Day 1
Hi, I’m chicky and I’m a hatching egg toy. Well, actually, I’m a chick in a hatching egg! I’ve arrived with my owner. She can’t see me and I can’t see her, but we are both excited to meet each other in the coming days.
Day 2
She has followed the instructions on my box and put me in a jug of water. I hope she has enough patience to leave me here until my egg cracks naturally!
Day 3
I am growing, so my shell has started to crack! I am getting excited about being free and so is my owner, but I have a bit more to grow before I have completely cracked out of my shell.
Day 4
Since I’m still covered in water, I’m continuing to grow, which is forcing my shell to crack even more. It won’t be long now until I have completely cracked out of my shell.
Day 5
Yippee, I’ve completely hatched out of my shell. The water is a bit murky as my shell has been dissolving in it. Still, I am happy to be out. I hope my owner doesn’t leave me in this jug of water for long. If she does, I’ll continue to grow and I won’t fit out the neck of this jug, so she can play with me.
Day 10
You guessed it! She didn’t remove me and I’ve been growing. Today, she poured the water out and tried to lift me out, but I’m bigger than the mouth of the jug. She will have to wait about 10 days for me to shrink back again and fit out. Next time, if she wants to grow me back to this size or even bigger, she should put me in a bowl of water and not a jug!!
Thanks for reading my diary. I’ve loads of other brothers and sisters who are looking for a home to hatch in, so click on the link if you are interested in buying a chick hatching egg of your own!
xx Chicky
I recently received an e-mail asking for toy advice and suggestions for a little boy who was turning 2. The customer wanted to spend €15 or less. Since I put quite a bit of work into the reply, I thought I’d share it here too. That way, if other parents, aunts, uncles, friends or grandparents are struggling to know what to buy for a little boy or girl in their life, they may find this helpful too.
Hi Lisa,
Thanks for your message earlier today and sorry I’m only getting around to replying to it now.
Most toys are certified 3 years + as it’s easier to get a CE cert for this. Given that you already bought the finger torches (which are recommended for children aged 3+), I will recommend some toys which are in this category as I think younger children would love them too. I hope that’s ok.
I know my daughters prefer getting 2 or 3 little presents to open than one large gift, so I’ve started with some cheaper toys.
These finger monsters are funny little fidget toys. They are squishy and you can stretch their arms. They cost €1.50 each.
I gave my 2 year old niece one of these dinosaur eggs for Christmas. She loved it, although she didn’t have the patience to wait for it to hatch fully and ended up helping it to hatch out. If he has patience then he might enjoy watching the egg crack and a dinosaur emerge (it takes about 48 hours from when you first put it in water). If he doesn’t have a lot of patience, then maybe a wait another year! I now also stock them in Chicks and Unicorns.
These little clockwork trains are fun to watch. I don’t think he’d manage to wind it up but he might enjoy chasing it?
My nephew has loved his flexi robot for years. He’s 4 now but he’s had it for a couple of years. They are really simple toys but they help develop imagination and role play
Have you got any castanets? I stock 5 designs, including this blue fish one Out of all the musical instruments you could have in the house, the noise from these is the most bearable!!
This Animal Domino Game is a great ‘first game’ for small children.
These chunky colours from Djeco are great for little hands to manage
If he likes cars, he might like these Mini Cooper pull-back cars. Pull them back and they will zoom off on their own.
Or, with the weather (hopefully) improving, you could send him outside with this drum of street chalks!
This wooden truck is gorgeous or I stock this lovely wooden fire engine (which is slightly over your current budget at €17, but I thought I’d slip it in!!)
I stock several 2-piece puzzles for 2 year olds like this one
This magnetic fishing game is also really popular with this age
You said he likes cars, trains, trucks etc. You can find my full range of these here
Finally, if he likes stories being read to him, I stock several lovely board books (the pages are also cardboard) like this one
If you are still struggling to know what to buy him and want to splash out with more money, why don’t you consider buying a ‘mystery box‘? These cost €35 and I do the choosing for you! The bonus is that you will receive at least €50 worth of toys in the box. Since he is turning two, if you choose this option, can you confirm whether you are happy for me to put in toys that are CE rated 3+. Like I say, a lot of these toys are designed with younger children in mind.
