The Hot Wheels Ultimate Garage Play Set is the Hottest Garage in Town!‏

   

Hot Wheels has been a staple brand for many families since the 60's, and continues to produce creative race track sets and dinky cars. The Hot Wheels Ultimate Garage is one of their latest play sets and is their largest garage set ever made! It is a little boy's (or girl's) dream! 

The Hot Wheels Ultimate Garage is geared for ages 5-10 years, but personally, I think many kids 3+ would enjoy this just as much. In addition to the garage itself, the set includes 5 Hot Wheels dinky cars and 1 rescue helicopter. The garage has 36 parking spots spread out over 4 separate parking levels. Within the garage are several mini activity centres such as a fire hall, a gas station and a tune up shop which feature coordinated lights and sounds to enhance play.  There are other smaller, more basic centres throughout the play set such as a restaurant and other places to cruise around.  

The helicopter has a helipad to land on, which also has lights and sounds to compliment use. The helicopter has a rescue mechanism underneath for it to pick up and move the dinky cars around the playset or wherever your little one's heart desires.  There are 2 working manual elevators on each side of the structure to move cars up and down each level, which is great if you have more than 1 player. 

There are a number of entry/exit points on this play set, and 2 tall race track ramps. 1 is a side by side dual race track where a pop up sign will show who the true winner is. The other is a spiral ramp allowing you to race your car down from the fourth parking level and challenges you to beat getting bitten by the shark at the bottom. Will you be fast enough? 

This play set is assembled in typical Hot Wheels fashion, by clicking and snapping track and pieces together. It is easily assembled, but it will take you some time due to its size and various components. Besides the obvious, one of the best things about this play set, is that you can connect your existing Hot Wheels tracks to this one, and expand the garage even more! You could end up having an entire Hot Wheels community if you had a couple of other track sets to attach! For a demonstration on how this set is assembled, you can visit this Hot Wheels link on YouTube. 

The Hot Wheels Ultimate Garage is quite large in size and takes up a fair amount of floor space. They don't call it "ultimate" for nothing! It's an ideal toy for siblings to share, or to play alongside a friend or two. The size of it allows one or multiple players to get the most out of this play set, practically guaranteeing hours upon hours of play. As always, I love toys that promote creativity, free of electronic devices and this one definitely does that. You could play simply with what is included in the set, and/or use your imagination to create all sorts of additional scenarios. It comes with an on/off button and can double as a storage place for 36 cars in the parking spaces and more in and around the base of the structure. It's also a fabulous starter kit given that it comes with 5 Hot Wheels cars and a helicopter! 

The Hot Wheels Ultimate Garage requires 3 AA batteries which are sold separately, and you will need a Phillips screwdriver to gain access and to secure the battery compartment. If you plan on storing this play set in its assembled state, it may pose a challenge due to its size. The box that it comes in is huge and comparable to the size of some flat screen TV boxes. You will have to get creative in wrapping the box if you don't want to use up a whole roll of wrapping paper. 

The Hot Wheels Ultimate Garage retails for approximately $149CAN/$100USD. Prices will vary from store to store. As always, I recommend using holiday sales and/or price matching to your full advantage to get the best price possible. While this play set is a bit pricey, it is like no other. Especially so given the fact that you can re-purpose existing Hot Wheels track sets by attaching them to this Ultimate Garage. When you factor in the going rate for things like video games, it's not all that much more and fosters imaginative play without using a device. 

All in all, I think this is a hit! 

This play set could very well be the ultimate gift this Christmas! 

***** These  views are mine, and mine alone. As with anything,  you are responsible for assessing whether this item and/or activity is safe and suitable for your specific needs. InfoMommy does not make any warranties of any kind, expressed or implied, and assumes no responsibility and/or liability for any actions taken as a result of this blog post *****

Turbo Flip Thomas is Definitely Turbo!

   

Thomas the train has been a fan favorite in many a home over the years, including ours. I was curious when I heard about the Thomas & Friends Turbo Flip Thomas. Would it do what it claimed it could do? 

The Turbo Flip Thomas does not disappoint. When they chose to include the word turbo in the name, they weren't messing around! It flies quite quickly across a flat surface like hard wood floors, and has some real guts. I'm not a car racing enthusiast but I am going to steal and modify lingo from the racing world and say that this Thomas goes from zero to turbo in practically zero seconds! He is very responsive. 

