Electronic Gadget Lab - Cool Toys for Kids

Now that Halloween is over, I'm getting excited for my favorite holiday of the year. We celebrated with a "warm-up" turkey dinner with just the basics yesterday after church. My taste buds are getting anxious for all the extra fixins we'll have on the big day.

Not only is it time to start planning the menu, it's also the season for me to make sure my Christmas gift list is in order. I'm sure it doesn't surprise you that I do most of my Christmas shopping online. I love that I can avoid the crowds, get exactly what I want, save gas and money, and I especially love it when the UPS truck starts making frequent stops at my house.

Last year, Neal didn't know what he wanted for Christmas. And so I did some of my own searching. I wanted to replace my husband's cool but outdated geography game and so I was checking the National Geographic website (who made the original) and the Discovery Channel Store. I couldn't find what I was looking for but I came across a very cool Electronic Gadget Lab from the Discovery Channel Store. (I shopped online but I also get their catalog because they have really cool, educational toys and if my children are going to look longingly through a toy catalog, I would prefer it be this one . . .)

Anyway, the Electronic Gadget Lab was a huge hit. It uses snap together pieces to create over 100 gadgets such as a siren, door bell and fan. It includes everything you need with the exception of a couple of AA batteries. I especially like that my seven-year-old son can do it on his own. The manual has clear pictures and detailed but easy-to-read directions. The lab does have small parts so we keep it away from the little ones.

Within a day or two after Christmas, Neal followed the directions in the enclosed manual and had put together all the different gadgets. I worried that he'd put it away and never use it again. Fortunately, I was wrong. He still plays with it frequently--using the pieces to create the same gadgets and even trying to figure out new ones. Neal loves that by putting the components together in different configurations, he is making something new and making something work. I love that it is teaching him something. The price wasn't ridiculous either.

This year, we'll definitely be checking out the Discovery Channel Store for our Christmas gifts again.

US Talking Puzzle - Fave Educational Toy

For Neal's second birthday we took him to Toys R Us so he could pick his own birthday present. We had wandered through the entire store and the only thing he wanted was a big red ball. We were already in the check-out line when he spotted the United States of America Talking Puzzle. He got so excited and we were excited too--it was an educational toy. And it was a map. Maps have special importance and significance at our house. My husband LOVES maps. There is always an atlas in our bathroom.

However, the box contained the warning: ages 4 and up. Neal was just turning two. There were really small pieces. He was a pretty careful kid and rarely put things in his mouth. And I was a pretty careful mom (possibly a little too attentive to my first child). So, we bought it.

Within a week, Neal could put it together by himself and knew the names and capitals of all the states (he could already talk very well). He referred to it as "The United States of America--Neal's Map". He carried it around to show everyone that came over to visit. They were all so impressed. We were so proud and positive that we had a genius child on our hands.

Amberly was eighteen months old when she pulled out the US Talking Puzzle. She examined all the pieces in her chubby little toddler fingers and put them carefully in their places. Thomas was not quite two years old when he discovered the puzzle. He too could do it right away and learned the names of the states.

The puzzle spends most of its time on a high shelf in the kids' closet (it does have a lot of little pieces). They can't reach it by themselves. Last week Lilly pointed to it and asked me to get it down for her. She asks for it every day. She puts it together over and over and repeats the names of the states as she places each state in it's spot with her stubby fingers while I watch to make sure she or Molly doesn't swallow West Virginia.

And so, either I have four genius children (which I'm inclined to believe) or nearly every toddler could and would master this toy if given the chance (more likely).