Christmas Toys My Kids Love

What kid doesn't lust over a mini battery-powered Hummer? But even if they didn't cost more than my own real-life minivan I wouldn't get one because the kids would play with it for all of 15 minutes before boredom set in. Here's what's been successful with my kids--with an emphasis on budget--are there great toys you've discovered?

13. Rescue Heroes The boys loved these guys when they were younger, and I thought the names were a hoot (Willie Stop the police officer and pictured at left is Marshall Law). Perfectly sized for small hands, they stand up easily and come with moving accessories. Most are priced under $10, and I've even got them on sale for $7 with a bonus Rescue Hero cartoon video. Caution: don't get sucked into the big stuff like the aircraft carrier, I got one on sale for $30 (normally $70) and they hardly played with it. It's all about the figures.

12. Fashion Pollys Also a figure toy these are tiny plastic dolls with removable rubber clothes--sounds rather risqué I know, but they're great. Kids love tiny, girls love dressing things and these are perfect. They start at about $3.60 and Disney has a line that has been especially popular with our four year-old that is slightly more expensive (of course). Beware, they do break: heads pop off, normal wear and tear, but they last long enough to get your money's worth and then break, which is a great thing because if toys didn't break once in a while we'd be swimming in them.

11. Paper Airplane Books Spencer and David love their books and fancy paper for making airplanes. Simple, creative, instructive, what more could I want?

10. American Girls If you aren't already familiar with this mega-merchandising nightmare you must have spent the last decade lost in the desert. It's the dolls and the books and the clothes and the accessories and the vacation packages and . . . you get the idea. The dolls are $100 (gasp) and I hear people claim to buy them for their heirloom quality. To me, we buy toys for playing not for passing down so I refuse to pay that much for a doll. However, the stories are great and the girls love them so if she has to have one, go with the mini dolls (less well advertised because they want you to buy the big stuff) which are tiny replicas of the bigger models and come with tiny books. As I said, kids love tiny and though at $20 they're still a rip-off, at least you won't have to take out a second mortgage. Also, Grace used to get the catalog and cut up pictures and paste them on cardstock to make her own paper dolls. It kept her busy for hours. Just a thought . . .

9. Wood box My boys love to rip apart and to build, kind of a yin/yang thing, so we got Spencer a little tool box through Toys to Grow on ($30) and a box of wood pieces to build things with. We replenish the wood box from my Grandpa's garage where he always has pieces laying around. It's for all those MacGyvers-in-training out there.

8. Camping gear With four kids and so many relatives giving gifts it feels like my kids have too many things for their own good so I really enjoy giving them practical stuff such as camping gear. The kids love pretending with it when they're young and using it when they're older. We start with $5 mess kits at Walmart, headlights, rain ponchos, space blankets, camping pillows and camp stools then work up to sleeping bags, air mattresses and back packs. It's practical to have as emergency equipment for your family--you don't want to be caught in a winter power outage in Alaska without emergency gear.

7. Art supplies A Tupperware container filled with new crayons, glue, stencils, glitter, colored pencils, their very own scissors and markers are great for small kids. Older kids love books on how to draw things, drawing paper, pastels, fancy colored pencils, water color paints, even this fabulous easel Costco had on sale last year for $37 (with rebate) which I can't seem to find online now. Kids love creativity and having their own supplies.

6. Puzzles These are very popular. The young kids start with the 24 piece varieties, work up to 60, then 100. Now the boys love these puzzles from Tamagami that are colorful and interesting to look at and are hard enough to keep them occupied for many many MANY hours. Big bonus. They retail for about $7. If your kids aren't into puzzles, try sitting down and doing one with them, get them started with the border, hand them all the pieces for a specific area. They'll catch on and get into it.

5. Kid Knex This is another toy for younger children, the big colorful pieces are fun to put together, they come with buggy eyes and feet and are great for making tiny rocket ships. The price is right, most sets are under $15. They have Knex toys for older children (age 7-ish) and then for older children (10+) too. We have two different sets and the Kid Knex got more play time than the older kid set.

4. Books on tape My kids love having a child-sized portable tape recorder and books with tapes. They'll carry them around from room to room, listening to their favorite stories. Favorites include the Curious George series, anything Disney, Nice New Neighbors by Aliki and Bill Peet stories.

3. Dishes and pots and pans A big Tupperware container with dishes, wooden spoons, cookie cutters and teapots is her favorite toy. Kid Connection at Wal-Mart has reasonable prices (usually under $10) for various kitchen sets such as a toaster/blender combo or a stove top that really lights up and makes sizzling sounds. Now does it also make an authentic burning smell?

2. Games: Loot, Memory, Battleship, Clue, Monopoly The best games are cheap and have been around for ages. The children probably play chess more than anything but every once in a while I'll see a new card game that they like, like Loot Uno or Labyrinth. I just found a Pirates of the Caribbean version of Life which the boys will love. The original was fine, but with a pirate theme I see great possibilities.

1. Legos What could I say about Legos that hasn't already been said? Don't buy Legos. They're outrageously expensive. Go with Mega Bloks, a cheaper knockoff. You may find a Mega Bloks set that's expensive, like this Pirates of the Caribbean set (once again, thanks to Disney merchandising) but the basic sets are reasonable like this one.

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