Grandparents can be sure of choosing the coolest toys and games for their grandchildren this holiday season, with a little help from Grandparents Magazine's 3rd Annual Holiday Gift Guide. The online guide is available free to grandparents, parents, teachers, and others at http://www.GrandparentsMagazine.net.
Wayne, PA (PRWEB) November 26, 2004 -- Grandparents can be sure of choosing the coolest toys and games for their grandchildren this holiday season, with a little help from Grandparents Magazine's 3rd Annual Holiday Gift Guide. The online guide is available free to grandparents, parents, teachers, and others at http://www.GrandparentsMagazine.net.
Each year, Grandparents Magazine sends a large selection of the year's new toy offerings to its nationwide force of kid toy-testers, who try out the products and report their findings. Only the best make the list.
This year's Top 10 selection includes some familiar brand names from past years, including LeapFrog and K'nex. Other highlights include "retro" toys such as Cabbage Patch Kids, as well as innovative new offerings like the Robosapien remote-controlled robot and Vtech's V.Smile learning system.
In addition to Top 10 lists for both younger and older kids, the guide covers this year's best choices in dolls, educational toys, pretend play, board games, building toys, puzzles, crafts, and more. Special breakouts list the best bargains (under $10) and splurges (over $50). Other sections look at DVDs/videos, computer games, and video games.
Following are the two Top 10 lists; for detailed reviews from the testers, go online to Grandparents magazine.
Grandparents Magazine 2004 Top Gift Picks
For children ages 8 and up:
- Best Grandparent/Grandchild Toy/Activity: Jet Hawk 1 Air Powered Glider (Uncle Milton)
- Best Building Toy: Big Air Ball Tower (K'nex)
- Best Doll: Nellie (American Girl)
- Best Craft Kit: Beauteous Beads (The Bead Shop)
- Best Boy Toy: Alien Racers (MGA Entertainment)
- Best Girl Toy: Disney Princess Jewelry Box/CD Player (Disney)
- Best Electronic Gadgets (tie): Intellivision 25 (Intellivision) & Spiderman (Jakks Pacific)
- Best Travel Toy: Video Now (Hasbro)
- Best Educational Toy: iQuest (LeapFrog)
- Best Interactive Play: Robosapien (WowWee)
For children ages 8 and under:
- Best Toddler Toy: Parents Busy Park Playground (Parents Magazine Play+Learn)
- Best Educational Toy (infant/toddler): Little Touch Leap Pad (LeapFrog)
- Best Building Toy: Zoo (Playmobil)
- Best Educational Toy (preschool/school-age): Vtech V.Smile (VTech)
- Best Game: Balloon Lagoon (Cranium)
- Best Doll: Cabbage Patch Kids (PlayAlong Toys)
- Best Craft Kit: Magic Touch (Pamela Drake Int.)
- Best Electronic Gadget: Leapster by LeapFrog (LeapFrog)
- Best DVD (tie): Elf & Shrek 2
- Best Travel Toy: Video Now Jr. (Hasbro)
Links to purchase all items can be found on the site. Because some products are still undergoing testing, Grandparents Magazine will continue to update the gift guide as new information comes in.
About the Gift Guide
The gift-testing process begins in February, at the American International Toy Fair in New York City, where manufacturers show off their newest offerings for the holiday season. Grandparents Magazine looks over the selection and then contacts suppliers, asking them to submit their best to be kid-tested. Hundreds of entries come in each year. Children test the toys at their homes, at their grandparents' homes, at day-care centers, in kindergartens, or in public school settings. Parents, grandparents, and teachers send the results to Grandparents Magazine, which posts the best in this annual Gift Guide.
About Grandparents Magazine
Determined to give grandparents an online resource to find fun, free things to do with their grandchildren, Katrina Hayday Wester launched Grandparents Magazine, the only online magazine for grandparents. As founder and CEO, Ms. Wester operates the entire site on her own. The online magazine offers articles, song lyrics, links to children's activities, sweepstakes, and more. Members receive a monthly newsletter with articles, recipes, craft ideas, and other features. The best part is that membership is free! Visit http://www.grandparentsmagazine.net and join in on the fun ... for grandparents, grandchildren, and anyone who loves them.
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