It’s hard for me to just suggest a handful of toys, so if none of these suits your little boy, check out my full range for two-year-olds here. I’m sure something will jump out at you that you’ll know he would love.
Finally, don’t forget that I’m happy to wrap presents before dispatching them. I know this means that you don’t get to see the present before giving it or you don’t get to add anything you already have, but if you don’t mind about that, simply choose ‘gift wrap my present‘ and I’ll do it for free.
I hope this helps a little. No pressure to buy any of these. Thanks again for your enquiry. I hope your little man has a great birthday.
Suzie
It was a rainy day and the girls were getting bored, which meant they were fighting non-stop. I stopped what I was doing and took a deep breath. This is usually followed with some cross words about how lucky they are to have each other and to have toys in the house and why can’t they find something to work on either together or separately and stop fighting. However, on this particular day, I decided to handle things differently. I forget about the washing and went to my store room and came back with a huge bucket of Fischer Tips. The girls’ faces lit up. They dug their hands into the bucket and loved the sensation of the Tips moving around and making space for their little hands. They loved the bright colours and they loved the idea that we’d get to sit down and work on a craft together.
I showed them the instructions on how to make a unicorn with them. My eldest (aged *8) wanted to try it while my youngest was happy to design her own creation, which was good, as the 8 year old needed a little help with the unicorn.
Each Tip is made from corn starch, so they feel a bit like Chikateeze Crisps! The set comes with a plastic knife for cutting them. We also found that the scissors were great for this. If you lightly moisten them, they stick to each other. Can I stress the lightly!! Wet them too much and they dissolve and shrink! The set comes with a little sponge which we kept damp and we touched the Tips off it to dampen them.
The girls and I worked with these for about an hour before getting tired of them. We made the unicorn and a little girl. We also made an island and some cool patterns.
There’s so many in the bucket that by the time we had finished, it looked like we had hardly used any! About a week later, we took them out again but this time we stuck them to cardboard to make 3D posters. This went down really well too.
I stock these in 2 sizes – a small bucket with 300 Tips for €7.99 and the larger bucket with the unicorn instructions and 600 Tips for €14.99.
These Fischer Tips are compostable and environmentally friendly. If your pet accidently eats one that falls on the floor, it won’t cause them any harm.
One final word of warning – don’t leave the damp sponge in your bucket of Fischer Tips after you have finished creating with them. We did this recently and all the remaining tips absorbed the moisture and shrank!
I hope your experience with Fischer Tips is as positive as ours.
Happy Creating!
Xx Suzie
I don’t know the number of times people have commented to me that they have so many toys and their children are still bored! And usually, I agree, I have the same problem in my house, which I’m working through and trying to rectify! In this process, I’ve discovered that there are 4 main reasons why this is a problem in our houses (and it’s not that we don’t have big enough houses! Sorry if you were looking for an excuse to buy a bigger one!) and if we can apply these reasons and use them, I think our problems would be minimised.
-
We don’t get rid of unused toys
My eldest girl has never really played properly with dolls, yet, when her sister (who loves dolls) got a doll’s buggy, she wanted one too. We foolishly invested in one for her, which has hardly been used. It took up a massive amount of room in the playroom for years and has now progressed to the attic. I haven’t the heart to part with it yet – just in case she wants to play with it in the future (yeah right!) and because I spent a lot of money on it. I need to come to terms that it was a bad choice and someone else will get play value out of it and a charity will be benefit, if I just pass it on.
Our playroom is also full of other toys that aren’t played with but which I’m afraid to pass on, in case my children notice and are annoyed. I do sweep through the playroom every now and again and move things to the charity shop, but I should be doing this more regularly. My kids are terrible at spring cleaning and have a hoarding nature (I tell myself that they will grow out of it). Maybe the problem is that I’m not teaching them how to let go of toys that they don’t use any more. I sneak them out of the house but they don’t learn a lesson in Spring Cleaning. If you are interested in getting some tips on Spring Cleaning Toys, check out this blog.