The Turbo Flip Thomas goes forwards, backwards, pops wheelies, and does impressive back flips. He even knows when he's tipped over onto his side, saying phrases like "Uh, this is not part of the routine", and "A little help please?".  He is controlled by a remote control that is perfectly sized for little hands. It gives them the power to control Thomas & his tricks. The best part about the remote control is that if you lose it, or if your child is too young to maneuver it, you can still use the toy. You can get it to work pretty much the same way by depressing the numeral 1 on the side of the train. While it won't be completely controlled by the child like it would be using the remote control, Thomas will perform a sequence of pre-programmed stunts. 

Turbo Flip Thomas also has a light which projects train tracks in front of him onto the surface he's driving on. While it's not as visible during daylight, it does look pretty darn awesome in a darkened room or in low lighting!  Turbo Flip Thomas is geared for kids ages 3+, and both my sons enjoys this. The older one is able to maneuver the remote control better than my almost 3 year old and can pull off some pretty wicked stunts with this action packed little railway star. 

It seems quite sturdy overall, although the back door and the white engine steam on the top of the train that are used in the back flipping might wear out over time seeing as you have younger ones playing with it who are generally known to be less than delicate. I do find this toy to be quite loud, but it does come with an on/off switch. With that being said, whoever said Turbo meant quiet? While it does include the 4 AA batteries for Thomas, it does not include the 2 AAA batteries for the remote control device. Given the retail price of the toy, I would have liked the remote batteries to also be included. 

As previously mentioned, he boots it good across a flat surface. It does go pretty quick as well on low pile carpet but not as quick on medium pile.We don't have long shag in our home but my guess is that it probably wouldn't go nearly as far on shag, simply because of the type of carpeting.  Driving it over medium or longer pile carpet might also drain the batteries quicker as he would be working extra hard at reaching turbo speeds.

Turbo Flip Thomas retails for approximately $49.99USD/$59.99CAN. 

All in all, I think this toy is a hit! It's interactive and a real hoot. I'm sure it'll even amuse some of the adults! I'm starting to think that maybe I should be a toy developer... They must have a lot of fun experimenting and testing out their products as they go! 

***** These  views are mine, and mine alone.  As with anything,  you are responsible for assessing whether this item and/or activity is safe and suitable for your specific needs. InfoMommy does not make any warranties of any kind, expressed or implied,  and assumes no responsibility and/or liability for any actions taken as a result of this blog post *****

Be the Sidekick with PAW Patrol - Mission Chase!

      

As most of you know, we are huge PAW Patrol fans. Chase has been the top dog for my boys from the get go, and they were pretty pumped to learn that there was a new interactive Chase toy on the market!

The PAW Patrol - Mission Chase toy is geared towards kids ages 3-6 years of age. The toy affords them the opportunity to work interactively with Chase on 24 different rescue missions which are based off real PAW Patrol episodes. While on these "missions", children are encouraged to assist Chase by using a variety of gadgets in his transforming backpack, while following Chase's 130+ phrases and instructions. 

To activate a mission, simply depress his badge. Chase will announce the mission and then provide instruction and direction on how to help him solve the issue. Inside of Chase's transforming backpack is a spring loaded net launcher. Simply depress the proper button on his backpack and it will release and shoot the rescue net, which flies a few feet. The other side of his backpack contains a real working searchlight which doubles as a megaphone. For those worried about noise from the megaphone, fear not - it isn't loud like a real one is! The searchlight is pretty cool during night-time play. Like the net launcher, the searchlight and megaphone are mobilized by pushing the appropriate buttons for activation. The gadgets can then be easily folded back into their slots, and secured by gently closing the backpack hatches.

Chase moves his head while talking and will sit and stand up. He also likes to howl in approval and excitement throughout play. Chase will help your child by telling them which gadget to choose if they initially choose the wrong one. This is great if your child gets easily frustrated. Chase encourages them to try again and succeed.  The toy also has an on/off switch, which most parents appreciate on children's toys. 

