Helpful holiday shopping hints

Try explaining to kids who believe in Santa that due to outsourcing, most of the toys they want this are no longer made at the North Pole, and as such may be safety hazards. It’s far easier to guide them in their selection of items to add to the Christmas list from the beginningthat way there are fewer awkward questions to answer later. If you plan carefully you can also have the added benefits of protecting the environment by buying less “stuff,” having fewer items to put together and wrap, and saving money. Here are five strategies to get you through this unusually difficult shopping season this year:

1. Top-load the list with books, DVDs, video games and CDs. All of these can be purchased at your local mall, and are far easier to hide from prying eyes than large toys. Or you can order them from amazon.com, barnesandnoble.com, or target.com, most of which offer free shipping for large enough orders, and when the packages show up on your doorstep while you’re at work and the kids notice them before you do, they’re far more likely to believe that they’re something you ordered for yourself than if the box is marked “KB Toys” or “Toys R Us.” Another benefit to this strategy is that they don’t need to be put together in the middle of the night on Christmas Eve.

2. Board games are a great way to spend quality time with your kids. A good old Monopoly set or a game of Clue will get lots more use than the newest Bratz dolls or Transformers, and since they need you to supervise anyway you can be sure they’re not putting the pieces in their mouths. Board games are often used as loss leaders for toy stores, so if you read the ads carefully you can get a bunch of them very inexpensively.

3. A search on backtobasicstoys.com came up with over 50 items that were marked “Made in the U.S.A.” There are several old favorites here in the “classic toys” category, as well as some innovative new products, especially under the category of creativity. This site has an equal mix of items appealing to boys, girls, and both, and carries toys that are appropriate for children aged newborn through tweens. Lead time on some of these toys can be long, though, so order sooner rather than later. Let your kids browse this site and come up with a list of safe, enjoyable toys. (I explained to my kids that Santa’s factory had overstock so they sold some of their extra toys to toy companies, so they wouldn’t ask why, if the elves had made their toys, the identical items

 

Three Transformers Action Figures That Stand Out

Transformers The Movie has hit the cinemas hard. Fans raving about it and transformers action figures are sold like crazy. There are hundreds of action figure items sold in toy stores around the world. Some are great and others are not even worth looking. Out of these hundreds of transformers action figures some really stand out among fans. In this article we’ll review three of them. It’s hard to pick just three out of tens excellent candidates but here it is.

1. Transformers Movie Leader Optimus Prime Action Figure This figure really similar to the movie version of Optimus Prime so it really makes a nice collectors item. Don’t get me wrong though, your children will love to play with just as much. Optimus truck form looks cool and his robot form is even cooler. The electronic lights and sounds add a realistic adventure. The Ion Blaster is great too. It takes a little while to transform Optimus to robot form so smaller kids may find it too challenging but for bigger kids the challenge may prove to be a lot of fun. Too bad it’s made of plastic. If only it was made from diecast it would have been perfect.

2. Transformers Cybertron Supreme Class Cybertron Primus Action Figure This thing an amazing, fun, cool looking and huge transformers figure. Would advise it for older children though because transformation is quite complex ( but still fun ). However, for younger children transforming Primus can be quite a challenge. They even might get frustated in trying and break them instead. Anyway, this is certainly a great toy for grownups or older kids. One last thing: if you buy it, play with it; it is a real shame to keep this one in the box. Or better yet buy two, one to keep in the box and one to play with. If want to display it you won’t be embarrassed. This figure is made with good material, excellent build quality, great details and finish too. The great details allows you to keep transforming Primus over and over again and the pieces will still fits tightly.

3. Hasbro Transformers Ultimate Bumblebee Action Figure Another great transformers figure for collectors. Just like the Primus figure this one is also too difficult for children to change modes from robot to car and vice versa. And just like the other figures this one also a very cool figure that you can proudly display on your office desk, A/V rack or shelf so your friends, kids, neighbors or anyone can admire it.

This is probably the biggest transformer figure i’ve ever known. It is one of the most detailed too. Plenty of articulation points and moving pieces makes it very pose able. The left hand has articulate fingers and an opossable thumb, so you can pose it while picking flowers or something like that. It makes different sounds in robot and vehicle mode, the eyes and headlights are blue and very intense, while the backlights sparkle in red as they should. It also has speed sensitive engine sounds when it is in camaro mode Conclusion? This is a must buy for Transformers lovers. If you buy it you will never regret it.