-
We buy the wrong toys
Like the buggy example above, we are prone to buying our kids toys that they are not drawn to. This can happen for the following reasons:
- You played with a similar toy when you were a child and loved it and you want your child to experience what you felt
- You never had that toy but always wanted it, so you bought it for your child
- Everyone in your child’s class has one and they want to fit in
- Another child in the family has one, so you’ll buy two to avoid fights
Whatever your reasons, take a step back before purchasing toys and really think about the child (and not the toy). What does that child like to do and play with and is this new toy something similar? Impulse purchases fill our playrooms with junk a lot of the time, that’s why toy shopping online works better. It gives you space and time to really consider the purchase and the person you are shopping for.
-
We have unrealistic expectations of toys
Often I get so frustrated. My kids complain about being bored and yet they have a room full of toys. Somehow, I expect the toys to relieve them of their boredom. Sometimes they do, but more often they don’t. My kids aren’t crying out for more toys or games. When they are saying they are bored, they are crying out for help, not toys. Sometimes this help comes in the form of me. They want my time and attention. This doesn’t have to mean I stop doing what I’m doing and do what they want me to do. Often it means, I find a way to include them in what I’m doing. Sometimes it means taking out a book or a game and reading or playing with them. Sometimes I need to teach them again how to use their imagination with it comes to playing with the toys they have. I have to show them a toy they haven’t played with in ages (and sometimes I need to play it with them initially). We also need to teach our kids that boredom isn’t a bad thing. Often mine will complain about being bored when they are tired. Overstimulating them with toys isn’t always the answer. Teaching them to enjoy a slower pace is. Teaching them to look around them to find something to keep them happy is. This can be sitting on the sofa with a book, going outside to play, working on a puzzle. The more we expect toys to fulfil boredom calls, the more our homes will spill over with toys that don’t get played with.
-
We feel we owe it to our children!
I never knew what ‘Mothers Guilt’ felt like until I became a mum. If we work full time, we feel guilty that we aren’t spending time with our kids and often overcompensate by buying our children gifts to show them we love them. If we are ‘full-time’ mums, we feel our kids are missing out on social interactions and variety of toys that creches have and we feel like our kids won’t develop the same way so we buy educational toys to compensate. We need to get over ourselves. Take a step out of the pressure zone or the keeping up with the Jones’ zone and realise that our kids will turn out fine if they just receive birthday and Christmas presents. We don’t owe our kids more than this.
I am still working on this whole process but I feel like I’m heading in the right direction. My concern now isn’t on the quantity of toys my kids own but on having the right ones for each of them.
Xx Suzie
My niece is three and she spends countless hours playing with food. Thankfully, for her mum’s sake, it’s not the real stuff (she eats that very well!), it’s the wooden variety. Last Christmas we gave her the Étagère Muffins Set which comes with a wooden stand and six wooden muffins/cupcakes.
What I really like about this set, apart from it being super pretty, is that the tops of the muffins are interchangeable from the cupcake cases. There are two of each designed cases – green, yellow and mauve and there are two of each of the three styled buns – displaying different coloured icing or sprinkle designs. They are held together with Velcro.
This is particularly good for encouraging colour recognition and verbal communication so for example:
She : Would you like a cupcake?
Me: Yes please
She: Here you are (passing me one)
Me: Oh, do you have any chocolate flavoured ones?/Ones with less sprinkles?
She: (going back to her stand, has to recognise the brown coloured one and bring it over) Here you are.
Me: Oh, my favourite colour is yellow. Can I have one with a yellow cupcake case?
And so on…
Since the set comes in a flat box, I decided that I would assemble it before giving it to her, so she could play with it as soon as she opened it. It was easy to assemble, although you do need a screwdriver. The instructions were clear and it only took a couple of minutes.
What we loved about this set:
- There are enough cupcakes for several children to play with it at the same time
- It’s wooden so much harder to break than plastic alternatives
- The stand is really pretty and it means the cupcakes get put back after being played with
- The toppings and cases can be interchanged
- It’s very well priced for what you get.
