want your tot to be versed in several languages, introduce them to wooden blocks from Uncle Goose.
To learn about the bilingual baby blocks, read more
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