Some young children who have limited dexterity might have a bit of difficulty reloading the net until they get the hang of it. The searchlight is not super bright but I suspect that it was done that way to conserve battery power. Seeing as it's geared for kids ages 3-6 years, for me, it's not an issue. It would be nice if it came in a bilingual version but that might already be on the table for the next generation of this toy. It is quite large in size, comparable give or take, to the proportions of an adult basketball. 

Overall, the PAW Patrol - Mission Chase toy is pretty awesome! It is unique and interactive, and I'm sure kids will love it. PAW Patrol - Mission Chase requires 4 AA batteries to operate, and the batteries are included with this toy. It retails for approximately $79.99CAN/$59.99USD and is available at most toy and department stores.

While it is definitely not the cheapest PAW Patrol toy on the shelf, you can save yourself on the cost by watching out for holiday sales. This is the perfect time of year to save money on toys! 

***** These views are mine, and mine alone. As with anything, you are responsible for assessing whether this item and/or activity is safe and suitable for your specific needs. InfoMommy does not make any warranties of any kind, expressed or implied, and assumes no responsibility and/or liability for any actions taken as a result of this blog post.*****

How Are Babies Made? These Are the Books for You!‏

   

With all of the talk and controversy surrounding the new sex ed curriculum being implemented in schools across Ontario this year, it got me questioning how I was going to have these types of conversations with my own kids. I always knew the day would come when I would get questioned, and I knew it would probably happen in the most awkward of locations. After all, isn't that what kids do? LOL

While perusing resources and print materials online, I came across a book called What Makes a Baby written by Cory Silverberg. That led me to finding his other book Sex is a Funny Word.  I was starting to read up on it when Cory Silverberg just happened to be promoting his latest book on CTV's The Social. When co-host Cynthia Lloyst, a trusted sexual information guru raved about both of these books, I knew I had to get review copies so I could check them out for myself!

Cynthia Lloyst was right! At least in my opinion! 

What Makes a Baby is geared for kids from preschool ages up to about 8 years. This book is written in such a brilliantly simple way that allows it to be applicable to any child, no matter how they were conceived or brought into this world. Or what the child's religious or cultural standards and practices are. It is purely informational, and does not contain any reference to intercourse. It does explain birth, both vaginal and C-section, but is not graphic in any way. It does not contain any images of any genitalia. The birthing explanations are tastefully done. So no matter if you are more conservative, or more open, it is equally helpful. 

Sex is a Funny Word is geared towards those 8-10 years . Each chapter in the book starts off with a cartoon about the topic and ends with questions to spark more thought and conversation about what was covered in the chapter. The chapters cover topics such as what sex is, learning about your body, touch, boys and girls, and even covers things like having a crush on someone, love and relationships. Like What Makes a Baby, it is also simply written for this age group as well. It does not include information on ejaculation or menstruation but it does show cartoon images of what a penis and vulva (commonly known as vagina) look like and that hair will eventually grow there. It does talk about touching yourself, but it is very simply explained, and once again, is not graphic at all. 

From what I understand, the author Cory Silverberg will be working on a follow up book that will be geared towards ages and stages beyond the pre-pubescent years. I look forward to seeing that book as well, and would be a great tool for parents whose kids are moving into the pubescent phase of their lives. 

I love that these books are inclusive, no matter where you come from, how you were raised, how you were conceived, how you were born, or what the dynamics of each child's family is. It is broken down so simply that I wonder why it never occurred to me before to explain it this way. 

I highly recommend these books! Whether you purchase the titles, or get them from the library, they are great resources. Even if there was something in the book that you felt might be too taboo for you or that you aren't comfortable with your child reading, you can use them as tools for yourself. You can read them through on your own and pick and choose which topics would be most suitable and helpful for your particular family. You can also tailor the questions they ask you so that you can get the most out the conversation with your child when the time comes to do so, in a way that you feel most comfortable with.

These topics can be extremely awkward for some, if not most parents. Save yourself the hassle and check out the books! I highly doubt you'd be disappointed! 

What Makes a Baby retails in both Canada and the US for $16.95. Sex is a Funny Word retails for $23.95USD/CAN. 

***** These views are mine, and mine alone. As with anything, you are responsible for assessing whether this item and/or activity is safe and suitable for your specific needs. InfoMommy does not make any warranties of any kind, expressed or implied, and assumes no responsibility and/or liability for any actions taken as a result of this blog post.*****