If you are interested in purchasing one of these sets, they cost €27 here
I also stock a large selection of play food here so if the muffins don’t take your fancy, you might find something else!
Enjoy the fun!
Suzie
We are nearly finished our first week of the school holidays. I always look forward to my children being off school. After all, it means no more rushing in the mornings, having to prepare school lunches and overseeing homework. During term time, when I’m looking forward to the holidays, I forget that the school holidays come with their own set of challenges.
It didn’t take long before this conversation was heard in our house:
Child, “I’m bored”
Me, “What would you like to do”
Child, ” I don’t know, all my toys are boring”
Me, “What about seeing if there are any kids on the road who want to play?”
Child, “No, boring”
Me, “What about we play a game together?”
Child, “Games are BORING”
Me, (feeling a bit exasperated, but trying not to raise the tone of my voice) “How about you tidy your bedroom?”
Child, (now getting even more frustrated) “No, I hate cleaning my room”
I continue with another couple of suggestions and then I have to leave the room before I start shouting back at her about how spoiled she is to have so many options and they all can’t be boring.
I spotted this post on the Mums and Tot’s Facebook Page and it got me thinking.
So, I’m going to put together a ‘Bored Box’ every night for my kids. Then the following day, once they start complaining about being bored, I’ll produce it and hopefully, the situation will be diffused early.
I think one of the biggest problems most Irish children have these days is that they have too many options and they feel overwhelmed with what to choose. I know that there are so many toys in our playroom that haven’t been looked at in a long time. Often, the fun they bring has been forgotten. My aim is to retrieve some of these toys/puzzles/games/books every night and put them in the Bored Box. I’ll also add some chores that need to be done (I probably need to add a monitory value to these, in order for these to be done!) and on the days were I know little has been organised, I’ll add some trips into the Bored Box on paper, which my kids can choose, if they wish. I want to continue encouraging some learning over the holidays, so if the forecast is going to be wet, I’ll add in some educational games online.
My children are 6 and 8 years old. Here’s a list of some things I hope to put into the box. I plan to put 5 or 6 options in every day. If it’s not something physical (like an actual toy), then I’ll write it on a piece of card and put the card in. Obviously, for different ages, you put in different things.
- A jigsaw puzzle
- A book or comic
- craft materials
- Some Lego or K’nex
- Baking suggestion (especially if we are having people around or going somewhere that day)
- A trip to the forest to make a den
- An outdoor toy – learn to skip, do some street art with chalks, fly a kite ….
- The option of going to a charity shop (I do a deal with my kids that if they bring 5 items they don’t want any more, I’ll buy them one thing in exchange at the charity shop)
- Scoot or cycle to the newsagent to buy an ice-cream or treat
- Do a science experiment (google for some age appropriate ideas)
- Do some role play (I recently attended an anti-bullying course and was encouraged to role-play situations t prepare my kids for dilemmas they might find themselves in. Since then, I’ve googled for role play ideas and there are loads there. It doesn’t have to be about bullying, it could be about anything your child is going to face in the coming year)
- Buy something in preparation for the next school year (It’s always good to spread this out over the summer as between books, uniform, pencil case, school bag, coat etc, it adds up, so buying one thing a week makes it less work and spreads the expense)
- Do some messy play (eg make some slime or play dough)
- Go to the beach
- Cover school books
- Put up the tent and play in it.
- Do an educational game online. We like Space Hangman and this one. (If you’d prefer not to do this online, there are loads of educational games available to buy)
- Choose a colouring picture online and colour it.
- Do a job around the house or see if a relative has any jobs that need to be done
- Go to the library
- Get the bus instead of driving
- Go on a nature walk
- Prepare a meal together (it’s even better if you let them choose the meal)
- Encourage them (with some other kids) to write, direct and put on a show.
- Put on some music and dance
- Go to a playground you haven’t been to in ages
The school holidays are great because you get to spend lots of time with your children. The school holidays are difficult because you have to spend so much time with your children. Try and get the balance right. Do things that you’ll enjoy yourself and it will make spending time with your kids even better. But also be aware that you don’t have to spend 100% of the time with them, especially if they are older and don’t need to be supervised all the time. It’s good for them to play on their own and to think up things to solve their boredom.
Enjoy your Summer,
xx Suzie
This week there is a 10% discount on Djeco Toys and Games, so don’t miss out on a great bargain! Offer ends on Monday 2nd July.
Djeco is a French brand of toys and they certainly have an ‘ooh la la’ effect! Their designs are quirky and pretty and their toys encourage creativity and learning.
Every time we go on holidays, I bring a selection of Djeco toys and crafts to keep my children happy on the plane or in restaurants and they never disappoint.
Below is a selection of pictures of some of my stock, but check out my full range of Djeco Toys here.
Enjoy the discount,
xx Suzie
In April, I wrote a very popular blog on ‘Travel Toys for Pre-School Aged Children‘ and now, with the school holidays looming, I thought I’d write one with older children in mind. So, if you have primary aged children and you’re looking for some small, light toys or games to bring on holidays with you, here’s my favourite.
Are We There Yet? 
Travel Card Game. This game is perfect for families to play on long car journeys. €5
Djeco Mini Cards.
These come in boxes with 30 cards and a pencil and cost €6.99. Choose from:
- Where are you? (finding items in detailed pictures, similar to Where’s Wally)
- Mazes Puzzles
- Colouring Detailed Pictures of Animals or Flowers (you’ll need to bring your own colours)
- Children’s Sudoku
- Wordsearches
- Spot the Difference Puzzles. You can choose between the blue pack or the pink pack.
- Guess My Name
A Kite. 
Perfect if you are planning on spending time on a beach. The ones I sell cost €7 and are small and light for travelling with.
Arty Party Boxes.
These little boxes are perfect for creative children and come with colouring pencils. They cost €4.50. Choose from:
Gepetto’s Penguin from Eureka! 3d Puzzle
This wooden puzzle would be perfect if you have to spend some time indoors due to weather or sunburn. Pop out the pieces and slot them together. It costs €3.99
On the Go – Scratch Art.
I love these pads of scratch art. They are perfect to bring out in a restaurant while you wait for your food to be served. They cost €7.75 each. Choose from:
Putty Peeps. 
Again, this is great to play with when you’re waiting for food to be served. The tin costs €7
If your kids are going to be in a different bedroom to you, it is nice to leave them with a torch so if they wake up in the dark, they can use it to reassure themselves or find their way to the bathroom. These ones cost €6.50
Great Little Games.
I stock 4 different games which come in small boxes, easy to travel with. They cost €4.50. Choose from:
- Matching Flags (this one needs tablespace, so not suitable for restaurant play)
- Shut the Box
- The Beetle Game
- Words
On the Go – Colour by Numbers.
I love these pads because they come with colours and they are super easy to travel with. They cost €7.75 each and you can choose between a boyish themed one or a girly themed one.
Yahtzee.
This game is brilliant for older children and the adults will love it too. It costs €15.99
Pick Up Sticks Game.
This is light and small but great fun to play. It costs €4
Mini Construction Kits. 
These wooden kits allow you to make vehicles from the wooden pieces without the need for glue. They are reduced to €4.50 each.
Cluedo – Grab and Go. 
A travel version of Cluedo that costs €10.99
Creativity Placemats.
If you are planning on eating out a lot and you have kids aged 7+, then I’d recommend these really cool placemats for your child to be working on while they wait for the food or wait for you to finish eating. They cost €12
Boggle 
Great fun for older kids and adults to play in the evenings. It costs €14.99
Tintastic Games
These games are also great for older children and adults. Each little tin costs €5.99. Choose from:
Grabbit
This is a fun game that you can play around a table with the whole family. it costs €12.50
I hope this blog has helped you and that you all have lovely holidays, whether you are staying in Ireland or going abroad.
xx Suzie
I’m delighted to be able to inform you that Lottie Dolls have added a new doll to their range this month. It’s the Lottie Royal Flowergirl and she was worth the wait!
Like all Lottie Dolls she has a girl shaped body and is proportionate to a 9-year-old girl. This doll has blue eyes and dark brown long hair with a fringe.
Her dress is knee length and is cream with a pink hue. She wears white tights and has little cream flat shoes. She comes with a headband made up of roses and a small bouquet of flowers. She also has a handmade wedding card (Lottie sized) to go along with the pretend play she will inspire.
Lottie Dolls are made by Donegal company, Arklu so when you buy a Lottie doll from my website, you not only support my Irish business but this one too.
This Lottie Doll is very pretty and she would make an ideal gift to give to your own flower girl at your wedding. She is part of the Gold Collection of Lottie Dolls and Retails at €24.95. Buy your Lottie Doll Royal Flowergirl here and don’t forget that if you spend over €25, delivery is only €2, so why not invest in an extra outfit for your Lottie to avail of this cheap delivery rate? The full Lottie range is available here.
The summer holidays are just around the corner now and maybe you’re already thinking that it will allow you extra time to spend with your kid. Perhaps you want to encourage them educationally, over the holidays and prepare them for the next class they will be going into. In today’s blog, I want to focus on younger children – approximately aged 2 to 6 years. During this period, children in Ireland are encouraged to recognise letters and know their name and sound. For some, this can come very naturally, but for others, it can be difficult to grasp. Here are some fun educational toys that will help your child learn what each letter looks like and from there, you can teach them the sound it makes.
- Alphabet Peg Puzzle – €7.99
As soon as children can speak, we tend to teach them the alphabet song. This is also the perfect time to show them what the letters look like. This fun wooden alphabet puzzle from Melissa and Doug Toys has each letter cut out of the board. It’s also great for your child’s fine motor skills as they attempt to place the letter into the correct letter shape. As you do this with your child, tell them what the letter name and sound is. Underneath each letter is a picture of something that begins with that letter. So, for example, underneath Z is a picture of a zip. This will help reaffirm the sound z makes.
2. Octaland Flash Cards – €9
Flashcards are a great way of learning letter recognition and sounds and I love that they are card sized, so they are easy to slip into your bag if you’re going out and need to distract your kid for a few minutes while you wait in the car or travel on a plane. What makes these flashcards even more impressive is that you can view them through an app on your phone or device and they turn into 4D form. So, for example, if you view the L card as it is, it will have L and the word Lily and Librarian. The picture will be of a young lady in a library. Look at the card through your phone and she becomes a moving cartoon character working at her library desk. Rory the Racecar Driver actually drives a car around the track and the Daisy the Dancer does a little hip-hop dance.
3. See and Spell Wooden Puzzle – €30.99
Once your child has learnt what each letter looks and sounds like, it’s time to introduce blending sounds. This See and Spell Puzzle from Melissa and Doug Toys is a perfect way to introduce this. Each board has a picture of a word and letter shapes for your child to find the correct letters for. It’s wooden, so it’s super durable and it will last through several kids.
4. Magnetic Letters – €14.99
These are for children aged 3+ and are ideal if you have a metal front to your fridge or freezer. It means you can put them up and you’ll find that your child will gravitate towards them. Initially to learn to letters but over time, they will ask you how to spell words or they will put letters together and sound them out. If you don’t have a metal front to your fridge or freezer, I’d recommend purchasing this magnetic whiteboard for your child and they can play with these on it. This set comes with capital letters and lowercase letters.
5. Alphabet Stamp Set – €22.99
For older children who love making cards and gifts, this alphabet stamp set is lovely. It has all the letters in lower and upper cases, so your child can stamp out and spell out whatever words and sentences they wish.
6. Djeco Wordsearches – €6.99
This pack of 30 wordsearch cards is designed for children aged 6-10 years. As your child searches for the words, they will be sounding them out unconsciously.
7. Boggle – €14.99
Boggle is a really fun, fast-moving game which you can enjoy playing with your children aged 8+. Find as many words as possible from the letter combinations drawn out.
No matter what stage in letter recognition and phonics your child is at, I’ve something to help in a fun and enjoyable way.
Happy Learning,
xx Suzie